Think Digital Is Where It’s At? Think Again.

Advertising has changed, although the need for it has not.

While digital advertising seems like an intelligent thing to do, digital is not enough. Why? Consider the story of the retail giant, J. Crew.

J. Crew’s Struggle to Maintain Brand Identity

J. Crew opened its first retail store in 1989 and, in the early 2000s, turned mainstream men’s clothing into a “lifestyle brand.” The ad executives had brilliant marketing and created a story “across the entire customer experience,” rivaling competitors like the Gap and Banana Republic.

But, in 2017, the executives were pushed out by a digital presence.

J.Crew began sending out email blasts and following customers with web banner ads, pivoting to focus on sales and coupons. Rather than boosting sales, it downplayed the brand. People now got into the habit of waiting for a deal or a coupon, creating discount shoppers, and bringing down the value of the clothing.

In 2020, when COVID-19 hit, shoppers only supported brands they felt connected to, and J.Crew was no longer in that category.

Integrating Print with Digital Marketing

Companies that find the most success integrate digital with their printed pieces, focusing on awareness and connection. Here’s how.

1. Pair direct mail with your digital presence.

Use postcards to grab your audience’s attention and pique their interest in your offer. Then, lead them to your social media with a QR code or call-to-action to your website.

2. Don’t tell them you’re great. Show them.

Show people what you can do for them by showing your product or service in action.

This means instead of using pictures of your product or service in your direct mail, use pictures of smiling people using the product or service. Then, for further information and illustration, have a call to action in which they go to your website.

3. Take your social media further.

Your social media needs to do more to educate, inform, and inspire people to use your brand.

Your advertising doesn’t need to produce the whole brand story but must provide a positive ROI whenever the company interacts with people.

No matter what your ad campaign looks like, remember to combine digital and offline advertising for the best results. We can help you with your marketing story by providing high-quality print marketing solutions on time whenever you need us. Contact us today to learn more!

Exponential: Transform Your Brand by Empowering Instead of Interrupting

by Jeff Rosenblum

Great brands stand for more than just cool products and clever advertisements. They inspire audiences. They enrich communities. They energize people. They move people’s lives forward. Most importantly, great brands don’t just interrupt: they empower. And that empowerment leads to exponential growth.

Over the past 20 years, Jeff Rosenblum and his team at Questus have created content and campaigns for Apple, Capital One, Disney, The NFL, Samsung, Starbucks, Universal, Wyndham, Verizon and many more of the world’s most iconic brands. In Exponential, he turns that wealth of experience into a comprehensive program for modern advertising and business strategy.

The book makes a passionate case that business leaders need to shift away from interruptions and superficial messages to focus on empowerment, culture, values, leadership, and transparency. With engaging stories and revealing brand examples, Exponential shows how brands can:

Produce exponential growth by shifting from interruptions to empowerment
Create brand evangelists with content that informs and inspires
Embrace transparency and culture to tell authentic brand stories
Generate massive ROI throughout the purchase journey

Exponential is about storytelling done right, and the book practices what it preaches. It’s packed with colorful anecdotes from Rosenblum’s own career and clear examples of brands that grew exponentially. With a light touch, it unpacks heavy insights from neuroscience, market research, and big data, outlining what it takes for brands to truly be great and not merely say they are great.