What is Offline Marketing?

Offline marketing is any type of marketing that is not done through the internet. Offline marketing may involve different mediums and formats including billboards, print ads, TV and radio commercials. This type of marketing is also known as traditional marketing.

The different forms of offline marketing have unique pros and cons. For example, TV commercials reach a broad audience and can be very engaging when done correctly. On the flip side, these commercials can be costly to produce and air.

Nevertheless, offline marketing has various advantages that brands cannot afford to ignore.

The Advantages of Offline Marketing

Great for targeting offline audiences.

Offline marketing helps you target offline audiences based on where they are relative to your business. This is very effective, especially for local businesses.

For example, if you have a local restaurant, you can use flyers, local events and other offline marketing strategies to target your potential customers. Moreover, you can advertise on trains and buses, targeting people as they go about their daily commutes.

Creates an authentic experience.

Unless you can offer free samples through a screen, the consumer experience of digital ads is limited. In addition to branding on social media, you should place your brand out there.

Offline marketing can create an in-person experience with your target consumers. Take events such as concerts, trade shows, meet-and-greets and company dinners, for example. This can leave a more memorable impression of your brand.

Supports your omnichannel marketing efforts.

Consumers spend a significant portion of their time online, but not all of it. We still look out of the windows during our daily commute. Offline marketing campaigns can increase your touchpoints with target consumers.

As you strive to build your omnichannel campaigns, offline marketing can help reinforce your brand messaging beyond the internet.

That’s why you need to run offline marketing alongside your online marketing strategies. This can be effective marketing for SaaS, ecommerce and other digital businesses. Your site’s URL on the side of a building or a radio host spelling it out can still drive traffic to your website.

Offline Marketing Ideas

Below are some offline media channels that your business can use. Depending on your marketing team’s budget, you can utilize any or all of these.

Out-of-home advertising.

If you’re a brick-and-mortar business, you inevitably have out-of-home advertising. If you are a restaurant owner, the front of your restaurant is already out-of-home advertising.

The interior branding is out-of-home. Your staff’s uniform is out-of-home. That Happy Hour poster you hang on the wall is out-of-home.

This type of marketing can establish a physical location’s presence within the locality.

Billboards, trains, trucks, buses, poster ads and sign spinners are also out-of-home media.

Out-of-home ads can be placed within a radius of your shop, raising brand awareness within your serviceable area.

Apps and digital services can utilize out-of-home as well. If you want people to download your application, you can simply use a QR code generator for apps. This will provide you with a QR code that you can print on posters, billboards, T-shirts or any other out-of-home advertising method you use. This makes it easier for prospects to access and download the app.

Print ads.

Print ads are ad placements on print publications. These include newspapers and magazines.

Magazine placements are a more strategic approach. Each magazine caters to a particular interest. Business, sports, photography, you name it. So if you’re selling DSLR cameras, you can place a print ad in a photography magazine.

There are different types of print ads, including display ads and advertorials.

Hand-outs.

Hand-outs are promotional material handed to passers-by. These include flyers, discount coupons, pamphlets and, in some cases, business cards.

Hand-outs can be as simple as business cards with necessary details of your business such as contact details, website link, etc. To keep up with the trend, you can even create digital business cards online that lets you share your contact details and business information with prospects in the most convenient manner. You can distribute flyers and business cards in malls, grocery stores, street corners and events.

Events.

As mentioned earlier, events create an offline experience for the target consumer. These can include concerts and trade shows.

There are different ways to utilize event advertising.

The first method is to create an event yourself. You can then market the upcoming event with online and offline marketing tactics.

You can also attend events or become an event sponsor. The general idea here is the same; get in front of and connect with your target audience.

TV and radio ads.

TV and radio ads raise brand awareness to an audience that doesn’t use the internet much. These ads can also engage with the intended audience considering videos and audio can be more engaging than text alone.

TV and radio ads usually consist of 15-30 second spots. They’re played during commercial breaks or in-between programs.

You can strategically buy ad spots where an ideal audience of yours is watching. For instance, if you’re a vitamin supplement, you can place your ad during the commercial break of a health and wellness program.

TV and radio programming.

Apart from ad spots, you can also be featured in TV and radio programs. A TV or radio channel can dedicate a program segment to your brand. These kinds of promotions take various forms.

A TV or radio host can have an interview with a representative on your show. A game show can feature your product as one of the prizes, just like the show “Family Feud” did with Toyota.

The host can try your product live or on a prerecorded package. There are loads of ways to go about these promotional segments.

The Final World

Offline marketing can cater to an offline audience. It can also support your online marketing efforts. Additionally, traditional marketing can provide an in-person offline experience that isn’t possible through the screen.

Offline marketing methods include out-of-home advertising, print, hand-outs, events, TV and radio advertising.

Therefore, it’s time to change course if your business focuses only on digital marketing. Online and offline marketing should be used together for the best results.