In a world where digital media and digital advertising are overshadowing many traditional forms of media more and more each day, there are some aspects of print advertising that have stood out even in the year 2018.
Print advertising can immediately legitimize any identity by being including within a prestigious and trusted publication, while also being placed next to some of the biggest brands of the world. Some smaller or newer companies may not be interested in print advertising because they are focusing on the wide range of digital and social marketing techniques, still the truth is they probably could not afford print spots even if they were interested to begin with.
Recent stand out print ads
Towards the end of 2018, a few print ads were noticed by the masses. The first, that brought a print ad to the masses within a certain community, was the front page of the New York Post ad buy by Supreme. (as pictured on feature image). By buying out the front page of a newspaper their ad was seen by all of the newspapers subscribers, but also by the masses of the street within every newsstand of New York city. Whether he was inspired by Supreme or not, Kanye West bought front page ads on close to 10 different newspapers around the world a month later to advertise his Yeezy line. This isn’t the first time the Yeezy brand has used creative advertising techniques for exposure.
Print Ads creating digital exposure
Each of the mentioned print ads reached beyond the specific print publications audience by exponential numbers, because the story of their ad buy was covered and shared around the world. When focusing on the Supreme front page; their ad buy was featured on countless websites and other digital media platforms as a story in its own. In addition the story and physical copy were shared between friends extensively. Because of the bold decision to buy out the front page with a single advertisement, and make that ad nothing but a blank page with a small logo, it became a story in its own, this spread the actual ad way beyond the publications circulation. The style of the ad and even the placement completely fits Supremes shock factor marketing methods. Supreme has never been involved with the advertising tactics used by many other modern clothing companies such as Facebook/instagram or display ads. Even their emails are bare bones and rarely sent.
Covers as Advertising
Although it is not technically an advertisement, the front cover of any print publication generally gets the most attention and exposure by both the audience and others. When you consider a single person on a cover, which most publications tend to do, it turns into an advertisement for that individual. When a known individual is featured on the cover of a print publication, it becomes news that is shared and promoted by many other sources. The individual featured usually shares the cover as an accomplishment too.
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Check out the ads taken out by Kanye West and Eminem that are mentioned above:
