When the Internet caught on, information marketers began a mad rush to digitize all their products and eliminate their “big box” packages. Hooray! No shipping costs. No fulfillment to deal with. This is great.
One little problem, though. Sales numbers began to fall in some instances. People still wanted the physical product. They wanted something they could hold in their hands. They craved that feeling of the validation of their purchase by having something they could actually show their spouse or business partner.
It’s kind of tough to show off a bunch of bits and bytes. So the pendulum is beginning to swing back in the other direction. Smart marketers are recognizing that they’re leaving a lot of money on the table by not offering their customers physical versions of their products in addition to the digital versions.
This digital dilemma also applies to the marketing channels that top information marketers use. The superstars in the information marketing industry know that there’s a whole world of offline people who are interested in their products. They understand that if they limit their marketing to emails and websites that great opportunities are being wasted.
Email is a great tool. But it shouldn’t be the only tool in your arsenal. You need to figure out how to reach those people who would be interested in your products that aren’t Internet savvy yet. Don’t overlook offline tools like direct mail, postcards, trade journal advertising, etc. that can significantly contribute to your profitable bottom line.
