In 2016, small and medium sized businesses (SMBs) and the customers that they serve tend to connect digitally. For example, social media is used by SMBs as an essential means to keep in touch and promote interaction (as well as sales transactions).

But the rise of social media, e-commerce websites and digital advertising doesn't negate the need for quality marketing materials. Those posts on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Pinterest or Instagram are certainly valuable and extend the brand messaging of companies. But social posts eventually fade like news headlines and are not something customers can put in their briefcases and backpacks to take home and refer to later.

Only printed materials such as brochures, sales sheets and other marketing collateral can provide in-depth reading for customers, while feeding the senses that they will eventually use to make purchasing decisions.

Visuals Add Verve

It's no secret that great brochures and printed marketing collateral have looks that grab people. This is why industries in which products and services sell because of visual experiences, such as hotels, tourism and automobiles, rely on great printed pieces.

The New York Times pointed out recently that, for luxury properties in New York City and beyond, brochures can set one property apart from all others. As such, real estate firms know that marketing collateral, when done right, stirs up interest and activates buyers. Beautiful brochures and their visuals show off a properties’ stunning views or details of their cozy feel. They can even close deals if they convey details like the warmth of fireplaces and other assets that make houses for sale feel like homes.

Carrying the Brands

Another convincing argument in favor of printed marketing collateral came from author Gal Borenstein, in his article “8 Reasons Why Marketing Collateral Still Matters”. Borenstein, who authored the book Activate! Power Up Your Brand to Win in the Digital Age highlighted a few important things.

“For companies of nearly all sizes, marketing materials — even print materials — are a must-have,” Borenstein said, also pointing out that printed marketing collateral not only serve as sales tools, but brochures and printed leave-behinds “carry the brands”. Collateral, he also wrote, can best tell your companies’ stories with compelling designs, written words and graphics in way that other marketing tools like tweets and Facebook posts often cannot.

But it’s also true that in today's market flexibility is important. With the help of the right partner, you can develop brochures and collateral for your company or for your clients that shine both in print, as well as on smartphones or tablets.

Looks are One Thing

There are other things that good marketing collateral can accomplish for a business besides highlighting brands and logos. As Tech Times wrote recently, Sony has put together a downloadable brochure for gamers anticipating their next game console, the PlayStation VR. Promoting its new capacity for virtual reality gaming, Sony’s brochure not only aims to quench gamers' thirst for the next release, but also provides information on new specs and the PlayStation experience. By issuing this well-crafted piece of marketing collateral and tutorial, the game maker primes its customers to buy and play.

Another great task for your marketing collateral is to break through to untapped markets. But we're not talking about just scooping up new customers, but rather new populations. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Hispanic Americans accounted for over half of recent U.S. population growth from 2000 to 2010, constituting a large new segment of American consumers. To stay competitive, large and small firms in sectors including healthcare and food service have begun to develop marketing collateral in Spanish and other languages, vastly broadening their marketing reach.

Whether the marketing collateral for your company or your clients aims to wow potential customers or inform them, working closely with a partner to get the best quality output will help brands achieve more for their investments.