On any given day, I spend a lot of time staring at screens, and I bet that you do too.

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, work, learning, and living routines have been transformed and frequently require digital technology, which means added screen time on several devices. That can lead to a sense of digital fatigue.

While technology helps us stay connected, here is a trend that might surprise you: As people have shifted to remote work environments, they’re relying more on print to offset that fatigue.

Print is a medium that several associations also rely on. In an October survey, ASAE’s Communication Professionals Advisory Council found that 70 percent of respondents use magazines and journals to disseminate content to members.

What Is the Value of Print?

As an association executive and leader in the paper and wood products industry, I subscribe to many trade publications that reinforce my feeling of being a part of a larger professional community.

I also realize that at this moment, associations are being called to do more with less as resources and budgets decrease due to the long-term effects of the last year.

Print could also be one of your most powerful sources for direct engagement with members. Ask yourself: Do you know the tangible value of print?

As we all look at every single line item in our organization, use care and caution. When you see print publications and immediately think “going digital” or “reducing issue rates” will be a source of savings, you may miss another opportunity.

Print could also be one of your most powerful sources for direct engagement with members. Ask yourself: Do you know the tangible value of print?

Print pays off for advertising partners. People trust print ads more than digital ads, and people also have better recall in print compared to a screen and print advertising lasts longer. In last year’s Association Communications Benchmarking Report, 81 percent of associations said print periodicals were one of the most valuable ways to communicate and engage with members.

Considerations for Print

However, the pandemic requires us to think differently about print and publishing strategies too. Start by doing an in-depth audit of your circulation list: knowing who and where you send a publication.

COVID-19 has changed where many people now live and work. If you haven’t checked in with subscribers and asked them to update their mailing address, then you’re likely missing your intended audience.

Reader surveys are another essential tool. Through informed audience polling, you’ll begin to understand how behaviors have shifted during the pandemic and what members are looking for in a print publication.

As magazine readership is on the rise, so too are the sale of books. In the United States, book sales had their best year since 2010, rising 8.2 percent last year, according to NPD BookScan. Much of the increase took place in the education and reference categories, areas where associations frequently publish.

To boost sales in this category, it might also help to think like an independent bookstore, many of which pivoted during the pandemic by joining new e-commerce platforms and creating virtual events, including virtual book clubs and author chats, to sell more books.

Finally, always be thinking about print publications in new and innovative ways. For instance, right now, several associations are looking to print publications as a way to anchor virtual meetings and events—fighting “Zoom fatigue.”

Even though technology needs have shifted during this pandemic, one thing that remains is the power of print. Its ability to deliver carefully researched and edited news and information brings undeniable value to so many.