In recent years, there’s been a noticeable shift in how people consume media – not a rejection of all things digital, or a mass exodus from online platforms, but the slow return to older, more tangible formats.
Vinyl records are gaining ground amongst streaming sales, and analogue media like DVDs, print magazines and CDs are all showing signs a renaissance.
After years of instant, infinite, largely intangible content, the switch to old-school formats seems like more than nostalgia. Culturally, it’s an indicator of a brewing digital fatigue. Burnout from an influx of subscription options, streaming services, rolling news and 24/7 internet culture has led us to choice paralysis.
Digital may offer speed and infinite reach. But analogue, by comparison, elicits a person’s full attention as opposed to a small fraction of it.
“Phygital”, however, refers to this blend of physical and digital – and the strongest b2b campaigns harness both.
What does it mean for B2B marketing?
First, the B2B world isn’t immune to digital burnout. Decision-makers deal with a deluge of marketing messages every day. The exact number varies depending on which report you read, but the more pertinent point is hard to get around: C-Suite execs and buyer committees are drowning in more content than they can process.
There’s also been a significant jump in customer acquisition costs over the past few years. Some reports cite a 60% surge over the past half-decade. Paid channels are more crowded, clicks are more expensive and attention is split in countless directions.
That’s why marketers are switching to the ‘phygital’ approach. It’s a hybrid strategy that blends digital and physical channels rather than treating them as rivals.
Why physical media works
Recognition that sticks
Familiarity plants seeds of trust. It’s almost subliminal, but offering offline touchpoints can help ramp up recognition and confidence without inundating buyer committees.
Instead of the fleeting impressions given by LinkedIn posts, or emails, or a quick scan of a website, physical media adds another node to the journey.
No inbox fatigue
B2B buyers are not short of emails. Even the most hyper-targeted drip campaign or CRO-stuffed nurture email has to vie for space in a hugely congested inbox.
Physical media, however, needs to be opened, handled, kept or consciously thrown out – it gives people a more deliberate choice to make and asks more of them.
People interact more closely with physical products like direct mail, even if, in the worst-case scenario, that means directing it towards the bin.
By contrast, sporadic, impersonal emails might be relegated to spam.
Loyalty for the long-term
Acquisition is the starting point for any B2B campaign, but physical media is unrivalled in retention terms.
Welcome packs, printed guides, customer brochures, event materials – there are ample options, and all of them help to solidify a long-lasting relationship. Physical products have more staying power, and can quietly reinforce a partnership with minimal effort.
A bird in the hand is worth two in the inbox
Reciprocity is key in B2B markets. When you’re dealing with long customer lifecyclesand multiple rounds of stakeholder buy-in, a considered physical gesture can go further than another email could. It shows the relationship is worth a bit of the extra effort.
Cold outreach is often an easy message to scroll past and forget – supplementing it with physical media, in the form of direct mail, a brochure, or even a handwritten note, gives prospects a reason to remember you.
The only caveat is that it can’t be overly gimmicky or kitsch. While sending out direct mail is a nice gesture, it needs to be either functional, clever or genuinely creative to hit the mark with B2B audiences.
Neuroscience backs the physical
The attention economy has drastically changed how people take in information.
Now, with dwindling focus, infinite scroll and constant digital interruption, people are overexposed to near-identical products and messages, and the cognitive load of parsing between them slowly drains the people marketers are trying to reach.
There’s a term in neuroscience that sheds light on the phenomenon. Continuous partial attention refers to the habit of keeping your attention constantly divided between multiple things, relentlessly scanning and optimising what’s in your field of vision in the hope of not missing anything.
It’s like a neurological FOMO, in which consumers are always on and available, anywhere, anytime – and it isn’t only true of B2C. B2B buyers are just as inundated. Arguably more so, given how many stakeholders are fielding the same pitches.
In B2B terms, sensory touchpoints like direct mail, brochures and physical campaign assets can improve recall, engagement and familiarity.
Offline, online or an integrated approach?
It’s not an either-or situation. In fact, offline and online channels work best when they’re symbiotic.
Offline touchpoints make campaigns feel more thoughtful and fleshed out. They give your messaging something physical to anchor it to, while digital gives you reach and speed.
It could be a direct mail campaign, a brochure handed out at a trade show, or a business card handed out at a networking event – any campaign leave-behind that keeps your brand front of mind.
Physical or digital – there’s room for both
Digital won’t ever be eclipsed. For ease, speed and convenience, it’s unrivalled.
But physical media, like direct mail, business cards or any printed campaign asset, is a means to ease digital burnout with something tangible.
When every competitor is flocking to the same channels, and jockeying for the same attention, the smartest move is to show up somewhere quieter, via a format people aren’t used to receiving.
In an overstimulated attention economy, where every channel is fighting for the same shrinking pool of focus, physical formats deliver a rare gift: a minute to pause, breathe and engage with something real.
