Embellished print is engineered to tap into a human’s emotions. Eric Vessels, chief experience officer at Taktiful, explains they affect people on a deep level.
“Digital embellishments are a brain hack,” he says. “[They] create an emotional reaction in us that is hard to beat. Once you touch someone emotionally and deeply and [there is a] psychological factor, the behavioral economics of it is just hard to beat.”
Embellishments, both digital and analog, are constantly evolving and adapting to stand out and meet customer needs. That’s why Printing Impressions spoke with three embellishment experts — Vessels; Eddie Davin, CEO and innovator at Toronto, Ontario-based bigDAWGS; and Jeff Alexander, CEO of Lindon, Utah-based Alexander’s Print Advantage — to find out what the trends are and how they recommend approaching embellished print. We identified seven tips, tricks, and pieces of advice based on those conversations.
1.Personalization is still the core value driver.
In effective marketing, personalization has moved from an exception to an expectation. Davin points out that AI has made digital marketing even easier than it was in the past. An email can be personalized with several data points almost instantly, making digital communications less likely to stand out in an already crowded inbox. This, coupled with digital fatigue, presents the perfect opportunity for personalized embellishments to make an impact.
Davin suggests pairing a direct mail recipient’s name in raised holographic foil with other data points.
“I think that’s the next-level embellishment 2.0, and those who have invested now in digital embellishment equipment … they are ahead of the game because digital is the only way to connect to a database and run a variable campaign,” Davin says. “I see this as where the industry is going. If I get a piece with my name on it, I would never throw that out.”
Read this full article on Printing Impressions, a publication of PRINTING United Alliance, ASI’s strategic partner.
