Publication distribution is one of the most well known marketing methods. Almost everyone will have experienced receiving a leaflet while walking through a city centre.
That’s because, to put it simply, leafleting and other publication distribution just works. One person can hand out hundreds of marketing materials per hour. The only limitation is the number of people walking past per hour, and how captivating your brand/marketing materials are.
The Benefits
- Low cost – one person can hand out hundreds of publications/leaflets per hour.
- Fairly targetted – the distributor can selectively choose who to leaflet – women, men, sporty looking folk, blonde haired etc.
- Regular distribution in the same area raises brand awareness and word of mouth spread.
- Recover any unused (non time sensitive) materials for use another day, another area.
- Track impact by integrating your digital tracking into the distribution materials.
The Drawbacks
- Less impactful out of city centres, where footfall is high and predictable
- Materials can often end up in going straight into bins from dissinterested individuals who accepted to leaflet out of politeness
- Temporary staff sometimes may not turn up, and their backup may be unavailable.
- Targetting directly cuts footfall, for example targetting women cuts ~50% of potential hand-outs.
This form of field marketing makes a regular appearance for us, as it’s a truly well tested method, and is particularly useful for local businesses looking to increase awareness of their brand.
