OREANDA-NEWS. How do companies maintain a competitive marketing advantage in a world filled with information overload? Digital media gets a lot of attention today, but a recent survey reveals printed marketing materials are a critical resource for corporate marketers.

Virtually all of the marketing executives (99 percent) reported using printed marketing materials such as direct mail, brochures, and signs during the last 12 months, and 86 percent used commercial printers for at least a portion of their print needs.

These were among the key findings from a recent survey1 of marketing executives conducted by FedEx Office(r), a world-class commercial print provider, and Printing Industries of America (PIA), the world's largest graphic arts trade association.

Among other insights: Print quality (92 percent) and the ability to handle the volume needed (88 percent) were the most important factors in deciding to use commercial printing providers instead of in-house resources. Respondents emphasized the importance of quality, revealing that when choosing a commercial printer they place more importance on product quality (64 percent) than cost (54 percent).

According to Ron Davis, senior vice president and chief economist at PIA, the results also indicate that printing services incorporating advanced digital technologies are providing marketers with a competitive advantage.

"Today, marketers must nimbly move to take advantage of opportunities or counter threats," Davis explained. "That furthers the need to leverage technology to produce high-quality materials that can be scaled to meet rapidly-evolving demand."