It's Time To Rethink "Interactive"
That interactive museum display that you blow into…
That interactive kiosk you have to touch…
These type of "interactive" displays could become relics due to COVID-19.
But—what if there could be a new kind of interactive? (And it happens to be the oldest medium in the book—literally.)
You guessed it. It's print!
With social distancing and concerns about COVID-19 exposure from air and surfaces, the currently-used "interactive" marketing platforms might not make the cut in the new normal.
Fortunately, interactive doesn't need to be virtual!
It doesn't need to have speakers, batteries or a power source.
It doesn't need to be something that gets touched by the masses.
In fact, it can just be touched by one person—your donor, prospect or audience member!
in·ter·ac·tive adjective
(of two people or things) influencing or having an effect on each other.
We think in 2020, interactive will take on a new meaning. One that focuses more on connecting. And we like really that idea. Because print is amazing at forging connections.
Unlike interactive digital displays, print has a host of benefits:
· You don't have to share print. It's sanitary!Recipients can interact safely and personally with your offering, in the comfort of their own homes.
· Print can be personalized!Instead of something that everybody engages with, print can be made especially for EACH INDIVIDUAL to engage with.
· Print doesn't need tech support.Once your piece is printed and sent into the world, it won't glitch.
· Print can be delivered directly to someone's home.That interactive kiosk on the other hand? We think shipping costs would break the budget!
· Print lets you balance out what's virtual—with what's tangible.With museums, nonprofits and universities, much of the interaction that was previously in-person is now moving online. If you're touring a museum via video, you can't really experience physically. Print can help you provide a tangible, physical, home-based experience that users can interact with—deepening their connection by engaging multiple senses.
· Print gives you time back.
· Print is human, connective and powerful.
Now, you might be wondering…
But can print really replace these interactive marketing vehicles?
Absolutely. Print has so many amazing possibilities.
But we'll let you decide for yourself.
Here are some examples of interactive techniques we've used:
Paper Architecture Exhibition Catalog.Created for Muhlenberg College, this catalog uses a grid layout of multiple kiss cuts on the cover. When peeled back, the cuts reveal an orange background. Viewers were given the opportunity to become artists and immerse themselves into the exhibition through their own creativity by creating their own covers. See video.
Effacing Boundaries.Created for Rutgers–Camden Department of Fine Arts Faculty, this catalog was created so that the viewer must rip the boundaries of the pages in order to turn them. The product becomes a twenty-four-page catalog when all of the boundaries are torn. The viewer has the option to turn the catalog into a poster by removing its staples, thereby "effacing" the brochure. See more.
No Idea Is Too Ridiculous.Designed for The Pew Center for Arts and Heritage, this catalog consists of seven booklets, each conceptually representing individual projects. The booklets function as standalone units or when combined. See more.
Andrew Zaeh Promotional.This sixteen page photo essay serves as a promotional piece with 8.5 x 5.5 pages inserted and folded within the mailer, opening up to larger 11 x17 size posters. The graphic piece is mailed within a clear plastic envelope. See video.
AIGA Philadelphia Design Awards.Created to serve as "art" within the context of a gallery for the winners' exhibition, these brochures were made with variable printing and stacked together into a sculpture. See more.
Work, Work, Work.Designed to reflect theoretical and conceptual basis for many of GDLOFT's works, this book utilizes blind letter pressing, die cutting/perforating and French folding production techniques. See video.
Our approach to interactive print…
Like with all of our projects, we don't just do something because it's possible—we do it because it makes sense for the project. Every deliverable is designed to help our clients reach their goals.
Want print that your audience can interact with? We are ready to push the envelope! Let's talk.