People have been talking about a paperless world for decades, ever since the home computer finally started to become popular. It’s taken a while but it has finally becoming a reality. The world of traditional print is on its last legs and digital content is truly a king. Many sites are following the new trends (like this site) and the focus is definitely on the growing impact of digital media.
Why has digital and online media won out? There are a number of reasons. In many ways, digital content is more engaging, with animated page turns, embedded video and more. You no longer have to go shopping or deal with shipping to get new books; they can be downloaded with just a click or two. Now you can carry a dozen books and a hundred magazines with you wherever you go.
So here are some of the areas where print is dying, and how the digital choices are winning out.
Contents
Books
While some people still do love their print books, the world of e-books has finally reached maturity. It started to really take off with the introduction of the Kindle, giving people a convenient and mobile way to bring digital books with them. Today, there are a variety of readers out there and millions of -books in multiple formats for you to choose from.
Now the world of e-books has grown past the dedicated device, and the popularity of mobile tablets has created a whole new atmosphere for e-books. It makes more sense to carry a mutli-purpose device than one with a single function. Could the time of the e-reader itself be coming to an end?
Magazines
Glossy and high-color magazines were a little slower to come to the online era, as many early devices just had black and white displays. Fine for a book of text, but nowhere near decent competition for a print magazine. With newer file formats and more sophisticated readers, you can enjoy vivid magazines online just as well as in print. Animation formats even allow you to graphically flip the pages, so it feels like like a “real” magazine.
Most large print magazines are now offering digital versions, and the online-only titles are coming out all the time. Readable on phones, tablets and e-readers, digital magazines are just as common and popular as the paper versions. An app like Zinio brings an entire bookstore’s worth of magazines to your mobile device.
Freed from the overhead costs of printing and postage, more and smaller niche publications are being created, helping to keep the online magazine field growing.
Brochures
Even the humble brochure is now becoming a digital document. Browsing websites for products or services can be daunting, and sometimes a more concise brochure is the better vehicle for getting potential clients interested in what you have to offer.
Digital versions of brochures can be very visual, and easier to distribute to interested readers and potential customers. They can be emailed around, or embedded into a web page to allow your visitors to read immediately without having to download any files.