The Future of Print

I don't usually think about the fact that we live in an entirely different way than most people have throughout history because of the technology we have, especially the internet. We can Google, listen to music, blog, collection inspiration, email and Facebook each other - so much can be done across this massive resource called the world wide web.

Print media, such as books, newspapers, magazines, brochures, and the like, have been around for much, much longer than the web. Sometimes I like to think about the future of print. Is the web moving in and pushing print out?

I think not, and here's why. Now that the web is such a big part of our lives, I think people pay more attention to print.

Since everything is written and shown on the web, not that many things stick out. A lot blends together. But print on the other hand is something different, something noticeable. I recently saw something on FPO that caught my attention. It's a print advertisement for a website.

Jessica Mullen, who wrote the post, says:

My favorite thing about print design is when it’s telling me about something on the Internet. Nothing gets me more excited than the smell of hand screenprinted typography outlining the newest advancements in web design. It reminds me that print will always have a purpose. To get people online.

It reminded me of something I heard a really good designer say. He was talking about making a website and sending people printed invitations because they'd pay more attention to them than they would to an email.

I think there's something to all of this. Web isn't pushing print out. It's creating new uses for print and actually making print more valuable in the eyes of consumers. So I don't think there's any danger of good old print design being abolished in favor of web communication. Print design will definitely change, but it will flex and move instead of disappear.

I also think there are enough paper-loving people like myself to keep print from being eaten up by web design. There are enough people who drool over pretty stationery, like to flip through magazines, read books for fun, and treasure letterpress business cards. I think we've got print's future covered.

Do you think print is here to stay? Or will web come and crush it like a giant wrecking ball?