How one commercial furniture company is transcending the divide between digital and print to deliver outstanding content on all platforms.

The digital sector is a tough one to make a mark on. According to a recent report by Smart Insights, in the span of just sixty seconds, 1440 new WordPress posts are published, 500 hours of video are uploaded to Youtube, and 448 800 new tweets are posted. This is a marked increase from just three years ago, in 2014, where the same time frame yielded only 972 WordPress posts, 300 hours of video, and 347 222 tweets. In today’s hyper-saturated digital landscape, establishing a distinctive online presence that drives traffic and provides readers with valuable, memorable information is no mean feat.

This is particularly so in the case of websites covering design-related topics, with the influx of design content on sites such as Pinterest and Instagram making it difficult to discern which platforms and voices are worth following. Against this backdrop, the ranking of business furniture specialist Krost’s blog on Feedspot’s Top 50 worldwide is nothing short of impressive. The full list of blogs, which can be found here, evaluates and recognises excellence in terms of search ranking, influence and popularity, quality and consistency of posts, and editorial expert review.

Entering the list for the first time at number 14, Krost’s blog has long been a favourite of designers and specifiers working within the commercial space. Covering changes in the commercial specification sector and offering practical advice to designers as to how to best incorporate the latest ideas and technology, the Krost blog is perfectly attuned to the needs and tastes of its readers because it operates within the same space as them, and has done so since the 1930s. The blog’s inclusion on Feedspot’s Top 50 ranking reflects Krost’s unwavering commitment to keeping their finger on the pulse and consistently delivering engaging content in relation to the latest in commercial furniture design and specification.

But this keen eye for style and content is not limited to the digital space. Krost has been recognised for excellence across both online and print media, and were finalists in the Office Supplies and Megalogues categories of this year’s Australasian Catalogue Awards. Now in its 26^th year, the Awards recognise expertise and excellence in catalogue and letterbox marketing as a unique and effective advertising medium. The awards have been the paramount recognition of outstanding achievement within the catalogue sector since 1992, when they were under the auspices of the Australian Catalogue Association, as the Australasian Catalogue Association was then known.

Krost’s inclusion on two different finalists lists at this year’s awards comes at a time when the catalogue is experiencing something of a renaissance. As we have previously reported, industry leaders and market research experts Roy Morgan have found that catalogues have an unprecedented reach of over 18.3 million people every week. Moreover, catalogues tap into the trust that over 70% of consumers have in print marketing, to the extent of keeping it in their homes or offices for over a month; 34% of these go further still, retaining print marketing for more than a year.

Once again, Krost’s achievement in the catalogue realm demonstrates not only a finely tuned understanding of the demands of their target audience, but a commitment to meeting these. The 2017 Krost Business Furniture catalogue combines luxurious, glossy stock with beautiful images and product ideas that encourage users to linger over each page. Of course, the catalogue is also available in digital form, but it is best enjoyed when pored over with a cup of tea or left to sit on the coffee table, pages dog-eared to mark favourite pieces and combinations. ‘Take your time’, the catalogue seems to say, ‘Design matters.’