Now, if you don't want to miss a single comment (and believe us, you don't), you can download an expanded written summary of what 75 marketing pros really think about A&D advertising.

Meanwhile, here is a recap of how industry marketing professionals responded to our request to “please share your comments about print and digital advertising as they relate to marketing programs for aviation, aerospace and defense.”

We hope you find it as interesting and enlightening as we did.

Don't miss a single comment. Click on the image to request a written summary of what marketing pros really think about A&D advertising.

'Print is Dead'

“Digital is the way to go. Print is dead. It is old news before it is even published and mailed. Websites that engage the customer base and apps that provide utility with advertisements are a gold mine for us.”

“Targeting options in digital advertising offer much more bang for the buck than traditional print advertising options. I received my new AC-U-KWICK today and promptly threw it in the trash.”

“Print media has become outdated and hard to justify. Digital media is more trackable, targeted and interactive.”

“As a small company trying to displace the big boys, we have our best success with sales letters and road trips. Our limited print ads have yielded zero sales. We strongly feel that traditional print ads (blue sky, aircraft, product shots) do not help a small company break through. But we also strongly feel that a non-traditional campaign combining multiple outlets could. We believe that non-traditional print ads will be more and more effective as our prospects replace their old school vanguards with younger staff. So, we are focusing hard on how to make a non-traditional approach work.”

“Flight International, Aviation Week and other high dollar placements are getting the axe in favor of a more diverse and digital-centric strategy.”

'A Break from the Digital Onslaught'

“Print has sustainability and is ideal for increasing image and brand awareness.”

“The current generation of decision-makers still relies on print for in-depth reading and information. Digital is fine for transitory news, but not for critical study.”

“There is too much digital advertising through social media and emails, so I ignore it. But with print I take my time and read through the entire magazine looking for information that may help my business. It provides a break from the digital onslaught.”

“Digital advertising is still not as effective as print. There are still too many old school decision makers who are not technically savvy.”

“Print is still the way to communicate to C-suite execs.”

'We Need Both'

“In today's market, print and digital advertising must work hand-in-hand in the marketing mix. Online presence reinforces the branding efforts through traditional print media and gives a valuable sense of immediacy to the messages.”

“An integrated strategy involving digital and traditional communications works best. The publications still have influence, and working with them benefits our company.”

“While I still focus primarily on print advertising, I usually look for a digital add-on. This could be a digital copy of the magazine with hot links to advertising, or a banner ad that is included as part of my buy.”

"Print is still a necessary evil, but digital brings much more value."

"When your marketing challenge is establishing brand awareness, print advertising tied to measurable digital landing pages is still a good investment. For the selling of an established product or service, there are more effective channels."

'Editorial Still Beats Advertising'

”The industry as a whole seems focused on placements to say they were in a magazine rather than executing a real strategy.”

“Editorial, whether print or digital, still beats all advertising. Print, when distributed at high-profile industry conferences or trade shows, is effective. Ads in daily or weekly newsletters are also effective. Digital ads and digital directories are my least favorite — there is so much noise on web pages that they go unnoticed, and most of the time they are annoying.”

“For our company, it seems that when new clients find us it always start with a Google search.”

"Advertising helps promote our brand, but direct mailers and other activities engaging customer prospects are most effective in generating/closing sales."

"Print is unaccountable, expensive, slow and perfect for the bathroom or La-Z-Boy recliner. Digital means fast feedback, video demos, click-through tracking."

Don't forget -- this listing of 300+ A&D-specific media is a useful tool for advertisers. Download yours here.

Read Additional Insights

For a PDF document with the complete, must-read comments, click the image and don't forget, we welcome your feedback — so tell us what you think!