Want everyone in your community to know your name? Show up at your local Fourth of July parade with a float, a colonial printing press replica, a modern heatset web press replica, employees dressed like old-time paperboys, candy in satchels, and a plan to tell the history of American print in 90 seconds of parade time.

That’s what Schumann Printers (Fall River, Wis.) did—and took second place. More importantly, they proved that you don’t need to be a high-profile influencer or to break the bank with ad spend to get noticed. Sometimes you just need to show up.

Schumann, a third-generation family printer, hadn’t participated in the Columbus, Wis., parade in 15 years. The decision to return this year, for America’s 250th birthday, came with a specific mission: to show people what print actually does and why it matters. The float, titled “Printing Through the Ages,” walked that timeline from Benjamin Franklin’s hand-operated press through the modern high-speed equipment Schumann runs today.

“We wanted to tell the story of how print moved through America,” said Brooke Schumann, Schumann’s marketing manager, who spearheaded the project and is momma-bear-proud of the company’s second place win.

Brooke has every reason to be proud. The execution was intricate. Hand-dyed T-shirts. The bindery manager dressed as Benjamin Franklin. Replica presses built by the team. Printed trivia cards and coloring sheets featuring Benjamin Franklin and printing facts. DJ Q spinning patriotic music. The whole thing took dozens of employees and volunteers months to get the details right.

“One of my favorite stories from that day was how the crowd was throwing water bottles at the bindery manager because they could see that he was roasting in his costume,” says Brooke. “It goes to show how engaged the crowd was with the float.” (And, we must say, it also says a little something about the Fall River community, as well!)

Print As a Trust Signal

At a time when print shops are struggling to explain why print matters in a digital-first world, Schumann’s parade float was essentially a trust signal wrapped in candy and history. But the company’s enthusiastic participation shouldn’t have been a surprise.

Schumann Printers is deeply invested in getting in front of prospective customers through multiple channels. They’re active on TikTok (targeting younger decision-makers), as well as Instagram and Facebook. They're on LinkedIn (for B2B reach). They post regularly to Google Business profiles, Yelp, and Bing (for local visibility).

“Nobody wants to hear your basic business info anymore,” Schumann explains. “Especially on social media, they want to see funny. They want to see personality. So that’s what we give them. It took us awhile to figure it out, but now people can really see that Schumann doesn’t just offer high-quality printing, but it’s also a fun place.”

But Schumann regularly shows up in the community, too. It participates in local events like Community Trunk or Treat, awards scholarships to students in area schools, and was recently recognized as a Workforce Inclusion Champion by Green Valley Enterprises, a division of Opportunities Inc., for its ongoing commitment to inclusive employment. The company also recently partnered with MagLiteracy.org, a national nonprofit dedicated to increasing literacy by putting new and recycled magazines into the hands, homes, and hearts of readers who have limited access to reading materials.

The strategy is directionally obvious to every printer: Be creative, be authentic, show personality, and put yourself in places where your actual audience actually is. But Schumann executed it.

The Audience That Showed Up

Schumann Printers got the exposure it was hoping for. Thousands of people lined the streets for the parade. Most weren’t thinking about printing capacity or binding options. But they did see a print shop tell a story about why print mattered to America's founding, to information sharing, and to community connection. Children waved at Benjamin Franklin. People stopped to read the trivia cards. The crowd threw water bottles to keep the team cool.

Schumann’s marketing metrics show that its “be everywhere” philosophy is paying off. One measure is the number of responses it received to its recent “We’re hiring!” messaging, which it posted everywhere from TikTok to LinkedIn. “We were swamped with inquiries,” says Schumann. “I mean, totally swamped.”

Is the volume due to Schumann’s reputation for being fun? Or just because people need a job? Hard to tell, but when printers have trouble just filling positions, “swamped” is a good problem to have. Schumann has certainly built brand awareness in their community. They’ve signaled to a younger generation that print isn’t boring (and neither is the company that produces it). And they’ve given thousands of people a specific memory of what printing actually is and why someone should care about it.

That’s worth more than any targeted ad.