Monday, November 30, 2009

Effective Brochure Design Tips For Those New In Business

By Susan Wong

Have you ever thought that a leaflet can be one of the most potent of all your marketing materials?

It is a simple piece of paper but the initial impact that your booklet makes is profound. If it's shabby and unappealing your prospect is left with the same feeling. This will weaken your business development.

Having a leaflet professionally designed and published is a key to success in a jam-packed marketplace. Taking the time to make sure that your leaflet presents all the key information in a way that is easily understood is something that only a professional can do.

If you are just getting started in business you may be tempted to do your booklet yourself. When I first started in business I did everything myself - not a excellent choice. That is why it took me 12 years before I was even comparatively prosperous. Heed my warning - go professional from day one on your marketing materials. They are an investment and not an expense. Professionally designed materials will deliver you customers and the cash flow to follow - the reason why you are in business.

A brochure has to use eye-catching design. It has to be brief in terms of the content and last but not the least, it must be successful in tempting people to make that call of action.

Here are three key design principles to follow when creating a booklet. Use them and you will see your results flow.

1. The cover:

The cover is your salesperson. Brochures are quite inactive creatures and you are not often able to 'walk' people through your pamphlet. So you need to excite people to read further. The cover is the beginning point so must be tantalizing and sharing the KEY values of WHY someone should read further. It should answer the WIFM question - What's in it for me.

A good design company will show you at least three to four cover designs for your leaflet. Examine these designs to see which energizes you the most. Ask your friends their opinion. Does the cover answer the question WIFM? If it doesn't energize and answer the WIFM question, then skip to another design that works or get it redesigned. Taking the time here to get it right will pay premiums later.

2. The Content:

Once they are past the cover then the message has to become the sales rep. So once again, the pressure is on to be good. Do not opt for cheap ineffectual content writers or ask the designer to write the content or worst still do it yourself. Instead make sure that a professional copywriter is doing the work. If your design company does not have a copywriter then employ one yourself.

Ensure that all the fundamental questions that a likely client will have about your product are answered in a way that gets them to call you for more information. Do not go into 'overkill mode' and flood them with too much data at this point in time. Remember the brochure's job is to energize and get people to call you.

3. The call for action:

If your prospective customer has read the booklet then you have done a good job. All you need to do now is give them a compelling reason to contact you NOW.

Having things like a free call 0800 or'00 number clearly shown (in big letters) can make a important difference. Having an email address is a clear bonus. Make sure these two are clearly placed in large clear type.

Even give your customers a special voucher on the booklet or reference code can help. But above all, make sure that you add a clear call to action. One way to do this is to readdress the KEY value of your service to your prospect in a way that will get them to take action. Remember value is everything. People only buy something that is of value to THEM.

4. The part that got missed:

I did this on purpose and only said there were 3 points. Well the final point is the one that can get omitted. It is the 'dummy' one. Have you checked that you have these on your pamphlet:

Phone number | Fax number | Email address | Web address | Country of operation | City / area of operation | Company name | And have you proof read for typo and grammar errors?

About the Author:

No comments: