Booklets and brochures are often the first impression a customer or client will have of your company or the service you provide. Having them professionally designed but more importantly printed is essential to effectively placing your company among your competitors. It’s important to note that brochures should be seen as an investment and not just another expense. They will do a lot of sales work for you if done properly.
The cover is the equivalent of a sales rep. It needs to stimulate its viewer into wanting to know more by sharing key values and conveying a specific emotion. If you’re presented with a number of designs from an agency put yourself into your customer’s shoes and ask yourself: what’s in it for me? If the cover doesn’t answer this then move onto the next design.
Use a professional copywriter to produce your content because once your customer is passed the cover the content becomes the new sales rep and needs to keep up the momentum. Don’t go overboard with information but ensure the big questions are answered in a non-techy talk manner.
It may seem silly to point this out but the most important part of a brochure or pamphlet is your contact information. A sales rep would never leave the office without business cards so always include: phone & fax number, email address, web address and full postal address.
Finally you need to give your client that push to contact you via a call to action. Free contact numbers, special offer vouchers and simple email addresses will all help but what can be most effective is to summarise the key values of your service that will solve the facts and questions you have outlined in your content.