Effective Brochure Design

By Author: Robert Wiley
Total Articles: 4762
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The fate of a brochure is decided in one brief, split second. It either becomes a guidebook for your newest customer or it is doomed forever to the rack. Most people will not open a brochure unless it gives them a compelling reason to do so.

You Can Judge a Book by its Cover
Effective brochure design immediately grabs the attention of the consumer using about a three by three square inch of space. Considering that the bottom half of the brochure is likely masked by the rack, the top one-third of the front panel shoulders the responsibility for the entire contents. The headline must be succinct and persuasive. In the advertising world, this type of provocative wording is referred to as the call to action. In the case of a brochure, the call to action delivers a strong impulse to visit, invest in or ask for more details about your service.

If you are thinking of creating a brochure, you are already weighing the costs of producing it against the benefits it brings to your business. As you imagine those dollar signs, your concern is that a larger portion of them will return to you after you spend them on a ...
... brochure. How can you assess if it will be a good return on your investment?

Effective Brochure Design:
* draws attention to the headline
* begs to be opened
* motivates the consumer to use your company

Design Details to Include:
1. Remember that the brochure may be opened, re-folded and read out of order. Each panel should isolate one strong benefit of your service that the reader will reap by seeking your company. Have your business name, address, hours of operation, phone number, fax, email, and web address on each page. A text box will keep this clear and concise.

2. Adhere to the Three Stage Rule. The rule of three is a subconscious pattern people use when they browse; your brochure design should cater to it. Your strong headline makes or breaks the first stage; the consumer selects it from the rack. Make sure the front panel has your strongest sales point on it. If you can offer a coupon or give away a free service, offer it here. A strong pitch will launch the second stage; opening the brochure for more information. The middle spread should support what the front panel claimed. Try to avoid using columns in the spread; it adds clutter. Have a few text boxes, some stunning photographs and easily read, professional-quality copywriting. If your centre spread hooks the reader, your potential client will complete the third stage and look at the back panel. The back panel should summarize and affirm the benefit your service offers. It is a good place to have a map, answer frequently asked questions or share a few moving testimonials.

3. Keep it simple. Your text should be geared to the general public, informative and friendly. Leave some white space; it is good for mental digestion. A few apt words can be extremely motivating. You cannot compensate for poor copywriting by adding random capitalization, intermittent bold face, underlining or using more than two types of font.

4. Pay for quality. It is worth the extra money to hire professionals. There is no point paying x number of dollars for amateur-looking material when, for a few dollars more, you will end up with a winner. A professional printer, photographer and copywriter will produce an effective and superior quality marketing tool. Anything less is a waste of money.

Lastly, green is in. If you can use greener methods of producing your pamphlet, endear your service to the collective environmental consciousness and note your efforts on the back panel. Remember, assess your competition; read their pamphlets and take note of techniques that worked on you.
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