How to Create Effective Brochures

Brochures are a great facet of direct mail printing. They give consumers information to make educated purchases and introduce your products more thoroughly.

The greatest challenge with brochures is making them effective. How do you make sure recipients do more than take a glance and toss it on the mail pile?

At Troi Mailing Services, we work with businesses across Canada, streamlining direct mail printing and mailing. We understand what it takes to create an eye-catching brochure.

First Page First in Direct Mail Printing

Like judging a book by its cover, the first impression consumers get from your brochure begins with the first page. Your cover page hints at the story your brochure wants to tell. One way to increase attention is through visuals and catchy copy upfront.

Rather than using a photo of your office building, or a staff member, focus your energy on capturing images that draw the customer in. Think about these questions as you plan:

• What am I trying to sell?
• Which products/services do I want to highlight?
• What am I hoping to get back from this brochure?
• What would I want to see if a flyer arrived in my mailbox?

One way to ensure recipients know what they’re holding right away is by creating an obvious first page. If you’re trying to sell landscaping services, for example, put a photo of a beautifully landscaped garden, your company’s plant nursery, or an image of an employee using a ride-on mower.

Leave no question that you’re offering landscaping services. Customers who need these services will immediately see what you’re selling and take interest.

Write for Your Customer, Not for Yourself

It’s easy to get caught up in introductions, explaining your experience, years in the industry, and past clients. This is information your customers will look for later. In direct mail printing, you want to use content that draws the customer in. Give them information about themselves, not your company.

What does this mean? Simple, it means considering things such as:

• Where does your product/service fit into a consumer’s life?
• Who is your target audience, and how could this product/service be of value?
• Which products should you highlight based on customer interest?
• How many photos do customers need to see to understand your product/service?

The true magic of direct mail printing is finding ways to integrate customers and companies into your brochure. Focus on customer interest, but be sure to leave plenty of ways for customers to buy, get in contact, and share your information.

Keep It Short and Get to the Point

Copy is important for customers to understand the products mentioned and the images included. However, consumers don’t want to spend a lot of time reading a brochure. They’re looking for a quick read to understand your business in the time it takes to walk from the mailbox to the house.

Brochure copy should be short and sweet, focusing on content strategies like:

• Bullet points
• Short paragraphs
• Concise sentences
• Jargon-free language
• Relevant information

Descriptive language is good in point form, giving consumers useful information about your business. Descriptions in long-form sentences make your copy less easily digested by the reader.

Have a Plan for Direct Mail Printing

No company chooses to fly by the seat of its pants when investing in marketing products. Having a clearly defined strategy is critical to the success of any direct mail printing campaign. The key is to storyboard your entire brochure so you can visualize the finished product before it’s printed.

Direct mail printing can make a big impact on new and existing clients. To do this, you need to plan everything from which pages customers read first, where images are placed, and when products come into view.

Include a Point of Sale

A brochure is a great resource for customers to learn about products and services, but they don’t offer much in the way of buying. From QR codes to URLs, a point-of-sale for your customers is key to the success of your brochure.

QR codes have become a staple in direct mail printing because there’s no need to sit at the computer and type something out. Simply open the camera app on your mobile device, hover over the code, and boom! You’ve got a connection to the company, product, or service you’re looking at.

Modern consumers are all about convenience, speed, and accessibility. If your brochure gives them direct and immediate access to what you’re marketing, you’re more likely to get a sale out of it. And isn’t that exactly the point of your brochure? To draw in the customer and get a return on your marketing investment?

Stand Out to Make an Impact

However, you choose to design your brochure, write your copy, or display your images, remember to work on impact. Impactful brochures are the most successful because they stand out in the pile of mail consumers get daily.

Some people consider flyers to be “junk” mail, so you want to ensure your brochure doesn’t fit this category. By infusing relevant information, targeting interested customers, and customizing brochure content to meet that audience, you can make an impact and stand out.

A good way to stand apart from other flyers and brochures is by checking out your competition. What are others in your industry? Is it impactful? Have they seen sales improve? Understanding your competition allows you to understand what your audience sees in other facets of your industry.

Contact Troi Mailing Today

Troi Mailing Services is a leading direct mail and printing service in Canada. We serve clients from coast to coast, specializing in not-for-profits, direct mail advertising, variable imaging, data processing, and printing.

Call 1-866-486-9350 to speak with one of our knowledgeable team members today, or visit us online to get a free quote.