You’re diligently working in your office when your boss comes in. “I need you to design a brochure for product X. Make sure it’s good – it’s an important one.” When was the last time you made a brochure? College? You begin searching online frantically for a template, but can’t find any decent ones. What to do?
Don’t panic! Brochure design is critical but it is also easy. Remember these six simple tips to design a brochure that is informative, unique, and impressive.
1. Get the Copy Right.
Getting the copy right is the first step in good brochure design. First you need to understand your customer. Don’t waste space trying to sell or inform them on something inapplicable. Ask yourself these three questions:
- What kind of questions would my target audience have about product/service X?
- What are the three to five most important things that my company wants our customers to know about product/service X?
- How can I explain that product/service X is going to really help our customers?
Revise and rework the wording. A good rule of thumb is to write in a way that a smart 6th grader would understand. That means using a more basic vocabulary and avoiding complex sentence structure.
Once you have the copy perfected (with content and page folds in mind), double and triple check spelling and grammar. Read the copy out loud at least three times to make it sure the words flow smoothly together.
2. Limit the Font Choice.
Yes, we know. Fonts are fun, but they can also be distracting. Keep the font choice on brand. Use readable fonts that work well with your brand’s style guide.
3. Choose Similar (and Quality) Images.
How does your company use images? Are they of people or cartoons? Are people looking directly at the camera, to the left or right of the camera, or completely away? Does your company choose images with bright or muted colors?
Whatever the answer, make sure the images go well together and are good quality. One with bright colors might not look so good next to one with muted colors. This, too, is another tip to help your brochure design stay on brand.
4. Pick Your Paper.
There are so many options available for paper choice. Make an impression with your brochure by choosing unique paper. Glossy papers help give appeal to the brochure, while thicker or heavier paper gives an impression of high-end products or services.
5. Get Creative with Shape and/or Texture.
If the product or service permits, get creative with brochure design shape like these below.
Texture is an excellent way to leave a lasting impression with your customers. Add digital spoil foil or spot varnish to your brochure to really knock the socks off of your customers.
6. Step Back and Study It.
Once you have created the brochure on your computer, zoom out so that it fits the screen and step five to ten feet back. Make sure the things you want emphasized are emphasized. Check for spacing to make sure it’s not cluttered. Rework your way through the last five steps in your final analysis of the brochure to make sure it works. It’s always a good idea to have someone else read over your work and provide feedback as well.
Do you need help designing a brochure or have questions? Call our office at 801-224-8666 or fill out the contact form below. One of our team members would love to help you!
I am slightly amused how these small details like the type of paper you print your brochure make a difference. In all honesty, it makes sense. I know many people who take the time to look at flyers and handouts because it was unique in one aspect or another. I guess for people who want to promote their business or organization, that it pays off to have professionals take care of any printing.
I really like that the article encourages readers to get creative when choosing the shape or texture of their brochure. After all, a brochure gives you the chance to get really inventive with the shape because you’re not just explaining everything on a big piece of rectangular paper. If you can design everything in a good and easy to read way then you could try all kinds of crazy designs like the shape of your logo or even the shape of your product.
These are very helpful tips on brochure desing. Brochures are very important part of marketing your business. I agree that, brochures are simply expand your marketing efforts and improve your reach to the right place.
Brochures designing plays a significant role for any business as to promote the product and services and logo is the foundation of any business as it depicts that what type of business you are running and what type of reputation are your business is holding so it should be designed in a creative and unique way.
This is very useful tips for brochure designing. brochures design is most important part in any digital marketing business.
There are different types of industries and different types of brochure demands. So I think this is a broad topic. Thanks for the information.
I like how you mentioned keeping the font choice on brand for brochures. My brother-in-law is thinking of printing some brochures for his business. He might reach out to a printing program to help out.