Have you thought about creating a nice company brochure? Wouldn’t it be nice to have a piece that you could hand out at a home show, or use as a mailer? Do you use envelope stuffers when you send out your monthly invoices? Recently we discussed who your customer was and we asked you to categorize them into groups that made sense. Now, thinking of those groups, whom do you want to reach and what do you want them to know about your company?
Brochures don’t have to cost a small fortune. On checking prices at agencies, I found that brochures can run anywhere from $5,000 on up, depending on how much work the agency has to do. The price goes up if they have to purchase digital images, hire a photographer, or develop logos. The good news is that there are good freelance people who can develop brochures for you on a budget, and if you have a little talent, you can develop your own brochures.
Decide what purpose you want your brochure to serve. Are you developing a company brochure to sell your capabilities? Do you need a brochure to promote a new product? On the other hand, maybe you would like a brochure that outlines your company’s service contract policy.
There are some points to remember when developing a company brochure. You want an eye-catching cover, or something that has an emotional appeal. One dealer I knew put his 3-year-old daughter on the cover of his brochures because he always received positive comments about the picture. The main point is to keep it interesting.
Use an attention-getting headline to work with the image on the cover. Place the title near the top of the page. Your company name and logo can go towards the bottom of the page. In addition, it’s good practice to incorporate a benefit into you title, as this helps instill the desire to read your brochure in the person glancing at the cover.
As we move into the interior of the brochure, remember that less is more. White space is good, because too many words can be intimidating and people just don’t want to read that much at one time. Concentrate on the highlights; people are more interested in what’s in it for them, so talk about the benefits, not the features. You can turn a feature into a benefit by saying to yourself, “What that means to me is…”
If you are not good at writing, hire someone to develop the copy for you. A good writer can turn your words into magic. Spelling and grammar is important so be sure to use spell and grammar checkers often as you write. Ask several different people to read your brochure, because it’s amazing how you can miss something that’s obvious like like double words. Your mind skips right over them, because you know what you meant to say.
Stay consistent with your fonts; don’t use more than two different font types. The ideal thing to do is use the same font for everything. For example, use a slightly heavier version of the text font for titles like Arial and Arial Bold, that way everything blends. Don’t make your font too small, consider your customer, if your customer is over forty, he or she will appreciate having a larger font size.
There are big discussions about whether a san serif font is better than a different serif font, but I think that is a matter of personal taste. Arial is a sans serif font and New Times Roman is serif font in case you are wondering. The serifs are those little projecting pieces at the ends of the letters that are supposed to make it easier to read.
On the back page, don’t forget to include your contact information. Include your website address, phone numbers, and remember to include your street and mailing addresses. If people want to come and see you they will need a street address, because going to a post office box address and waiting around until you pick up the mail, just isn’t a good way for a customer to spend their time.
As far as design elements are concerned, don’t reinvent the wheel. You have a design that you use for your website, your business cards, and your trucks. One thing that marketing people preach all the time is consistency. Incorporate those elements into your brochure design and make all of your marketing materials consistent. This allows your customer to identify your company readily and it makes you stand out from the competition.
My website contains links to all the articles I’ve written for the HVAC-Talk Newsletter. If you want your marketing efforts pay big dividends, contact a marketing professional. I’m available to assist you in all of your marketing efforts. If you need a branding consultation, a complete strategic marketing plan, help with lead generation, or a brochure, call or send an email to discuss your needs.
Andy Fracica is president and CEO of Fracica Enterprises, Inc., a consulting firm specializing in marketing, PR, social media, and lead generation strategy. He has over 30 years of sales, marketing, and product management experience in the heating ventilating and air conditioning (HVAC) industry. He concentrates on helping manufacturers, distributors, dealers, and startup companies deliver their message in an ever increasingly crowded market by showing them how to do more with less($). Contact him at 260-338-4554, [email protected] or visit the website www.fracicaenterprises.com.