Why Brochure Printing is an Essential Part of
Your Print Marketing Campaign
You decided to launch a print and digital campaign for your business. The digital promotional campaign is taken care of, but what about the print side of it? If you want to maximize the benefits of a print promotional campaign for your business, you need to include the basics like a business card, brochures, flyers and letterheads. Here, we will delve a bit deeper into the importance of brochure printing and why it should be a part of any print marketing campaign.
Why Should I Print Brochures?
First, what are brochures and if you’re a business owner, why should you bother printing them? When you print brochures, you are basically producing a document which contains useful information. What’s written on a brochure could be information about your company, the products or services that you are offering, or a new promotional campaign that you would like readers to learn about. What’s good about brochure printing is that the printed material is tangible, the marketing technique is effective, and it’s one of the cheapest ways to launch an informational campaign.
Here are specific instances when brochure printing would be beneficial for you:
- If you are a new business and you would like people to learn about the products and services that you are offering.
On the brochure, you can indicate your company’s history, mission and vision, and give readers a preview about the benefits that they will gain from doing business with you.
- If you are an existing business and you have a new product or service that you would like to offer to your target market, print brochures to effectively get your message across.
If you’re offering women’s products, for example, and you are launching a new line of organic facial cleansers, design a brochure which you can distribute in your brick-and-mortar store or send to your mailing list. Add a discount code or freebies and watch your initial sales grow in no time!
- If you are rebranding, changing your image, reaching out to a broader market, or adding a different age range to your existing clientele, brochure printing is the way to go.
Rebranding means that you are changing or improving your image. When using custom brochures for this purpose, make sure that the look and feel of all your marketing materials is consistent all throughout. If you’d like to reach out to a broader audience, perhaps you can distribute brochures during trade shows. The people who will receive the brochure is already a targeted audience and this is one way to expand your reach. When adding a different age range to your existing clientele, make sure that the design of the brochure appeals to them visually. The way that the brochure is written should also be consistent with the language that your target audience is familiar with.
What Types of Brochures are Available?
Next, when you print brochures , what options can you go for? There are many companies offering brochures online printing packages so you can take your pick from them. Generally, however, the final product of brochure printing is based on the size and folding option that you will choose.
For the size, you can take your pick from these custom brochures:
- 4.25” x 11”
- 8.5” x 11”
- 8.5” x 14”
- 9” x 12”
- 11” x 17”
- 11” x 25.5”
There’s really no right or wrong size – choose one based on your printing needs. Of course, the bigger the size when you print brochures, the more space you’ll have to write your promotional material in. Companies offering cheap brochures usually require a minimum order of 100 pieces, so base your budget from there.
For the folding options, custom brochures come in these varieties:
These custom brochures are folded four times length-wise, giving you eight panels or pages to work with.
The double gate fold also has eight panels, with the two front pages tucked inwards.
When you print brochures, you can go for a double parallel folding option which is exactly what the name implies, giving you four back-to-back pages to work with.
If you want your brochure designed with big illustrations and a lot of text, select the half fold option which gives you four big pages to work with.
- Half Then Half or French Fold
Cheap brochures can be made using the French Fold option, which turns a page into four rectangular panels.
If you want twelve small rectangular pages, go for the half then trifold custom brochures printing option.
The roll fold gives you eight pages to work with, but the difference with similar folding options is that it looks like a convenient, foldable pamphlet.
The single gate fold has six panels and the two front pages can be designed in such a way that it opens up to a bigger surface inside that’s double the size.
Another variation that can be had for cheap brochures is the trifold option, where six panels are produced.
Lastly, there’s the Z-fold option which gives you six panels to work with.
Other Things to Consider when Printing Brochures
Aside from the size and folding option, what other things should you consider in brochure printing? Similar to business cards, a good quality brochure will leave a lasting impression to your customers. Just imagine what a reader would think if you distribute a brochure printed on cheap paper. No matter how great the content is, people won’t even bother looking at it because it is not visually appealing. The good news is that cheap brochures do not necessarily equate to poor quality.
There are many brochures online companies that specialize in printing out brochures, business cards, flyers, envelopes, folders, rack cards, letterheads, notepads, and similar promotional materials. To make sure that you are producing high-quality brochures, go for a thick paper stock. The more solid a brochure feels on the hand, the more impressive it is. The best brochures are available either in semi-gloss or matte paper finish. Choose one based on the overall look and feel that you’re going for.
More importantly, you need to pay attention to two things when creating a brochure: content and design.
- Make sure that the content of the brochure delivers the right message.
Unlike business cards which only contain your business name and contact information, brochures online have quite a lot of text. If you want to print an 11” x 17” double gate fold brochure, for example, there are eight panels where you can place content. There should be just the right mix of images and text so readers won’t get bored. The pages should not look too crowded, otherwise they might be too intimidated to even read the content.
Depending on your target market, the best brochures should be written in such a way that it does not alienate your audience. If you’re a law firm, for instance, and you want to introduce a new specialized legal service, then you should have the brochure written using formal language. If you have a more general audience, write the content in an enticing but still easy to understand manner.
You should not forget to include a call to action. The best brochures have a call to action in the end, which is based on what its purpose is in the first place. Let’s say that you ordered brochures online to make customers visit your website more. The call to action can be something like “Visit our website to learn more about….” You can also include a QR code or your social media information so that the younger audience can have an instantaneous way of connecting with you. This is one instance when print and digital marketing techniques go hand-in-hand. If you want customers to visit a brick-and-mortar store instead of an online one, you can probably make the brochure double as a coupon code. Let them know that they’re entitled to a 10% discount, for example, when they bring the brochure in your store.
- The brochure should be designed consistent with your branding and image.
Just like using the right language to attract your target market, the best brochures should be designed consistent with your branding and image. It’s a given that you should use good quality materials and high-quality printing. But this should be combined with choosing the right colors, high-quality images, and a layout that would make the pages look not too crowded. This way, the holder of the brochure will be interested enough to actually read what’s on the inside. The more visually attractive it is, the easier it is for you to sell your products or services through the brochures.
How to Look for a Good Brochure Printing Company
Finally, how can you have cheap brochures made without sacrificing quality? There are many brochures online that specialize in printing not just brochures but also business cards, postcards, letterheads, and similar promotional materials.
You basically have two options: digital and offset printing. Digital uses a typical desktop printer which is fine to use as long as the resolution is good enough to produce high-quality images. Offset printing, on the other hand, produces a more professional look. The machines are typically huge and state-of-the-art. As compared to desktop printers, offset printers can deliver high-quality brochures and churn them out even in high volumes within a short period of time.
In terms of quality, the best brochures are usually produced by offset printers. Full color high-definition prints can be delivered by these machines so they really are the best choice.
Another thing to consider is the turnaround time. Most online printing companies have a purely online ordering system. If you need to have 500 pieces of trifold brochures delivered to your office next week, can the printing company finish within a short span of time? If yes, ask about the price and the turnaround time. If you’re in a rush, you might have to pay more but if you want high-quality prints and there’s no tight deadline, you can stick with ones that offer regular rates.
Depending on your budget, you should also ask about the minimum quantity that they can produce. Usually, 100 pieces is the minimum order for both brochures and business cards. you can even check out client testimonials to see if a specific online printing company delivers as promised. Compare prices, materials, and varieties and take your pick from there. By doing a bit of research, you can hire the best printing company to produce your business brochures.
How about Distribution?
One final thing to think about when using brochures as a main marketing tool is distribution. If you have a physical office, a stack of brochures and business cards should be prominently displayed in the reception area. If you’re in the food business and you printed out brochures to introduce a new menu, place the brochures near the cashier and right outside your door. This way, even customers who are usually intimidated to go inside without ordering can read about your new menu. If you’re a law firm, leave a stack of brochures by the reception area so that visitors who are interested in what you have to offer as a business can get your contact information.
You can also distribute brochures in trade shows, community events, and other social gatherings. If you’re looking for new business partners, have brochures printed out and insert them as promotional materials in menus, deliveries, supplies errands, etc. The more creative you are with the distribution channels, the more effective your print marketing campaign will turn out to be.
As you can see, brochures are a cheap but effective marketing tool. No matter which product or service it is that you are offering, you can promote your brand with the help of brochures. Use it as part of your business’ overall print marketing campaign, and watch it grow in no time at all.
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