Whether you hire professional assistance or do it yourself, follow these tips for developing a brochure that does a more effective job of hooking the reader’s attention and moving them to your desired course of action.
· Have your objectives clearly in mind. With answers to the above questions, you can target your message to a specific audience and outcome, and develop a brochure that works hard to create the image you want and persuade recipients to take the action you desire.
· Keep your message focused. It’s easy to try to make your brochure be everything to everyone, but that’s a mistake. You will only overwhelm the reader. Speak only to the person reading it. Use one major theme and no more than three key messages to communicate it. For instance, if you use the same brochure to tell about your center’s services, detail your developmental program, and outline center policies, you’ll lose the reader and the potential inquiry.
· Use a specific order to tell your story. Think in your reader’s perspective. What every prospective enrollee really wants to know is this: Do you understand my child care needs and desires? Can your center meet those needs and desires? What value will I get for my investment? Who are you and why should I enroll at your center versus somewhere else? How do I proceed? Write your brochure in that order. I recommend you address tuition on a separate piece, such as on a tuition schedule you give prospects during a center visit.
· Encourage readability with white space and less copy. Even if your goal includes education, your brochure should just wet the reader’s appetite. Edit the copy to keep it simple. Put important points in headlines and subheads. That’s all some readers will ever see. If you have a website or presence on social media, make sure you note it in your brochure as a place your prospect can go for more details.
Remember the best place to educate your prospects is at your center where they can experience the environment their child would be in and get answers to their specific questions. Your brochure should lead them to inquire about your center. If it doesn’t, it denies you an opportunity to secure an enrollment.
· Use graphic design that enhances your message. Use a limited color palate and avoid unnecessary details. A quality piece communicates a quality image. That doesn’t mean it has to break your budget. There are some really nice brochures that take advantage of cost-efficient techniques for graphic design and production.
· Be consistent in overall look. Choose the same type font, colors, and image as on your stationery and other pieces in your center information package. Be sure your logo and tagline are prominent. Use coordinating or complementary paper stock.
· Pull ‘em in and throw ‘em out! By this, I mean you start selling on the cover with copy or a design element that simply, but persuasively, leads the reader inside the brochure. Near the end of the copy, include a call-to-action that tells the reader how to proceed. It can be a statement as simple as “Come visit our center” or “Call now to schedule your center visit.” Be sure to list your company or center name, address, telephone and other contact numbers on the back cover. I recommend you also include a map to your center.
Only print as many brochures as you will realistically need before time and circumstances dictate the need for a new one. Refer to your answers to how you intend to use the brochure, rather than the printer’s volume discount, to determine the size of your order.
Think of your brochure as a combination of a storybook and a lead generator. If you successfully develop it to do both and use it wisely, your brochure will become an integral part of your marketing program. Then one day when you get an inquiry call from a prospect who says, “I saw your brochure and would like to come visit your center”, you can smile and think, “Mission accomplished”.
Julie Wassom
“The Speaker Whose Message Means Business”
Marketing and Sales Speaker/Consultant/Author
Call me: 303-693-2306
Fax me: 303-617-6422
E-me: julie@juliewassom.com
See me: www.juliewassom.com
