Trying to get a brochure done with little know-how and too much useless advice? Did you want to save some money and do it yourself?

Did you think it was easier?

I have a few pointers that may help.

• Remember to think holistically. You have a message to convey, but your readers have a message they want to hear, er … read. Challenge your perspectives when deciding what to include. Why does this material matter to them?
• Go ahead and write big. Put all your thoughts down, and pare them down later.
• Let the material sit for hours, if not a couple of days. When you come back to it, it will read differently to you.
• Grammar. When in doubt, consult The AP Style Guide or The Chicago Manual of Style. Purchase these as handy references to keep in your office.
• Let another pair of eyes troubleshoot problematic sentences and read-ability.

These last two points are actually very helpful for inspiration. Many times new ideas or angles spring from conversation about language improvements or grammar considerations. We actually enjoy that process very much, offering all of our products peer-reviewed in-house before we present to our client for approval.

Brochure copy isn’t shortly delivered. If you get frazzled or irritated that you’re not producing quickly enough, realize that professionals take ample time and charge substantially for these things because of the time and creativity involved to produce a quality product. Throwing your marketing materials together without forethought and consideration will do you little good, and poor presentation could quite possibly hurt your efforts altogether.

Take the time to do it right, and your phone will ring. Many agencies suggest offering two different brochures and testing the response rate. Narrowing down every possible factor will focus in on the customer you want to serve, and increase the size of the actual sale. When you consider how many you will have to order for a decent response ratio, it makes sense to know which to re-order. Totally worth it.

What details do you consider when you sit down to write promotional material?