“There’s $5,000 In Our Budget, Make Us A Brochure.”
Is there a week that goes by when you don’t receive mail with brochures and coupons? Hardly. Which ones appealed to you? Which ones did you act on?
Brochures continue to be one of the most effective marketing tools today. Most graphic designers would be elated and jump at the opportunity to design a brochure, but there’s more than pretty art or graphics that make an effective brochure Putting a brochure together without knowing its place in the overall strategic marketing plan is like jumping into the car and driving off without having any idea of where you’re going.
We’ve all heard or read stories about the custodian who bequeathed several hundred thousand dollars to a local university or the home cook who started a small café that suddenly and unexpectedly expanded into a regional chain of popular restaurants. Don’t bet on any of this happening without a roadmap to get you to your destination.
Brochures And A Strategic Marketing Plan
In order to be successful, today a business needs a well thought out business plan that includes strategic marketing. A SWOT analysis that identifies and looks at your campaign’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats is still helpful. Be sure to include goals, budget, and your target market as well. The latter will better help define your strategic marketing plan.
Your marketing and business goals should be directly linked because the former is what will help you achieve success. The road map is what’s important.
Road Map And Goal Setting Questions
Is there an easy way to set one’s road map like a GPS system? Not very likely.
Ask yourself and answer these questions. How many customers would you like and by when? Who are they and why would they be interested in your product or service? What share of the market do your competitors have and what portion are you aiming for? What sets you apart from your competition?
If a brochure will help in reaching your target audience and piquing their interest in patronizing you, then determine the proper venue. Direct mail? Email? A combination? Part of a kit? This is where answers to the questions above are helpful.
What Kind Of Brochure?
Before crafting your brochure, it’s important to note that there are many types — point of sale, direct mail, leave-behinds, and response. Your previous research should help determine the appropriate one or ones.
However, the intent of each should be the same. The brochures should be focused on your target audience. It also needs to motivate your audience to act, and contain a call to action. The latter is important because that’s where you know if your strategy was successful. And before you publish and distribute your brochures, it’s always nice to get feedback from people whose judgment you respect for their reaction to your brochure.
Be sure to track results from the brochures and anything else you do to build your business. Be prepared to make adjustments and changes if your reporting data differs from what you had planned and anticipated.
