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ABOUT THE AUTHOR: James Sadler is a former attorney with over seven years of copywriting and marketing experience. His current focus is writing websites  that are search engine optimized, but he has worked in nearly every area of copywriting. You can learn more about his services and work at http://www.JamesSadlerCopy.com

 
“The Art of the Brochure: Making Your Brochure Work for You”

By

James Sadler

You may or may not have a brochure for your company. If you don’t have a brochure, you probably feel you need one. And you’re absolutely right because done properly, brochures can be a valuable sales tool for you.

The problem? Most brochures aren’t done properly.

And the single biggest and most common mistake made with most brochures is they focus oninformation, instead of benefits and persuasion.

Far too many companies fail to let their brochure do anything but provide information about the company. Nice enough, but it does nothing to tell the potential client or customer why they should buy your product or service.

Brochures are fundamentally sales pieces

Regardless of whether your brochure is aimed at a business or consumer audience, whether you intend it to be a lead-generator or leave-behind, your brochure copy must persuade your prospect to do business with you. It must present information clearly and convincingly, following a strategic persuasive structure.

This persuasive structure should reinforce the sales message you’ve already delivered to the prospect. More importantly, you should attempt to make your brochure capable of standing alone as a sales tool, since sometimes you’ll not have an opportunity to actually meet a prospect and are left with the option of leaving the brochure behind to at least initiate the sales process.

Among the first steps in preparing a brochure is to understand how it will be used, how it will be distributed, who will read it, and what action you want the prospect to take after reading it.

Knowing what action you want the brochure to elicit helps define the content for your brochure. As an example, the copy written for a lead-generating piece is different from the copy written for a sales-closing piece.

It all starts with the cover

Persuasive brochure copy must be present from the beginning. 

Many brochure writers miss the mark by featuring the company or product name instead of an intriguing idea that positions the company or product. And these days, marketing is all about positioning the company or product and establishing an identity, or brand, with the prospect.

The copyshould begin with and focus on your prospect, not you or your product or service. It should make the prospect reading your brochure feel that their problems are understood by you before moving on to discuss the solution. Just as a smart salesperson does in person, you build rapport first, then sell.

Every prospect has “pain points”

What are “pain points?”

Your prospect needs something to resolve a problem or issue they have. A “pain point” is the prospect’s problem or issue. Your product or service has to relieve the prospect’s pain points if you hope to make a sale.  And good copy has to touch on these pain points before they can be addressed persuasively as a part of the sales process.

You have to let a prospect know that you understand their problems, their “pain points,” before you start to persuade them that you can help solve their problem.

Keep them reading

Whether your brochure is a simple bi-fold or full color, multiple pages bound together, every page of your brochure must convince the prospect to keep reading. Each section of a brochure must contain elements that intrigue and persuade the prospect to keep reading. You’ve got to entice the prospect. Entertain them, if you can. Maybe even surprise them. Every step of the way you’re earning the chance to sell the prospect.

Sell benefits, not features

Emphasize the benefits of what you offer. The fact that you have the latest, most advance technological widget ever made means nothing to them. The fact that you can solve a problem they have with your widget means something to them. This often can best be done by selling the benefits of your product or service by citing real-world examples, cases, and applications, when possible.

Anticipate and answer

Anticipate what questions they might have and answer them.To a prospect, the most important thing about your product or service is how it relates to them. Your brochure must answer their questions and overcome their objections. Address common questions and objections in your brochure copy.

And don’t lose your prospect with technical-speak. Most brochures overwhelm their readers with technical information. Technical information is often best presented in technical form, e.g., as a table, chart, or diagram, rather than being injected into the flow of the brochure copy. Overwhelm them with technical information and they’ll yawn and walk away.

It is possible to weave technical information into the brochure, but it has to be done carefully. If it can’t be made a compelling part of the copy,  technical information is most effective when placed in its own section, where it can be appreciated in-depth by technically oriented prospects and referred to on an “as needed” basis by everyone else.

Don’t lose your voice in the copy

For some reason, companies usually adopt a dry, dull, matter-of-fact corporate voice in brochures. Why? No one wants to read that stuff, not even the most technically oriented individual. Keep a collegial voice, easy going and persuasive. You wouldn’t sound like a robot in a face-to-face meeting with a prospect, so why do it in your brochure?

Of course, one reason this happens is the job of writing brochures is often foisted off on assistants, interns, or, worse, committees. In reality, brochures should be produced either by a professional copywriter who understands persuasive writing or someone with a sales background who is truly passionate about the company’s product or service. 

Your brochure is a key marketing piece. Don’t waste the opportunities it may present by slapping it together with no real thought to what it says and what it can do to help make a sale. If you don’t want to put time and effort into developing an effective brochure, I’d suggest you not bother to even write one. Really. You’re just wasting your time if you don’t appreciate a brochure for what it can be, a valuable part of your sales arsenal.

Establish credibility

You can do this with visual proof. For example, before-and-after shots, photographs, or charts. You can do this through tone and content, providing expert answers in engaging language. And make use of captions throughout, such as I do in this paper. Research shows that captions are some of the most-read and remembered parts of copy. Use them to your advantage.

Credibility can also be established through third-party verification, e.g., customer testimonials, case studies, excerpts, or independent test results.

The key is to substantiate the idea that your brochure copy is not mere sales and advertising puffery. It’s truthful, useful information.

Don’t forget your close

Tell the prospect what to do next. Most brochures end with a table of specifications, options, or a corporate overview. They could end with a bang, but instead close with a whimper.

Whatever the desired outcome, you need to ask for it. It sounds obvious, but if the next step is to order, then your brochure should end by asking for the order.

A great brochure is a great sales tool. A persuasive, strategically oriented brochure helps you make the most of your investment in marketing.

 All your marketing communication should do that.

Copyright © James F. Sadler 2005. All rights reserved.