Have you ever thought that a booklet can be one of the most powerful of all your marketing materials?

It is a simple piece of paper but the first impact that your booklet creates is fundamental. If it’s shabby and unappealing your candidate is left with the same feeling. This will weaken your business growth.

Having a pamphlet professionally designed and published is a key to winning in a crowded marketplace. Taking the time to make sure that your pamphlet presents all the key data in a way that is easily understood is something that only a professional can do.

If you are just getting started in business you may be tempted to do your pamphlet yourself. When I first started in business I did everything myself – not a excellent choice. That is why it took me 12 years before I was even comparatively prosperous. Heed my warning – go professional from day one on your merchandising materials. They are an investment and not an expense. Professionally created materials will deliver you customers and the cash flow to follow – the reason why you are in business.

A pamphlet has to use eye-catching design. It has to be brief in terms of the message and last but not the least, it must be successful in tempting people to make that call of action.

Here are three key design rules to follow when creating a leaflet. Use them and you will see your results flow.

1. The cover:

The cover is your sales representative. Booklets are quite inactive creatures and you are not often able to ‚walk‘ people through your booklet. So you need to stimulate people to read further. The cover is the starting point so must be tantalizing and sharing the KEY values of WHY someone should read further. It should answer the WIFM question – What’s in it for me.

A good design company will show you at least three to four cover designs for your leaflet. Dissect these designs to see which energizes you the most. Ask your acquaintances their impression. Does the cover answer the question WIFM? If it doesn’t excite and answer the WIFM question, then skip to another design that works or get it redesigned. Taking the time here to get it right will pay premiums later.

2. The Content:

Once they are past the front then the message has to become the sales rep. So once again, the pressure is on to be great. Do not opt for cheap ineffectual content writers or ask the designer to write the content or worst still do it yourself. Instead make sure that a professional copywriter is doing the work. If your design company does not have a copywriter then employ one yourself.

Determine that all the key questions that a potential customer will have about your merchandise are answered in a way that gets them to call you for more information. Do not go into ‚overkill mode‘ and deluge them with too much information at this point in time. Remember the brochure’s job is to excite and get people to call you.

3. The call for action:

If your future customer has read the brochure then you have done a good job. All you need to do now is give them a compelling reason to contact you NOW.

Having things like a free call 0800 or 1800 number clearly presented (in big letters) can make a profound difference. Having an email address is a clear bonus. Make sure these two are distinctly placed in large clear type.

Even give your clients a special voucher on the brochure or reference code can help. But above all, make sure that you add a clear call to action. One way to do this is to readdress the KEY value of your service to your prospect in a way that will get them to take action. Remember value is everything. Individuals only purchase something that is of value to THEM.

4. The part that got forgotten:

I did this on purpose and only said there were 3 points. Well the final point is the one that can get overlooked. It is the ‚dummy‘ one. Have you checked that you have these on your booklet:

Phone number | Fax number | Email address | Web address | Country of operation | City / area of operation | Company name | And have you proof read for typo and grammar errors?