Design Your Own Brochure
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When you look at marketing brochures what do you see? What is it about the brochure that gains your attention? What is it about the brochure that causes you to dig deeper—to call the company, to check out the website, to drive to the store, to buy the product or service? Is it the color, the design, the text? Or is it a combination of the three?

In the past, brochures were done by professionals who charged a hefty sum to write the text, take the photographs, design the layout, and print the brochures. Today, thanks to programs like Publisher by Microsoft Word® and digital cameras, creating brochures for small businesses can be done in-house and much more affordably.

The key to creating a good brochure is in how the information is presented. Brochures don’t need to be expensive or fancy, but they do need to look professional.

Below are several quick tips to help you create an attractive, affordable brochure:

• Use Arial or Times New Roman for easy-to-read text; except in logo
• Use a 12 point font for text
• Use a 10 point font for captions and side boxes
• Use a 14 or 16 size font for headlines
• Use a premium presentation or brochure paper like highly opaque, matte, heavyweight presentation paper—35 lb., 6.8 mil, 96 bright, 8 1/2"x11". It is more expensive, but it looks crisper, cleaner, and more professional.
• Address a target group or niche market
• Be educational and informative
• Avoid sales hype
• Include your company’s logo and contact information
• Include a call to action: call, email, visit website or store
• Include graphics or images that visually recap what was said in print with one large graphic or image on the cover, smaller ones spread throughout the brochure and close-up shots of products with great details
• Provide captions under photos to bring your point home
• Use quotations or bold marks around key points
• Use bullet points to draw readers to important information, fast
• Use headlines and sub-headlines sparingly
• Include testimonies from real-life users, not paid copywriters
• Include a side box that recaps important information you want to stand out
• List your guarantees and return policy
• Double check grammar and punctuation
• Avoid delivering brochures that have smudge marks, faded lettering, or poorly photographers objects or people.