Print Marketing 101: Lesson #3

Which Printed Piece is Best?

Whether you're a corporate marketing manager, agency staffer, small business owner or real estate agent, your objective is probably the same: to get the most impact for you marketing dollars.  That's why, when print materials are part of the mix, choosing the right piece for the right audience is key.     

 

Brochure

The beauty of a brochure is that it can be read on the spot or taken along for perusal at a later time. And, that it can be mailed, handed out, left in a visible spot, and passed along from person to person.

Use a brochure when you want to:

• Provide an overview and/or highlight crucial information about your organization, product or brand

• Attract new customers

• Drive people to your website

 

Business Card

No single item says more about your business than your card.  Include your business card in marketing mailings, letters, bills and leave-behinds.  Have plenty in-hand whenever you attend meetings, trade shows, conferences and social gatherings.

Make sure your business card includes all of the information a recipient might need:

• Your name and title

• Company name, logo and tagline, if you have one

• Complete address, office phone, fax, cell phone

• Email address

 

Catalog/Booklet

When you need to showcase multiple products -- or if you have a lot of information to convey -- a product catalog or booklet is your best choice. Printed in vivid full color on your choice of premium papers, your catalog or booklet:

• Offers plenty of space for imagery and text

• Provides a user-friendly format

• Helps differentiate your offerings from your competitors

Mail your piece to current and prospective customers, distribute it at trade shows or meetings and make it part of your media packet or sales kit.

 

Flyer

A flyer is a simple, economical marketing tool that's perfect for advertising your event, promoting a sale, or raising awareness of an issue.  Because it typically isn't intended to have a long life span, its one-time impact should be powerful.  To get your audience's attention, use a strong headline, and a compelling design that makes the most of four color printing. 

Create flyers to:

• Hand out at conventions, trade shows or promotional events

• Post in businesses or community “hot spots"

• Deliver door-to-door or include with mailings

 

Newsletter

Your company's or organization's newsletter is a valuable tool for conveying timely information, creating a "community" or enhancing your credibility.  But with so much media competing for your audience's attention, your newsletter has to work hard to get noticed. 

Be sure your content is current and relevant, and that your design makes it easy to read.  Pull readers in with well written headlines, blurbs and sidebars, and with professionally printed color graphics and photos that complement your most important articles. 

Use a newsletter to:

• Communicate with your organization's employees

• Create confidence among investors, clients and prospects

• Garner attention from the media

 

Press Kit/Presentation Folder (Pocket Folder)

A press kit or presentation folder is an all-purpose “shell," which you can use anytime you need to present materials in an organized, attractive, efficient manner.  Its versatility makes it a marketing collateral mainstay; simply include different materials for different audiences for a targeted, customized approach.

Create a pocket folder, printed with your organization's identity, for:

• Press kits

• Meetings and trade shows

• Sales call leave-behind

• Promotional events

• New employee orientations

 

Postcard

A postcard is the print marketing equivalent of a tap on the shoulder.  They're both targeted, direct and hard to ignore.  And, like a tap on the shoulder, a postcard produces an immediate response and a great return on investment. 

Send a postcard to homes or offices whenever you want to:

• Inform customers about sales and special offers

• Invite guests to presentations or openings

• Announce staff changes within your organization

• Convey routine information, like an address or phone number change

 

Sell Sheet/Product Sheet

Whether you call it a sell sheet or a product sheet, this key sales tool is basically a one-page catalog.  It's the perfect marketing piece to introduce or promote new products or services, or to highlight the strengths of your company and its offerings.  Print it in color on both sides for a cost-effective, compelling way to communicate detailed information.

You can use sell sheets in several ways:

• As a stand-alone mailing or as support to a marketing letter

• To make price or product updates to your company's existing catalog

• As part of a sales presentation or as a presentation leave-behind

 

Rack Card

A rack card is a two-sided printed piece that is defined by the fact that it is almost always distributed via a rack or display.  And, by the fact that it sits alongside scores (maybe even hundreds) of competing pieces that are all vying for your audiences' attention. 

To make sure your card "jumps off the rack," write powerful headline copy, incorporate quality photos or illustrations, and choose quality, four color printing.  

Place your rack cards in:

• Designated, high-traffic spots at hotels, airports and car rental agencies

• Tourist information booths and chambers of commerce
• The lobby of your own office or store

To learn more about each product, check out What We Print.

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