Brochures are a core component of the brand marketing efforts of a company, contributing towards forging a credible brand identity. It is ‘brand awareness’ that determines whether a company succeeds or fails in its marketing efforts. Over time, brochures have emerged as an important tool for improving the visibility of a particular brand.

A brochure should be designed in a way such that it achieves all that it has set out do. You might want to use a brochure to promote your company’s ‘brand’ as a whole or you might want to focus on promotion of your products and services. If it’s the latter, you will want your brochure to persuade the readers, to choose your products and services.

Here are 5 of the best designing tips that will go a long way in making sure that your prospective customers read your brochure and are persuaded to buy what you want to sell.

1. Let the Design Scream for Attention
   
   You want to attract new customers with your brochure. So, it must, in part, resemble an advertisement for your products and services. It needs to scream out loud that your products are the best in business, and readers will be doing a great disservice to themselves, by ignoring them.  Strong visuals are the key here and so are big bold headlines.
    
2. Don’t get to “Salesy”
   
   Let the visual elements become your sales persons. Don’t hard sell your products by keeping on making the same sales point again and again. Once you get your readers’ attention, let the visuals work their magic. There is a very thin line between getting a reader’s attention and losing it. You don’t want your brochure to turn into a hardcore sales piece. If it becomes one, you are sure to lose out on your customers.
    
3. Personalize the Design
   
   Yes, it’s a corporate brochure, but that doesn’t mean you cannot give the brochure design a personal touch.  What this means, is that you need to be able to tell your customers that you care about them and want them to make an informed decision while choosing your products and services. It’s all about infusing a bit of credibility in your design.
    
4. Focus on the Front Cover
   
   The front cover of your brochure is as important as the home page of your website. The design should prompt the reader to go through the whole brochure. It must be have a persuasive quality that ensures readers to think it is worthwhile to have a look at the brochure in its entirety.  Many brochures focus on developing an emotional connect with their readers through the front cover design; while there are others that offer a ‘benefits’ statement. There are plenty of ways that can be used to help your front cover stand out; your job is to choose the design that works best.
    
5. The Benefit Approach
   
   A distinct call to action is possible only if your potential customers learn about the benefits on offer. Each image/visual incorporated in the brochure design must be able to project the benefits of your products and services. Your prospective customers might go through your company brochure just once; so you have just one opportunity to make an impression in the minds of your customers.   It’s important that you leave no stone unturned to make this impression.

Taking note of these tips will help you improve your chances of a ‘call to action’. It’s important to understand that these are just tips and their use must be customized to suit your specific needs and requirements.