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 Book
Excerpt
Steal These Ideas! Marketing Secrets That Will Make
You a Star
by Steve Cone
Published by Bloomberg;
September 2005;
$18.95US/$26.50CAN;
1-57660-191-9 Copyright © 2005 Steve Cone
Order
this book from Amazon.com
Brochures Kill Trees:
Make the Trees That Die for You Count
Excerpted from Chapter Six of
Steal These Ideas!
Brochures, which take the most time to create, also have the least
likelihood of ever being read by their targeted audience. You can
dramatically increase readership by following the four tips in the last
chapter [of
Steal These Ideas!] plus these six suggestions:
1. Put a picture of a person on the brochure cover along with what
are called knock outs. Knock outs are quick, one- or two- line
highlights of the contents within. The person on your cover can be your
spokesperson, your boss, a customer, or an expert in your company's
field. Whomever you choose should be highlighted within the brochure as
well, perhaps in an interview format.
2. On the front inside cover, summarize the key takeaways of the
brochure in bold and easy-to-read copy. After all, why force the
readers to go through the whole document to determine their interest?
Give them the basic pitch right up front. This way you stand a much
better chance of their reading enough to make a decision, as opposed to
putting the brochure aside "for when they have more time" -- a time that
often never happens.
3. Tell the readers what you want them to do -- on every page.
Call us at this toll-free number and/or visit us at the following
website...
4. Regularly use a question and answer format within your
brochures. For a century, psychologists have said that people see
questions and subconsciously want to read the answers. Who are we to
argue with the human psyche?
5. Have a real contact name and return address prominently
displayed, preferably on the back cover.
6. When potential readers grab your brochure, they will make
split-second decisions about whether to read or toss it. How do you stop
them in their tracks and prevent that trash can lob? Always keep
this thought at the top of your mind when designing a brochure. Think
and act like you are the weekly layout editor of People magazine. And
while you are at it, subscribe to People so that you get a weekly
reminder of what "the folks out there" really like to read.
A word about photography and artwork. Most brochures contain abstract
art or pictures of people, places, or things that have no hearing on the
topic at hand. This stuff is often just filler that supposedly generates
enough interest for the reader to thumb through the brochure to its
conclusion. AVOID this approach. It has the opposite effect.
As a general rule, do not fill your brochure with random artwork
unless you are in the fine arts business. And make sure your photography
focuses only on people or surroundings that are part of the story.
Consider a brochure as a short magazine and do what great journalists
and news photographers do. Copy these professionals faithfully in the
creation and execution of your promotional materials. The pictures you
use have to be an integral part of your story. Think what will make a
potential reader pick it up with the same curiosity and anticipation
that popular magazines generate with their fans.
Copyright © 2005 Steve Cone
Steve Cone is managing director and head of advertising and brand management at Citigroup Global Wealth Management. Along with five other senior executives, he coordinates worldwide brand management for all of Citigroup's businesses in more than one hundred countries, encompassing 200 million customers. For more information, visit www.stealtheseideas.biz
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