Savvy entrepreneurs know the importance of digital marketing and maintaining a social media presence. But it’s a mistake to focus exclusively on digital. Clients and customers still like printed collateral to remind them of your products and services. Well-constructed business plans will include a marketing budget with line items for both digital and print. If you’re a one-person shop, odds are that budget isn’t as big as you’d like. Consider these tips for creating effective printed marketing materials on a budget.
Looks Matter
In print and in person, appearance matters. If your materials aren’t well-designed, you’re wasting your money. Take advantage of the gig economy by hiring a freelance graphic designer from one of the many sites listing their services. A graphic designer can create your viewbook and prepare it according to printer specifications. Access to stock photography can save you money with high-quality images that are inexpensive or even free.
Consider Your Audience
Demographics play into design choices. Ask yourself why your customers like and want what you offer. Whether it’s a bold color palette and hip font, or a more traditional, subdued look, your print materials should project your image in a way that makes a lasting, positive impression. If you see clients in your office, tastefully display brochures or viewbooks describing your products and services.
Put It All Together
A multi-page booklet can include deeper content describing your products and services. If you’re going with a catalog or booklet, maximize its effectiveness by including business card information, web and email addresses, and even scannable codes that lead back to your website. If it fits with your design, include testimonials from satisfied clients.
You must also decide how your booklet is bound: saddle stitching is the most economical and works well for viewbooks and brochures from four to 64 pages. Saddle-stitched booklets are made of larger paper, folded in half and held together with staples in the center—these staples are affixed by bindery staplers. This binding is called “saddle stitching” because the staplers have a piece that looks like a saddle, where the pages and cover rest while they are stapled together.
This is another instance where a graphic designer’s help is key—they can make sure the pages end up in the proper order, and take advantage of available features, like spreads that cross the fold. Saddle-stitched booklets must have page counts that are multiples of four. Saddle stitching is fast, inexpensive, and works for various sizes of booklets. Saddle-stitched booklets are lightweight and easier to mail, too. Be sure to consider them when crafting your marketing materials.
Plan to keep print in your marketing repertoire and keep these tips for creating printed marketing materials on a budget in mind. Along with your business cards, mailers, and brochures, a multi-page, saddle-stitched booklet or catalog can have lasting impact.