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How to make a brochure for your business. Even in today's Internet age, many companies are still wondering how to make a brochure for their businesses.  That's because nothing really can replace the impact on a prospective client of a company brochure. Not only do you have the immediate visual appeal, but the tactile feel of an actual brochure is way beyond what they can find on the web or in a multi-media presentation. That's why I've devoted this page to giving you the specifics on how to make a brocure. Company brochures come in all shapes and sizes - from a simple tri-fold brochure on nice cover stock, to an elaborate 9 x 12 pocket folder with 16 gloss pages saddled-stitched into the cover. Okay...so how to make a brochure? Well, you have three different choices, depending on your budget, your skill level, and the amount of time you have to devote to the process. How to Make a Brochure #1: Do it yourself. I've found them very reliable and price-competitive. They have a wide variety of great brochure template designs that are easy to work in - all you do is select one, and then customize it with your information and photos. Click this link to check out them out. Spring Clearance Sale at VistaPrint! Save up to 90% How to Make a Brochure #2: Hire a graphic designer. That being said, different graphic designers have different talent levels. There are some who are excellent, while others are simply so-so. My advice to you is to ask around for recommendations. My experience has been that there are a few stand-outs that everyone wants to hire. These designers are often more pricey, but are usually worth it. As to how much you will pay for their services...most work on an hourly basis for concept, design, layout, and print production, and this usually ranges from $50 to $125 per hour. They usually hire outside contractors like copywriters, photographers, and illustrators, and this cost will be added to their own fee. How many hours it takes to make a brochure depends on many factors such as number of pages, complication of design, number of changes, number of photographs, etc. All reputable graphic designers will give you an estimate before beginning work.
 How to Make a Brochure #3: Let an off-line printer do it. Because of this, they have also gotten more price-competitive in the last few years. And with an off-line printer, you get the advantage of talking face-to-face and being able to press-check your job (on-line printers will send you an electronic proof). It has been my experience, however, that you don't want the print shop designing your brochure. Most don't have graphic designers on staff, and have to farm the project out to a local graphic designer, so they become the "middleman," which puts you that much farther away from project control. If you're going to use a local printer, my advise is to just work with a graphic designer directly. Where to start. Once you've decided how to make a brochure, here are three things you need to take into consideration: Concept Some people confuse the concept of how to make a brochure with its design and layout. However, they are two different things that are closely related. A concept is the big idea behind the brochure. It's the first thing you need to think about before anything else. A brochure concept is the interrelation between the visual (design) and the verbal (copy and headlines) that communicates your unique selling proposition (USP). And your USP is the one thing that you can say about your company, your service, or your product that separates you from your competition. Wrap your concept around your USP. For instance, if your USP is that your have excellent customer service, center your brochure concept around that. When trying to determine your USP, the question you should ask yourself is:- What does my company offer that's better than our competitior(s)? Is it value, service, selection? What is it that sets me apart? When developing the concept for your brochure, think about what kind of tone your company sets. In other words, what is your company personality? Is your company serious? Humorous? Traditional? Fun-loving? Your brochure concept should follow your company personality. If you don't have one, put some thought into what you want that personality to be.  Design and Layout When figuring out how to make a brochure, realize that the overall design of your brochure should visually communicate your company personality. For instance, if you've determined that your company personality is traditional, then your brochure design should take a more traditional design approach. Likewise, if your company personality is fun-loving, your brochure design can be more non-traditional. This can be reflected through your choice of typeface, colors, photos, the way you lay the type out on the page, etc. How you make a brochure design depends on what impression you want to make on your consumers. Copy Regardless whether you decide to hire a professional copywriter or write the copy yourself, you will need to start by putting some thoughts and facts about your business on paper to help you figure out what needs to be conveyed in the brochure. When I'm deciding how to make a brochure, I usually start this process by making an outline. If I'm writing it myself, then I just follow my outline to finished copy. If I'm farming out to another copywriter, this outline gives them a place to start, and helps them gather the necessary information. When writing the copy, some questions to ask yourself include: When you're thinking about how to make a brochure and the copy, be sure to include the following elements: How much will it cost? People hate it when I say this, but...how big's a house? It all depends on square footage and the number of features. So take that into consideration when you're trying to figure out how to make a brochure. Depending on size and features, brochures can vary from a few hundred dollars to several thousand dollars. Some of the factors include: how you decide to produce it (i.e. yourself or graphic designer); the quality of paper; number of ink colors; special treatments like varnishes, die-cutting, or foil-stamping; number of pages; quantity printed; whether you use custom or stock photography and/or illustrations; whether you write the coy or hire a professional (I recommend the latter!); etc. Regardless of how you decide to make a brochure, you need to receive an estimate before you authorize them to begin work. Most give up-front estimates as standard operating procedure, but if they don't, insist on it. Next steps... How to make a brochure depends on a lot of different factors that only you can weigh. However, one thing is for sure: Your brochure must represent your company in a high-quality fashion. The impression it leaves needs to be one that you would be proud of. Television Advertising – Everyone wants to do tv commercials because they’re sexy and extremely high-impact. Unfortunately, when it comes to small business advertising, tv can quickly blow the budget. But there are ways to make tv more affordable and impactful.Radio Advertising is one of my all-time favorite advertising mediums because it a relatively low-cost, high-impact way to reach your target audience with pinpoint accuracy. I like it so much, if fact, that I’ve even written an e-book called the The Insider’s Guide to Writing and Producing Radio.Newspaper Advertising is a good way to reach a mass audience. While they’re not cheap, they can be reasonably priced. However, it’s very easy to get lost on a crowded newspaper page, so here are some ideas on how to make your ad stand out.Magazine Advertising also has a mass audience and can be an ideal way to reach your customer. Magazines don’t have quite so many opportunities for overcrowding as newspapers, but they are usually more expensive. Still, magazines and trade publications can be a great small business advertising opportunity.Direct Mail can be a cost-effective way to reach your customer in a very specific and targeted way. Learn what it takes to create a successful direct mail piece, and why you should give direct mail a try.Advertising Taglines - The goal of great advertising taglines is to communicate your product or service to your consumer, and do it in a way that builds brand awareness and your bottom line.Yellow Pages Advertising definitely isn’t cheap, but is a great way to add credibility in your local customers’ minds.Specialty Advertising Like to save thousands of dollars Insider’s Guide to Writing and Producing Radio  Learn the insider secrets to writing and producing business-building radio commercials! - Save thousands by writing and producing radio spots like the pros Order now and get my bonus e-booklet, 10 Steps to Creating a Successful Campaign. Click here to learn more. Subscribe to the BurritoBlast! free weekly e-newsletter... ...and you'll get a weekly dose of advice, information, and resources to help you grow your small business to its maximum potential.  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