Want to promote your commercial printing offerings? Creating 4-color self-promotion brochures might give you extra practice with commercial print jobs--and help you increase sales. Upstate Litho, a manufacturer in Rochester, N.Y., recently developed eye-catching self-promotion brochures. Here are six tips from Richard Konieczy, the firm's regional sales manager:
1. Determine your need.
Ask sales representatives what types of marketing materials would help them sell more effectively. Determine their audience and method of distribution as well. In Upstate Litho's case, sales representatives wanted business cards and lists of equipment they could leave behind with prospects. The company combined those needs in its brochures.
Upstate Litho, a manufacturer in Rochester, N.Y., uses 4-color brochures to describe--and demonstrate--its commercial printing capabilities. The firm selected cover images targeted to the demographics of the brochure recipients. TOP: Upstate Litho incorporated elements of its brochures' designs into other marketing materials, including this poster.
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ADD A PROMOTIONAL
PRODUCT
When designing
self-promotion literature, distributors and manufacturers can add offers
for promotional products. Silver Marketing Group studied 1,482 businesses
and found the following:
* Adding promotional
products
to mail promotions increased response rates by 50
percent.
* Offers of promotional
products generated four times as many responses as sales letters alone.
They also reduced the cost per response by two-thirds.
Source:
Promotional Products Association International
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2. Partner with experts.
Graphic designers and marketers can help
make brochures more appealing to recipients. Konieczy partnered with a
Rochester, N.Y., graphic design firm that knew Upstate Litho's business very
well. Keep in mind that consulting with experts can lengthen your project's
schedule. Upstate Litho spent six months creating brochures and accompanying
materials.
3. Demonstrate your
capabilities.
For example, don't say you offer die
cutting--include die cuts in the brochure. Upstate Litho's brochures include die
cuts and slits, saddle stitching, vibrant colors, image enlargements, custom
images and more. Konieczy says these features can impress prospects. "Show them,
don't just tell them," he advises. "People buy more when they see it. When you
buy a carpet, you go touch the carpet, right?"
4. List your offerings with caution.
Konieczy says if he had to redo Upstate Litho's brochures, he probably would have removed the equipment lists from some of them. Equipment lists can change often, especially when printers partner with each other to combine their capabilities on certain jobs. Brochures should clarify the wide variety of equipment available, Konieczy says. "Don't limit yourself," he says.
5. Personalize the brochures.
Let demographics guide your brochures' design. Upstate Litho selected cover images that appeal to three major markets: Washington, D.C., New York and Rochester, N.Y. For instance, the cover of the brochure targeted toward Washington prospects included an image of monument pillars. Keep in mind that some images may be expensive, Konieczy says. Upstate Litho bought the rights to several of the images it used.
6. Tie brochures in with a marketing campaign.
Upstate Litho developed the theme "Trust, Passion, Confidence, Value." The manufacturer applied elements from the theme to posters and post cards. By tying the brochure in with other marketing efforts, Konieczy says, Upstate Litho hopes to create a consistent, memorable brand in prospects' minds.
—Rita Tiefert
