All marketing strategies aim at taking a brand to target customers in a big way. But many such strategies are costly for small business owners. This is because some expertise is involved in meeting objectives when using sophisticated marketing plans. But flyers and brochures are less costly and effective tools that every small business can successfully adopt and implement.
What are flyers and brochures?
A flyer is usually a thin, unfolded sheet of paper that advertisers use to promote their business. Typically, flyers contain attractive information about customers’ interests, such as discounts, coupons, and events. Called also handouts, someone usually distributes flyers standing at one place to people passing by. So, these are cheap marketing materials just to inform people about some offers or business development.
On the other hand, a brochure is an informative paper document, but it comes in a folded thick sheet of paper, unlike flyers that are one thin sheet of paper. So, you can create a brochure as a template, leaflet, or pamphlet.
Brochures come in different types depending on how they get folded. So, there are bi-fold, tri-fold, z-fold, gates-fold, cross-fold, and die-cut fold brochures.
Here is how flyers and brochures benefit your business.
Take your brand to digitally challenged customers.
Not all of your target customers may have internet access. They are not used to computers or smartphones. So, they prefer tactile marketing tools such as flyers.
So, it was found in a study that teenagers, the elderly, and homemakers prefer getting information from tangible objects such as flyers and brochures to get the contact details of a nearby restaurant. Such people recall a restaurant’s name when they get to know about it on a flyer or a pamphlet.
Reduce your brand promotion costs
Many think that social media and digital marketing are free for brand promotion. But, on the contrary, most of these mediums expect you to contribute money for online visibility. Also, mobile apps and broadcasting are too expensive and out of the reach of small businesses.
But flyers and brochures require you to spend only on their printing and nothing else. These are comparatively less costly also when you set out to design them. A flyer maker will even eliminate the need to hire a designer as you can create a flyer all by yourself using the tool. Then, all you do is distribute flyers physically to thousands of people from one point. That is all you do to promote your business.
Enhance your brand recall value
Flyers are also one of the best marketing tools to ensure better brand recall value. When people see your logo printed on a nicely designed flyer, along with some enticing discounts, etc., they keep your brand in mind.
Also, note that your mobile messages and emails are lost or buried deeper in the crowd of messages over time. Social media posts also are not easier to find after a few months and even days. Ads on radio and television also are forgotten after a few months.
But flyers and brochures are tangible marketing tools people can keep with them if some attractive offers are mentioned in them. Flyers can quickly be passed on from one person to another to access a piece of information.
Make sure that the title on your flyer is catchy and that the overall layout is attractive with some photos and graphics. That will further enhance the recall value.
Build trust and authority
Small businesses can use flyers as a cost-effective means to build trust and authority for their brand. Usually, such brand promotion is expensive and needs a considerable marketing budget. But with high-quality flyers, you can make a great lasting impression on your target customers. With such good design flyers, you can signal that your products or services are high quality and reliable, and customers can rely on those offerings.
Your flyers can also mention satisfied customers’ testimonials, which boosts your brand’s confidence. Such testimonials become evidence of your brand’s quality offerings.
When designing a brochure, you can try out a brochure maker for free to see which design ideas will suit your brand message. Or, you can hire an experienced designer to do the job as per your brief.
Reach more people in your target market
Your reach increases further with flyers as you distribute these leaflets to hundreds of people daily in your locality. You can target customers at the sidelines of business events or trade shows by handing out flyers to passersby.
You can even select which backgrounds of people you want to hand out your flyers. If you have a clear picture of your customer persona, you can reach the place where they live and distribute flyers. So, find out their residency location, their usual route, and even their office. People get familiar with your business and offerings as you distribute these printed ads within your set locality.
You would also like to explore flyers and brochures for brand promotion. But before you incorporate them into your marketing plans, know that they are mostly simple designs.
How to use flyers and brochures for brand promotion
You need to use flyers and brochures just perfectly to get them working for your business promotion efficiently. Here is what you should be doing to create and distribute flyers for the desired results.
Know your purpose –
First, have a clear objective for using flyers. What do you want to achieve through flyer marketing? Do you want to generate new leads and drive potential customers to your website? Or, is it all about increasing sales?
Focus on your target market and message-
You should pay attention to basically two things, which are knowing your target market and brand message. Many businesses make the mistake of distributing flyers randomly, hoping that someone will find their offerings interesting. But that approach does not work all the time.
Instead, first, know who is your ideal customer and then hand out flyers only to those people. They are likely to buy from your company more often. Then, make sure that you create your message in a precise manner. Flyers are smaller in size and so you must convey your specific offerings such as events date and timing, coupons, discounts, etc. Do not list everything in the flyer as that will distract and overwhelm the readers.
Be creative –
Your flyer is also an opportunity for making a lasting first impression on potential buyers. So, use bold colors, compelling headlines, and most importantly, ensure that your copy is well-written and concise. The unique design of your flyer and brochure will help the reader’s attention. You can explore design marketplace such as Designhill to create your unique flyer design as per your brief.
Create design wisely –
While designing your flyer and brochure, come up with a design that stands out. You can ensure that by using specific colors and fonts that catch the eye. Use contrasting colors and fonts to grab the attention. Use different sizes of fonts such as larger ones for the headline and subheads, and smaller fonts for body text.
Also, avoid using too many images in flyers. Use just one or two powerful images or graphics related to the purpose of your flyer.
Have a powerful call to action –
Do not forget to create a strong call to action at the end of the flyer. After reading your flyer content from top to bottom, the call to action line should encourage the reader to take the desirable step. But the call to action should be a short and dynamic piece of text.
Conclusion
Flyers and brochures are cost-effective marketing tools for small business owners. They can design and distribute flyers in no time to take their business offerings to the masses. Brochures are a bit sophisticated strategy for brand promotion. Both of them are great for brand recall value and building trust amongst the target audience.