Elevate Your Business Through Your Printed Collateral

First impressions are everything – and they often determine whether a customer purchases from you.

Marketing, branding, and advertising all have the same goal – messaging to a potential buyer that they should purchase from you. Whether you are selling car parts or luxury vacations, the same principle remains true that printed materials help dictate the customers you receive and their expectations of you. 

Thus, aligning your printed materials to your overall sales goals is vital, as often these materials are the first thing a potential buyer sees.

PRINTED MATERIALS ARE LIKE HANDSHAKES

Strong handshakes encourage trust and likability, essential for purchase behavior. Very often, printed materials are the first thing a potential client handles from your business. It thus becomes a physical “handshake” to your target audience of who you are, what you represent, and what you promise to deliver.

What are these printed materials? Flyers, brochures, leaflets, posters, signage, product spec sheets, folders, and business cards.

So what makes elevated printed material?  Three key factors must work in harmony to leave a lasting impression to a potential buyer. 

These are:

• Quality of materials

• Imagery and design

• Written copy

These three pillars must equally support your printed sales collateral: A strong design leaves a memorable impression; imagery promises what you are selling; the material quality indicates the quality of what you are selling; and brilliant copy gives potential customers a reason to purchase. Take any of these away and the piece will suffer.

QUALITY OF MATERIALS

This is often one of the first areas to be cut back upon in cost-saving measures. If a business doesn’t understand the intangible message they are signally to a consumer, they can make the mistake of trading down in production quality. With the rise of so many print-on-demand online suppliers, higher quality printed materials are far more accessible to the average consumer at a lower price point. With some research and persistence, a nice piece can be created with a substantial thickness and beautiful print quality.

IMAGERY AND DESIGN

To stand out in the marketplace, having an innovative design with appealing imagery that represents your product or service is imperative.   

If a consumer is new to your business, what is visually printed on your collateral is all they will likely know about your business. Thus, it’s important to put your best foot forward in showcasing your business. 

Professional photo shoots and using high-quality stock photos are necessary to leave a good impression upon consumers. Using a professional designer who will survey the market and create a unique design is worth every penny in standing apart from your competitors.

WRITTEN COPY

Using a strong copywriting style that is concise and tone-appropriate is key for conveying your message. Every piece should also include in some way an embedded call-to-action that feels organic and leads to the next step in the purchasing process.

RECOMMENDATIONS

• Hire a professional to manage your printed materials. It’s a specific skillset that is difficult for small business owners to accomplish by themselves. This can be a sole graphic designer if you are strong in copy, or an agency who can perform all the creation roles.

• If you do not have regularly scheduled product shoots throughout the year, add to your budget twice-a-year photo shoots. This will allow you to have a fresh set of photos bi-annually and accumulate a stash of photos that you can use for a variety of purposes.

• When using stock photo images use a discerning eye when evaluating the images to use. Prior to downloading or purchasing, ensure they match the customer profile who purchases from you. Unsplash.com is one good website with largely free images.

• Double-check your printed material against your brand.  Does it feel cohesive?  Styles can be different, but there should be a common brand style.

Many companies make the unfortunate mistake of not putting a lot of effort or money in printed materials. The believe these materials are disposable, and thus not worth putting in the effort. The truth is that these pieces are often an introduction to your business - whether in-hand or visually. Just as store design is focused upon to create a favorable shopping environment, printed pieces should also convey the same level of care and quality