A pamphlet is a widely used marketing tool for organizations of various scales. These are of singular sheets with prints on both sides. Printed in colour, a pamphlet design is specifically used for publicising special events like launching of a car model, inauguration of a shop room or invitation to a sale.
Unlike other forms of printed publicity materials such as brochures and catalogues, a pamphlet is focussed and designed for achieving instant results. It is important for advertisers to understand that designing and distribution are the key considerations for a publicity material to be effective. Designing should be arresting while distribution needs to be purposeful. Both these are specialized tasks and needs professional involvement.
Designing a pamphlet
Appropriate designing is a basic requirement of a printed publicity material. There are several factors that contribute to an effective brochure design. Images, typeface, layout, caption, content, background and format are aspects that a designer must bear in mind while creating a handout.
Images – Images form an integral part of any form of publicity material, be it for a commodity or service. Company logo, photographs of related goods or an abstract pattern are acceptable images for a pamphlet. These images should be visually attractive to viewers and online.
Typeface – Selecting a proper typeface or font is crucial for any printed publicity material. Fonts should be crisp and clear, allowing your handout to be read without any trouble. Decorative typestyles are never recommended for marketing materials. Colour of fonts should be in perfect contrast to the background for easier identification of letters.
Background – The background shade plays a vital part in the overall appearance of a brochure. Ideally, the colour of background should be in perfect contrast to the font shade and image. Image used is better highlighted with a border. Care should be taken to leave enough empty space and margin giving a neater appearance to your handout.
Content – A brochure should be informative and meaningful. As these are meant for specific purpose, content should be precise and comprehendible. Use of figurative language is never recommended for marketing materials. Only outstanding aspects need to be mentioned in a leaflet and details avoided.
Caption – Caption is the focal point of a handout and must always be striking. It should catch the attention of a viewer even at a slight glance. Caption used need to be relevant to your advertised service or product.
Layout – Layout of your leaflet is of primary importance. It must neither appear crammed up nor too sparse. Statements should be made in point forms or in short paragraphs. Your pamphlet design must be aesthetic in appearance such that it captures attention easily.
Format – This is perhaps the most important criterion for a brochure design. Handouts could be bi-fold, tri-fold, Z-fold or fanfold depending on your exact marketing demand. For instance, a tri-fold format is perfect for mailing while a fanfold is perfect for a company that has several items to convince about.
Distribution Aspect of Pamphlets
Distribution of handout is of equal if not greater importance to advertisers and marketers. The objective of designing and printing of point of sales materials is to reach out to your target audience in order to achieve business targets. This entire objective gets defeated if your printed marketing materials fail to reach your targeted audience. Distribution of handouts could be done manually, through mailers and by online marketing techniques. Planned or purposive distribution is essential for effective publicity for your product or service.
Mailers are essentially purposive and sent to a selected list of prospective and existing customers. These are sent in a manner so as to generate enough response and create interest among potential buyers. For instance, for a new car launch, mailers could be sent to accomplished professionals, senior executives, top level bureaucrats and business owners. For a more general audience, manual distribution is desirable. While inviting customers for garments sales, distribution of pamphlets through newspaper vendors is plausible.
Marketing through POS (point of sales) materials is, thus, a well-planned activity that involves proper brochure designing and thoughtful distribution. Pamphlet design professionals should be engaged for conceiving printed publicity materials that are catchy. For distribution, dependable marketing organizations are the safest bet.
Photo Credit: Flickr/Lisa Parker
