When it comes to creating an impactful marketing tool for any business, it's hard to beat the leaflet when it comes to versatility and cost efficiency in getting your message out to customers and clients. Leafleting has lasted this long because it's cheap and incredibly effective in getting your message out- However, that doesn't mean that the leaflet is a stagnant medium, and to get the most out of it you need to innovate and produce using modern design and advertising techniques.
Luckily, we've drawn together our years of experience + knowledge printing and distributing leaflets in Dublin and throughout Ireland to being you five key things to remember when designing your leaflet. Regardless of your distribution methods, these tips will assuredly help you get the most out of your leafleting campaigns.
Luckily, we've drawn together our years of experience + knowledge printing and distributing leaflets in Dublin and throughout Ireland to being you five key things to remember when designing your leaflet. Regardless of your distribution methods, these tips will assuredly help you get the most out of your leafleting campaigns.
1. Use Space Wisely
The importance of understanding the relationship between space and content is fundamental to creating an effective leaflet, and is crucial in making sure that your message is delivered properly. It can often be tempting to 'get the most' out of your leaflet by cramming it full of pictures and text in every available space, but doing so will most likely dissuade your reader, who will find the leaflet hard to read and difficult to understand. It is also equally important to use the space as a whole, and not front-load everything onto one or two pages whilst neglecting the rest. Think of the space as a way to break up your key points and guide the readers' eye from one section to the next.
2. Make It Clear & Legible
When designing leaflets, you want to grab the attention of the reader and deliver your key points as quickly as possible (most people only 3-5 seconds looking at leaflets) with the minimum of fuss. You also want to convince them that your business or service is legit, professional and something they should invest time and money in. This has a lot to do with presentation and legibility- how you actually communicate with your readers. To make an immediate impact, structure your text so that it can be immediately understood. For example, dark text on a light background is much easier to understand than vice versa, doubly so if your text is in a large, clear font with a snappy, attention-grabbing sentence attached to it. You only get a couple of chances to get your point across, so make sure that you seize them.
3. A Call To Action
Having a direct and high-impact call to action can do wonders in attracting customers to your business. If your leaflet offers some form of discount, freebie or VIP treatment in exchange for bringing the leaflet along with them, it can be a great way to generate custom from your marketing efforts and can also offer direct feedback on how much of an impact your campaign has had.
4. Pictures Do Your Job For You
Whilst text is responsible for hashing out exactly who you are and what you're offering, it's important to supplement the text with visual to create a more attractive product and add a visual aid to go with people's first impression of your business. However, all pictures must be of high-quality definition and composition in order to make it look professional- people will notice a poor quality or ugly image much quicker than a spelling mistake or formatting error. Despite this though, some high-quality imagery and some creative branding can do wonders for a business.
5. Print Quality
Whilst the quality of text and visuals is extremely important, to ensure that the final product benefits from their quality it is vital to make sure it is printed to the highest standard. The look and feel of the leaflet should suggest professional quality printing, and will inevitably influence the way people think about your business. The durability and reliability of leaflets relies on the quality of the paper; both thickness and finish are important to designate value. If you're designing your leaflet yourself, it may be worth consulting with a leafleting company to ensure that you choose the right materials for the job.