Writing brochures

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COMA 360 - DMH

WRITING BROCHURES

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COMA 360 - DMH

WHY WRITE A BROCHURE

Create awareness of a company, product, service or opportunity

Increase understanding of a product, service, or company mission

Advertise new aspects about your organization, product, or service

Change negative attitudes Show ways in which a company, product, or

service surpasses the competition Increase frequency of use, visit, or purchase Raise or increase interest

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COMA 360 - DMH

QUALITIES OF BROCHURES

More detailed than a flier Less developed than a newsletter Topic and amount of information will

determine the size Can be easy to update or modify Printing costs vary widely

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COMA 360 - DMH

CRITERIA FOR WRITING BROCHURES

Title Page (Front Panel) • Topic (product name,

service, location, subject)• Graphic (visual

representation) • Headline with implied action

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COMA 360 - DMH

AUDIENCE RECOGNITION AND INVOLVEMENT Define any terminology, abbreviations, or

acronyms that cause confusion Personalize through pronoun usage and

contractions Check for accuracy Proofread

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COMA 360 - DMH

CRITERIA FOR WRITING BROCHURES

Back Panel (may accomplish any of the following goals) • Conclusion (restate the

highlights or suggest a next step)

• Mailing (address, stamp/paid postage, reader’s address)

• Coupons (incentive to visit; discounts/complimentary tickets)

• Location (address, hours of operation, phone numbers, e- mail, map)

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COMA 360 - DMH

CRITERIA FOR WRITING BROCHURES Body Panels (Fold-in and Inside)

• Provide headings and subheadings Navigational tools Consistent font type and size

– First level headings should be larger and more emphatic than second level headings)

– Parallel to each other grammatically • Use graphics

Vary page layout, add visual appeal, enhance text

• Answer key questions• Remember the needs of your readers

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COMA 360 - DMH

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COMA 360 - DMH

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COMA 360 - DMH

BROCHURE DESIGN

Use three or so different highlight techniques Limit sentence length to 10-12 words Limit paragraph length to 4-6 lines Use white space • Indent and itemize

information Use color for interest, variety, and emphasis Bullet key points Boldface or underline key ideas

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COMA 360 - DMH

BROCHURE DESIGN

For variety and visual appeal, let text and graphics overlap two or more of the panels.

Place graphics at angles occasionally) or alternate their placement at either the center, right, or left margin of the panel.

Don’t overdesign!

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COMA 360 - DMH