It’s part of our job to educate our clients on the importance and advantages of excellent design. At the same time, it must be said that effective brochure composition requires more than (just) compelling design. In planning your promotional materials, you need to pay as much attention to content as you do to visuals – and vice versa.

Graphic designers are intimately familiar with the all-important portfolio and accompanying self-promotion piece. After the big pitch and presentation, designers and firms provide prospective clients with an SPP, often a bound promotional brochure or catalogue highlighting their best work and success stories/case studies, as well as a list of awards and some basic reminder company information.

Now, all business owners are familiar with the corporate brochure, but rarely is it utilized in the same way by companies in non-creative fields. Most corporate brochures end up serving either as extended ads (too obviously self-serving, unless the ad is the purpose), or dry company profiles (which are, well, dry). I often suggest a more creative approach to my clients… a “show” rather than “tell”.