This is one question that I have been asked a number of times by my clients. It is a very difficult question to answer because the completion of a brochure depends on a number of factors. Some of the factors are under the control of the advertising agency while others are under the control of the client. For instance, how fast the advertising agency prepares the copy and design will depend on its workload at that point of time. On the other hand, advertising agencies are dependent on the clients in terms of how fast they can get approvals at various stages of the brochure development process to enable them to take the next step. We have taken weeks as well as months to develop a brochure. We have also done it in a couple of days. A few times we have even developed the brochure in 4-5 hours.
There are too many variables involved in the development of a brochure for anyone to predict the time required to design and print a brochure. I feel that you should allow at least 4-5 weeks to develop a brochure. However, in this book I have tried to suggest a procedure for the different steps involved in the development of the advertising and promotional material, which if adopted, will reduce the time involved in the development of the advertising and promotional material including brochures. For instance, in the chapter titled “Body Copy,” I have suggested how to get the copy developed and approved in the shortest possible time.

Some Tips
1. Don’t expect the moon: Have you ever heard the expression, “Don’t send a boy to do a man’s job?” Well, don’t expect your brochure alone to make the sale for you. The purpose of a brochure is to educate the customer about your company and products. It’s objective is also to encourage the customer to get in contact with you if he has interest in doing business with you. There are some small ticket items that can be sold with a direct mail brochure. However, don’t try to achieve everything with the brochure.
2. Make it simple and direct: I have mentioned a number of times in this book that keeping the communication with the target audience simple and direct is critical as time is in short supply. If the brochure is too long or it is not clear, the prospective customer will avoid reading it.
3. Use positive words: Always assume that the customer will eventually buy the product or service. Don’t use the words “if” and “maybe” which invite the possibility of a negative response from the customer.
4. Use “You” often: Use the word “you” rather than “our customers.” You have to assume that the brochure is being read by your prospective customer. It is better to address him in a personal manner.
5. No open-ended questions: Never ask open-ended questions in a brochure. Make sure you phrase all questions in such a way that the answer can only be “YES”.
6. Use friendly tone: You want your brochure to sound and look professional. You can accomplish this without using “stiff phrasing” or a formal tone. While developing your brochure, pretend that you are talking to your customer as his friend. The copy in your brochure should represent a dialogue between friends. Your brochure shouldn’t read like a textbook.
7. Keep the paragraphs short: The thumb rule if you are writing an essay or a book is that the height of the paragraph should not be more than the width of the paragraph. However, in a brochure the paragraphs should be as short as possible.
8. Do not indent paragraphs that have a space between them: You only need one design indicator to indicate the beginning of a new paragraph.
9. Do not start sentences with numbers: “20% of all policemen are from north India” is not the correct way. Correct way of stating the same thing would be, “Twenty percent of all policemen are from north India.”
10. Underline / Uppercase: Do not use underline or all caps as a way to stress a point. Use bold or italics instead.

Creative Design Studio