You may see most advertisements on your phone now, but brochures have not completely disappeared. Businesses still hand them out at events, place them at counters or give them to customers who want more information.
Sometimes it is simply easier to give someone a brochure. They can take it with them and look through it later instead of trying to remember everything that was explained during a conversation.
The problem is that a brochure can also look bad when too much is squeezed into it. Small text, crowded pages or the wrong paper can make something that looked fine on a laptop feel very different once it is printed.
This is why the design and the actual printing need to work together. When using brochure printing services, it is worth checking how the brochure will be printed, folded and finished before sending a large quantity for production. All of these details affect what customers eventually hold in their hands.
Start With the Way People Will Read It
Before thinking about paper or finishing, look at the brochure from the reader’s point of view.
Pick up any brochure and think about what you normally do first. You might notice the picture, read one heading and quickly look through the inside. If nothing catches your attention, you probably won’t spend much time reading the rest.
Because of this, the information should be easy to follow.
The Front Cover
Think about the front cover like the first few seconds of meeting someone. You don’t need to tell them everything straight away. The same applies to a brochure.
Keep the main message visible and give the design some breathing room. A logo, short headline and relevant image may already be enough, depending on what the brochure is for.
If every product, service, phone number and promotion is pushed onto the cover, it can become difficult to know where to look first.
The Inside Panels
Opening the brochure should not feel like opening a page full of homework. Someone who is interested in one particular service should be able to spot that section quite quickly.
Break the content up instead of filling the panels with one long piece of writing. You can use headings for the main topics and bullet points where a list makes more sense.
Say the company offers three different services. Give each service its own space and explain it there. That is much easier to look through than mixing all three into the same paragraph.
Give the Reader Somewhere to Go Next
After reading the brochure, what should the person do?
Maybe you want them to visit the website, contact the sales team, scan a QR code or come to the store. Whatever it is, the contact information should be easy to find.
The back panel is commonly used for details such as a phone number, website, address and social media information.
Choosing Paper for the Brochure
Paper is one of those things that can look quite similar on a computer screen but feel completely different once printed.
A very thin paper may not be suitable for every brochure, while thicker material can affect how easily the brochure folds. The right choice depends on the brochure design, number of panels and how the finished piece will be used.
Instead of choosing a paper weight simply because it sounds more premium, ask the printer to show you available samples if possible.
Actually holding the paper can make the decision much easier.
Professional brochure printing services may offer different paper stocks and weights, so it is worth discussing the options before approving the job.
Matte or Gloss?
The finish also changes the appearance of a brochure.
Gloss is usually picked when there are plenty of photos or bright colours in the design. Matte looks less shiny, which can work nicely when the brochure has more writing or a cleaner layout.
It really comes down to how you want the finished brochure to look.
If you can’t decide, ask the printer if you can see a few actual samples first. What looks good on screen may feel quite different once it becomes a physical brochure.
Folding Needs to Match the Design
When you’re designing the brochure on a computer, you’re looking at one flat page. The actual brochure won’t stay that way because it still needs to be folded.
A tri-fold, bi-fold and Z-fold won’t place the content in exactly the same way. So before finishing the design, mark out where the folds are going to be.
Imagine placing an important sentence directly across a fold. It might look completely normal on the file, then look strange once that section is folded.
That’s why I would decide on the folding style before completing the layout, not after everything else is already done.
Check a Proof Before Printing a Large Quantity
Finding one small mistake isn’t a big problem when it’s still just a file. Finding it after 1,000 brochures are printed is a different story.
Go through the brochure slowly before giving the final approval. Check things people often miss, like the phone number, website, spelling and images. Also look around the folds and edges to make sure the words aren’t sitting in an awkward position.
If the printer gives you a proof, don’t approve it straight away. Have a proper look at it first.
Do not assume that because the artwork looked correct on your laptop, the final printed piece will automatically look exactly the same.
Professional Printing vs. Printing in the Office
For a few internal copies, an office printer may be perfectly adequate.
The situation changes when the brochure will be handed to customers or produced in a much larger quantity. At that point, consistency, trimming, folding and the final appearance become more important.
This is the kind of job where a commercial printer becomes useful. Some printers can take care of the printing, folding and finishing in one place, although the services offered will depend on the company.
When asking for a quotation, give the printer a little more information about the job. Let them know how many brochures you need, the final size and how you want them folded. If you already have a paper or finishing style in mind, mention that too.
Conclusion
A brochure doesn’t have to explain the whole business from beginning to end. Think about what someone actually needs to know after picking it up and keep the content around that.
Start with the layout. Look at the cover first and remove anything that feels unnecessary. Inside, separate the information properly and make sure details such as the website, phone number or other contact information are easy to spot.
Once the content looks right, you can move on to the actual printed piece. Paper, finish and folding can all change the final result.
Before sending the final artwork to your brochure printing services provider, go through it one more time. Check the phone numbers, spelling, images and folds. It is better to notice a small mistake on the file than after a stack of brochures has already been printed.