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8 Reasons To Update Your Business Identity

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When is the last time you looked at one of your own business cards or brochures? I mean really looked at them? Do they look dated? Do they have all of your correct information or do you have to scratch out an old phone number or email address and write in a new one? Do they have all of your current information? Do they convey the brand identity that you want to put in front of your clients? These are all important questions that need to be addressed. Quickly!
    1. Use Of Color. Color plays a very important role in how you present your business. Some people make a living off of the science of color. Do not underestimate the power of color.

 

    1. Your Company Logo. Make sure your logo is clean, crisp and current. Use the appropriate colors in your logo. They should tie in with your company colors and make for a lasting impression.

 

    1. Your Social Media Presence. More and more companies are realizing the importance of social media. Grow your network by letting others know where to find you.

 

    1. Your Contact Information. Be sure to include any contact information that is important to your business and leave off the info that’s not. Most importantly, make sure it’s current. One of the most unprofessional things is to watch someone scratch off a phone number or email and write in a more current one. Very unprofessional indeed.

 

    1. Make Them Use It. Adding marketing oriented text and graphics to business cards pays off. Phrases like: “Present this card for a free ring cleaning.” “Ask for Steve to get your first oil change free!” are powerful attention getters that will make your clients contact you. A properly stated call to action will get you more business.

 

    1. Update, Update, Update. Is that clear enough? Having an updated image shows that you are aware of current trends and that you care enough about your business to keep it fresh and current.

 

    1. The Back. Don’t forget about the back of your business card. The back of your card is just as important as the front. Want me to prove it? Watch what people do when you or one of your colleagues hands out a card. More often than not the recipient will turn it over and look at the back. Go ahead, try it. I’ll wait. See! Make use of the back of your card with any pertinent information that isn’t already there. It only adds a few dollars to print on the back.

 

    1. Consistency. Make sure you are consistent with your business identity. When someone sees your business presented consistently across all mediums, they will remember you. If your business cards are different from your brochures and your brochures are different from your website, how will your clients know it’s you?

 

Using a business card or brochure to simply exchange contact information is just plain wasteful. Your business card can be the most powerful, affordable and versatile marketing  tool you have. And it’s convenient size fits in a purse, wallet or pocket.  It’s portable!

 

Designing full color cards and brochures that get attention, appear more valuable and have a good call to action will get you more business. Your customers will love them and you’ll enjoy handing them out.

 

What have you done to revamp your image? Let us know!
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Marcy’s Clayground

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Marcy's Clayground

Mary’s Clayground tri-fold brochures. Printed on 100lb. gloss text with aqueous coating on both sides.

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Carefree Birding

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Carefree Birding rack card

Carefree Birding rack cards.

We’ve printed many items for Carefree Birding including these rack cards. Designed and printed by Digital Dept., these 4″ x 9″ rack cards give all the details of their cruises.

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NEW! 1-2 Color Products Options

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We have always prided ourselves on exceptional full color printing at great pricing. Now we are offering a NEW huge range of product options for our 1-2 COLOR products. We print our 1-2 color jobs, using the same high-quality metal plate technology used for our other printing, ensuring you get the best quality printing.

For our 1-2 color printing, there are options for paper type, paper color, SELECTION OF ANY PANTONE SPOT COLOR INK, and bindery.

We invite you visit our website for NEW lowered pricing on everything we offer, and details on the product options available for our 1-2 color printing.

Visit DigitalDept.com today and see what we have to offer!

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10 Great Brochure Design Tips for Beginners

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Is this your first time creating a brochure? Or maybe you just need a few pointers to guide you along. The use of brochures is one of the most essential and effective forms of marketing right after digital marketing about which you can find more info of its relation with businesses on this weblink. The following are a few ideas to keep in mind as you go through the design process. 10 great tips that will help you produce a brochure that delivers the message you want.

1. Use Color:
Color is worth the investment. Color gets the attention of your reader. I’ve heard that the average mail recipient will spend seven seconds looking at your brochure deciding whether to act on it or not. You’re competing with all of the mail in the box and your brochure needs to be noticed. Nothing says look at me like a splash of color.
2. Use Photos:
Use those seven seconds to your advantage. Don’t bog down your brochure with a lot of boring text. A generous helping of photos and other attention-getting graphical elements like headlines and use of bold will keep your audience interested.

3. Use Discretion:
Most people look at images first, then headlines, then body copy. Because of this, try to get your most important information and selling points across in the images and headlines. There’s no need to write a book when the images convey your message.

4. Use Less:
The most important rule of design that will get your audience’s attention during those crucial seven seconds is, Less Is More. Stick to three fonts or less for your brochure. Century Schoolbook, Century Expanded, Georgia, and Palatino are good, legible choices.  Many people prefer to select a type “family” and use its components for different brochure elements (body text, headlines, captions). A type “family” includes specifically executed variations of a single typeface. For instance, the Arial family includes Arial, Arial Black, Arial Rounded MT Bold, and Arial Narrow.

5. Use Consistent Typefaces:
Don’t fill the small spaces of a folded brochure with big headlines that look like filler.  Be consistent in your use of typefaces and sizes for headlines, body text, and captions; size 16 for headlines, size 12 for text, and size 10 for captions.

6. Use White Space Judiciously:
Break up the text with bullet points and keep paragraphs short.  Use adequate line spacing to make your brochure attractive and legible, and don’t crowd elements on the page or push type together.

7. Use the Address Area to Your Advantage:
If you’re mailing your brochure, use the address area to include every bit of contact information you have: your return address, website, logo, and if you have one, your mission statement on the left side of the panel.

8. Beware the Fold:
I can’t tell you how many brochures I’ve seen where the edge of a  photo is creased by a fold, or the text runs into a fold. You don’t want your message in the fold unless you’ve designed it that way. Whatever fold you’re using (bi- or tri-fold, z-fold, etc.), when you have your final design for proofing be sure you fold the brochure to check that your layout is correct.

9. Use a Proofreader:
Don’t waste your hard work with spelling errors, poor production, design mistakes, or incorrect information. Ask an independent person, preferably a professional who is in your target market to scan the brochure for any mistakes or design flaws. Also, ask the person to provide honest feedback and inquire if the content stimulates their interest. And if your brochure includes information on an event, be sure you confirm the date(s), time, and place before you send it to us. If you’re on a tight budget, triple-check that vital piece of information for accuracy. And finally, know the ‘chain of command’ for error-checking. If there is more than one person who approves communications such as brochures, create a list and be sure everyone who needs to has signed off on the final copy–literally signed on the final copy before it gets sent to us.

10. Use The Digital Dept. for Printing:
Just because you can print your brochure from your inkjet printer, doesn’t mean you should. This final tip really comes down to a decision based on your budget. But for the best print quality, at an affordable price, professional printing is the way to go.  When you factor in the cost of ink, the cost of folding the brochures and applying labels yourself you can actually save a lot of money by letting us do the labor intensive work for you. You’ll get a professional looking brochure that will stand out from the rest.

While this post is geared toward the beginner, the tips here are used daily by beginners and professionals alike.  They are intended as a guideline for you to get started.  There are many other issues to be taken into consideration. For example, paper choice, use of stock designs and size are all things to think about. Please visit our website at www.digitaldept.com to see more brochure options.

If you’ve created a brochure for yourself or someone else, I’d like to hear from you. Please add your tips or comments below and I’ll try to address as many as I can.

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