5. Make it a Keeper

Putting helpful information in your brochure will encourage reader to keep it, refer to it often or pass it on to other people. If you're selling paint you can provide hints on color schemes, painting how-to information, tips from pros etc. If you're selling skin care products you can give your readers tips on how to combat pimples, dry skin, fine lines and wrinkles.

6. Alter Shape

Who says a brochure has to be A4? Selling sandwiches? You can design a brochure in shape of a sandwich. Season tickets to soccer matches? Design it in shape of a soccer ball. Using your imagination when designing your brochure can produce better than average results. According to Direct Magazine, a recent mailing by CSi, a company that conducts customer satisfaction surveys for automobile insurance firms and repair shops, got a 15% response rate with a brochure delivered in a 32-ounce squeeze sport water bottle. The headline read, “Thirsty for more repair orders?”

Try tall and slim, square, oblong. Whatever you like. The only limitation is your imagination, and, of course, your budget.

7. Make it Personal

An experienced speaker talking to a large audience will pick out a face in crowd, and talk to that face. This connection with one person allows speaker to make his talk more personal than if he were merely addressing a mass of faces. In a similar fashion, words in your brochure should use this technique and zero in on one imaginary single person. Why? Because writing in a direct “I’m-talking-only-to-you” style will increase response.

8. Add Atmosphere

Don't let your brochure sound aloof. Let your reader share your feelings. There's no reason why a brochure about a wood burning stove has to go into ins and outs of how stove works. Tell your reader about rain swept winter evenings and snow-bound afternoons. Let your words show them how warm and snug and they'll be when they purchase one of your stoves.

9. Get Selling...Fast

Remember, not everyone wants to be educated on every aspect of your product or service. Nor does everyone want to know manufacturing details of your widget. Don't waste their time telling them about things that don't convey a benefit.

10. Talk about your reader's needs

Don’t get carried away with your own interests. Talk about your reader, not yourself. Here are first words in a brochure from a company selling insurance:

“Insurance is a complicated business. Our company was formed in 1975 to help our clients deal with process of finding right insurance to suit their needs. In last 20 years we have been selling insurance to a wide range of customers from many different walks of life. Our company's reputation is unsurpassed in industry...”

Yawn...This is bar room bore in print. Instead of telling you how company can help solve your problems, it's more interested in telling you about itself.

11. Give Directions

Every brochure should be organized so reader can flip through pages and easily find what they want. Provide clear signposts or headlines throughout brochure and make sure each one says: “Hey, pay attention to me!”

12. Ask for Action

Regardless of how you organize your brochure, there's only one way to end it. Ask for action. If you want your reader to respond include an 800 number, reply card, or some form of response mechanism. In fact, to increase your brochure’s selling power you should include your offer and a response mechanism on every page.

Once you have their attention, use your conversation, your emails and your web site to ask them what they want and need.

Lack of Credibility You want prospects to see you as expert; person and firm that has products and services they can rely on. One of biggest challenges to attracting new clients is gaining their trust and being seen as essential expert. Use your articles, ezine, and web site to demonstrate your expertise. Use testimonials from clients to tell prospects about results you and your products have achieved.

Pricing Objections Whether it is a $25 subscription or a $50,000 consulting fee, prospects object to price when they don't understand value of purchase. Establish a set of questions you can use to help prospects define what they want and what you are providing. When price is put in context, it becomes much less of an obstacle.

Still not converting as many prospects to clients as you'd like? Use questions to find out more about what they want, and what their concerns are. Then address each of these objections up front and remove them as potential sales killers.

Think of your target market as a reservoir of water waiting to be tapped. If you eliminate barriers between them and you, you could send a steady stream of new clients and customers your way. N0w, don't just imagine it, do it. Start eliminating your prospects' objections and create a clear path for them to become clients and customers. Help your prospects get what they want and you'll get what you want, more clients. - 2004 © In Mind Communications, LLC. All rights reserved.