The Page Group | Widsom | Ten Tips for Increasing the Impact of your Attendee Promo Brochures

TEN TIPS FOR INCREASING THE IMPACT OF YOUR ATTENDEE PROMO BROCHURES

(article published in ConventionPlanit.com's eAlert 7/25/05)

These days, everyone's focus is on the web to promote their show. That's a good thing, but printed promotional mailings still play a central role—so they'd better do their job.

Here are ten tips from Sarna Marcus of The Page Group to keep your show brochures from winding up in the circular file:

Don't include the kitchen sink. Communicating your event's special features is important. But be selective. You may have numerous high-profile events at your show, but highlighting everything on a page equals emphasizing nothing. A crowded, chaotic brochure conveys a crowded, chaotic event. Worse, it overloads the mind, increasing its chances of being tossed.

Avoid false economy. A show brochure needs to pull, and color sells. In fact, it's been shown that full-color gets a 30% greater response than 2-color. And 4-color isn't the high cost it used to be, since designers now provide electronic Photoshop files of color photos and art. So shop around, and you may find that you can get quality full-color printing for a price close to or equal to that of 2-color.

Keep your reader engaged. It's your job to ensure that the reader moves through your brochure with upbeat curiosity. Don't make your prospects wade through too much information to find out if your event is for them. So skip the details—they can get that on your website. Focus on only the most provocative highlights, and sprinkle call-outs and images throughout.

Blocks of text can be an active negative. Your marketing piece should be a quick read. Descriptive information should be brief and to the point. If you must include longer descriptions, break them up with subheads and bullet lists. Remember, you need only enough information to inspire a decision to attend, not one word more.

Small trumps large. It's often been shown that small, targeted promotional pieces pull better and yield a better ROI than big, unwieldy brochures. And the big ones cost more to print and a bundle to mail, so why spend the money? Conventional reasoning ("Our people are used to receiving complete information.") no longer holds water, because now all the nitty-gritty can be found on your website.

Not an extravagance. Professional design pulls better. This is not a plug to call me, so please read on. Recent studies have shown that good communication design more than justifies the cost. It helps keep your promotional materials clean and strong, using negative space to guide the reader's eye to the highlights. In short, it does a better job of selling your event, and it beats out your competitors for attention.

Send the right message. Smart messaging is essential. You may be proud of the name of your show, but it won't persuade anyone to spend the time and money to attend. You need a value proposition that hits home—a brief, pithy message that resonates with the recipient, conveying "This event can help make your job—and your life—easier."

Each market has its own concerns. Like most convention and expo directors, you probably have more than one market, each with different needs. Don't make the mistake of watering down your message to include everyone; the result will be a message that speaks to no one. Rather, tailor your message to address the concerns of each primary market.

Don't miss your mark. When all is said and done, it doesn't matter how well you produce your promotional brochures if they wind up in front of the wrong set of eyes. So use only up-to-date lists and an accurate, current database. A targeted message read by the wrong recipient is worse than no message at all.

Hedge your bet. Most of you know that one brochure won't yield a flood of registrants; you need three-plus hits to elicit sufficient response. Now, with multi-channel options, you can bundle print with internet for optimum exposure. Send out a branded email within a week of mailing your promotional brochures. Then have the email take prospects to a special landing page that provides the promised information.