Ink oNPaper:
Rethinking Brochures By David Allison
Used to be no business, regardless of size, could survive without one. Is that still true today?
T
oday, all the information inside a brochure can also be found on your company website. Information-heavy websites now have the role in the communications campaign that we used to assign to the brochure. It is the central pivot point around which all other efforts revolve, and it is the place consumers turn to for information about us, the facts, the features and all the other information they need to make an informed decision about a product or service. Which brings us back to the brochure. If websites are now providing us with all the information we need and want, what is the role of the brochure? Personally, I think the brochure still has a vital role, but like many of the traditional marketing tools we were so familiar with, its role has to be different. It’s a decision about polar extremes, really. You need to decide which end of the spectrum you want to land on. On the one hand, a brochure can provide MORE information than your website. It can be a source of long stories and deep information that no one wants to read
online; more like a magazine than a brochure. On the other hand it could be a tool that’s more about the “poetry” of your company. The vision, the hopes, the dreams, the fun that (I hope!) is in what you do. A magazine or newspaper approach can help consumers understand, and feel part of, a project, product or business. They become privy to more than just the basic features and services. They have the opportunity to savour the information because, regardless of how convenient the web is, it’s much easier to read a long story on a printed page than on a computer screen. As for the poetic approach, the brochure becomes something that sells emotional engagement. A flower shop prints a guide to the secret language of flowers. A bike store publishes a map of biking trials in the area. A resort collects vacation shots from guests and prints a coffee table book. You get the picture. Regardless of which brochure approach you subscribe to, remember the intangible communication of brand personality that a brochure can also provide. The combination
of paper and font and binding and colour and printing techniques can tell a prospect a lot about your business. If you are planning to use a brochure as a tool in your marketing campaign, make sure it is doing the job it is best suited for. Across the country, there are numerous budding business opportunities for First Nations. This truly is an exciting time for aboriginal entrepreneurs, but as we move forward, let’s make sure we think about the rules we all assumed to be true. Brochures are one traditional tool that needs to be rethought. My point is that every aspect of how we build brands and communicate with customers is due for a rethink. David Allison is a member of the Metis Nation, a Director of the Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business, and a partner at Braun/Allison Inc., the only aboriginal owned real estate and resort marketing campaign company in the world. You can read more of his articles about marketing in BC Business Magazine online at www. bcbusinessonline.ca/onebrand. You can read about his company, and get his free book Sell The Truth, about real estate development marketing at www.braunallison.com. Follow him on Twitter @BAdavid, or email him directly at david@braunallison.com.
NATIVE BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MAGAZINE • DECEMBER 2010 45
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