Unit 3: Brochure (part A)

1. What is brochure?
A brochure is an informative paper document for advertising, which can be folded
into a template, pamphlet or leaflet. Brochures are promotional documents,
primarily used to introduce a company, organization, products or services and
inform potential customers or members of the public of the benefits. They are
usually distributed inside newspapers, handed out personally or placed in brochure
racks in high traffic locations.
The main purpose of a brochure is to extend the reader's knowledge on one
specific topic in which the brochure centers around.
Catch target audience's eyes at first sight with its astonishingly beautiful visual
design.
Promote your products, agency, or service in an intuitive way.
Build trust between you and your potential clients.
Compared with advertising on TV or in newspapers, brochures seem to be more
cost-effective.
After people get used to splendid online advertisements, a tangible, tactile, and
delicate brochure becomes more precious.
2. Types of brochures in modern world
A brochure has many different types and each type has got a different role to play.
It can be classified into following 5 types according to its format and layout.
Gate Fold Brochure
This is a pretty uncommon brochure because of its expensive cost, which has a
great influence when it is used appropriately. Its inward folding design makes it
convenient to carry and its paper quality is very high thus readers can keep it for a
long time.
Bi-Fold Brochure
Bi-Fold Brochure is found among us every day. It is one of the most popular and
widely used brochure types around, while has a more formal layout than tri-fold
brochures. It mainly used for product catalogues and presentations, trade shows
and corporate meetings , etc.

Tri-Fold Brochure
It is easy to know this is a three folds brochure according its name. And this is a
pretty common and brochure that we can see it everywhere. This brochure has
enough space for designers to present information and design interesting thus
attract more attention of reader.
Z-Fold Brochure
A Z-Fold brochure, basically an accordion fold, is a great brochure folding option
because of the versatility it provides. Designers can separate each element by
making each panel stand alone, or design the brochure so that it opens out to a full
spread with one large, dramatic photograph.

3. Elements of a good brochure

A brochure is effective if it achieves its purpose. The criteria below can help us
judge the effectiveness of a brochure:
- It gives information which is relevant and of interest to the reader.
- The language used is appealing to the audience and persuades them to respond
to the brochure.
- The visual elements, such as the graphics and layout, are appealing and eye-
catching.
- The information is easy to understand.
Logo
The logo is the face of a business, which is why it should be placed somewhere
visible in your brochure. A good brochure design always has a logo that can
represent the business in all possible ways.
Usually, the logo is placed on the front cover, but in some designs, it is missing
depending on the design and its theme. It is advised to use a vector formated logo,
as vectors are super-clear at any imaginable size and stay sharp even on the low-
resolution PDF exports used in document exchange.
Format
This is the very first step you’ll have to take when creating a brochure. You will
usually discuss this with your client, so try to recommend the right medium for the
message and type of product your client has to get across.
For example, a tri-fold or z-fold brochure will not be the best choice for luxury
products that require lots of white space and big pictures. You will chose one of
these narrow formats when you want to present documents that are easy to hand out.
Of course, it is better if you get creative with the format of your brochure. Nowadays
many concert organizers create brochures that unfold into a poster. It makes it easy
to send by mail, and practical to hang somewhere in the room to make sure the
brochure stays visible all the time. The better looking the poster, the more people
will hang it, so be artistic if you create this kind of poster.
Headline
The headline should be quick and concise. It should grab the attention of the reader
in no time and deliver the right information in just a few seconds. When creating a
headline for your brochure, you have to be sure the chosen font is legible, clean, and
complementary to your brand image.
Visuals
Pictures are worth a thousand words. Visuals comprise of a variety of things,
including HD images, icons, graphical elements, and so on. They will make your
design easy to navigate. Look for meaningful images and illustrations for your
brochure to add visual interest to your design.
Spacing
A vital part of any good graphic design, Space is the area around the elements in a
design. It can be used to separate or group information. Use it effectively to give the
eye a rest, define importance and lead the eye to where you want it to travel. It is
important to remember to keep some well-balanced white space on your brochure
for the sake of aesthetics and readability.
Quality printing
Design isn’t only about nicely layout pages, but also about the end physical product
that people will hold in their hands. Brochure printing can sound quite boring, but
if you know printing techniques well, it can seriously enhance your design.
The downside of most of these special printing techniques is certainly the cost. You
need to decide on the right paper to use without being too expensive cost.
Typographic
Most people who will take the brochure and read it will not notice if you kern the
titles good or if your text is justified with perfect space between the words.
Some of the details you should pay specific attention to are: using ligatures, using
thin spaces where appropriate, avoiding dumb quotes.
4. Characteristics of language for brochure
It is at this stage where the unique linguistic and creative skills of the writer come
into play, using language to effectively persuade or inform the reader
Persuasive adjectives
Words that describe the product, service or idea positively.
Many of the adjectives used are what are called superlatives. These are the strongest
positive or negative describing words.
Example: Wonderful, fantastic, quality, best, safest, most exciting, wonderful
Slogan
A slogan is a catchy phrase that sends a message. Slogans are usually easy to
remember and use poetic techniques, such as, rhyme, alliteration and puns.
Example: Slip, Slop, Slap.
Do the right thing.
Oh, what a feeling..!
Rhetorical questions
These are questions that do not need an answer and are often used to attract the
reader’s attention.
Example: Do you deserve the best?
Want the holiday of a life- time?
Commands
These are often used to tell the reader or viewer what to do.
Example: Buy now!
Don’t get ripped off!
Questions and answers
These are used to organize information clearly and make the brochure easy to read.
Repetition
Using the same word or synonyms for a word several times. Repetition helps readers
to get the main idea and remember the message
Colloquial language
Every day, informal language. It can make the text seem more personal and friendly
and directly appeal to the reader. It can also make the brochure seem more honest
and trustworthy.