One of the most difficult times that I have had in my life, believe it or not, was as a student at the largest university in the nation, The Ohio State University. Now most would say, “Are you kidding me? College was the best time of my life!” and it was for me as well. But Columbus, an eclectic, stylish,busy, scarlet and grey obsessed city, is a Mecca of distraction for any 18-22 year old kid. At times I am astounded, even boastful, of the accomplishments that I achieved and the skills that I acquired in between all of the partying, shopping, and socializing that I did. Sleep was an option, along with studying and showering (I know it’s disgusting but hey, it’s college right?). Yet somehow, amidst all of the chaos, I managed to keep my parents pleased with my grade point average and junior year I decided it was time to attempt to attain a decent internship. While flipping through the pages of Ohio State’s newspaper, The Lantern, I came across a listing for a Public Relations and Marketing intern at the Ohio Statehouse. Feeling lucky, I emailed the point of contact and a few weeks later I found myself sitting in the main office of the Capitol Square Review and Advisory Board waiting to interview.
It was early Monday morning, earlier than my usual 11:00 am class, and I was sick with a terrible cold. It was dark and dreary in downtown Columbus that day, and the last thing that I wanted to do after a weekend of tailgating and nightclubbing, was to get dolled up for an interview. I rationalized for an hour on how I could get out of doing such a thing but failed to convince myself; I had glorified the opportunity so much up until then, that I refused to let the chance slip away. So I mustered up the strength and motivation, put on a suit, grabbed my portfolio and was out the door.
It wasn’t until I walked through the rotunda of the Statehouse that I realized I was in no condition to speak with anyone. I was sneezing profusely, my eyes were red with irritation, and I not only looked,but felt,miserable. In fact, when I finally arrived and introduced myself, I extended my arm to shake the director’s hand and he refused! Recognizing my puzzlement he replied, “I admire your commitment, but with a cold like that you should’ve stayed home!”. I laughed nervously, apologized, and took a seat in his office. It seemed to be all downhill from there. I fumbled through his questions, trying to maintain my runny nose and control my hacking cough in hopes that his pity may get me the position. Yet in the end it was not his sympathy that landed me the job, rather the documents within my college portfolio that caught his interest, especially one particular piece.
It has been my experience in both the professional and academic realm that the knowledge of how to properly and effectively construct a brochure can prove to come in quite handy at some time or another. In the field of communication, brochure formulation is quite common in courses of study that involve mass communication, organizational communication, public relations, marketing, advertising, and strategic communication, to name a few. Contrary to popular belief, a printed brochure, if executed and placed correctly, can be a very powerful tool. Whether your objective is to inform or persuade your audience, exceptional brochures have the capability to capture your audience, engage them in your written material, retain their attention, motivate them, instill desire, and convince them that your argument, product, or stance is substantial and legitimate. Even though our society is shifting towards an electronic era, some printed materials will always maintain their significance, for some things just cannot be virtually replaced. Again, while some may disagree that the “brochure distribution” method of promotion or education is slowly making its departure, I strongly believe that an electronic version of such a document is far less effective, let alone attractive to an audience.
Depending on the documents’ purpose and subject matter, the length and set up will vary. Furthermore, one common misconception involves the notion of “less is more”. In some cases, this is true but often times the more information provided will not only engage your target audience but leave them feeling knowledgeable and convinced. From my past experiences, I am providing some instruction and tips on how to achieve these components when attempting to formulate an effective and eye-catching brochure.
1. Focus your intentionAs with any form of writing, it is important to recognize and clarify your objective. The purpose of your document will determine the tone and writing style that you wish to incorporate within your text. This component of formulation cannot be stressed enough. Many writers find it difficult to gear their tone of voice to coincide with their objective. Therefore, determining this aspect clearly in the beginning will better equip you to populate your brochure accordingly. For example, if your goal is to inform your audience, you will aim to take an objective stance. Yet, on the other hand, if your objective is to persuade your audience, then you will tend to take a more aggressive position in your diction. The same applies to tone; an informative brochure with no pressing objective will possess a more relaxed and casual tone as opposed to a persuasive brochure. “Turning Emotional Energy Into Purposeful Writing” distinguishes the differences between writing and speaking and the norms associated with each. This piece, or any article of the sort, is especially helpful to reference prior to brochure construction, for it stresses the importance of powerful writing that is both appropriate and purposeful. “But powerful writing requires linguistic control as well as passion” (Vassallo, 159).
2. Narrow down key points
Once you have recognized your objective, it is important to brainstorm ideas of support. This handy tool will promote organization and help aid in controlling and determining the length of your document. By brainstorming, you will be able to determine the parameters of your stance and what information that you will want to provide for your reader. This tool will help to eliminate the unnecessary and trivial details, and focus on the main points that will be the best support for your document’s primary purpose. “In a field experiment with students, we show that a specific, difficult novelty goal, whether presented alone or in conjunction with brainstorming rules, improves novelty and creativity in individuals’ idea generation…” (Litchfield, 1). Once you’ve brainstormed your ideas, this will also help you to picture the layout of your brochure. How much text do you envision your brochure containing? Do you want to mention every aspect? What are the most important points? Is there enough room? These are all questions that will arise once you have all your support laid out in front of you.
3. Choose powerful images
Now that you’ve determined what support you have, it’s imperative that you select images that are both powerful and relevant to your topics. Personally, I find that incorporating more photographs rather than generic images are more effective. It is essential that the front flap of your brochure is unique. One of the most difficult aspects of brochure formulation is the initial capture of your target audience. A boring clip-art image is easily overlooked, no matter how interesting your tagline is. Furthermore, the exemption of image incorporation is highly discouraged. “A group of design disciplines deal with the design of images. Here the main components are words, visuals, and forms” (Petterson,39).
Although, there are brochures in existence that incorporate no imagery, in my experience I have not chosen to exclude this particular component. For in the realm of communication, brochure formulation is a common practice that nearly requires the adoption of innovative and creative means of audience capture.
4. Construct a draft
It’s always helpful to assemble a draft of your brochure before you start writing the content. There have been a number of times where I have jumped the gun, began construction without drafting first, and ended up with either too many images or too much text. By laying out your format first, you will be able to eliminate the unnecessary or overzealous material that you have selected. Again, as with any type of writing or document construction, organization and planning are key fundamentals in execution. Drafting not only aids in these areas but in editing documents as well. First drafts for writing composition act as the starting point for any writer, and the same applies to brochure formulation.
5. Use appropriate fonts
Naturally, the font on a brochure for a daycare will significantly differ from the font contained on a promotionof seasonal haunted house. It would be appropriate to use Comic Sans MS for the daycare brochure and perhaps Chiller for the haunted house, but vice versa, the pairings wouldn’t make much sense. Although a small part of the overall document, choice in font can be a powerful component of your brochure. “Good typesetting can honor the story, enhance readability, and add to the appeal of a book, but bad typesetting can make a book look amateurish…”(Phinney, 21). Times New Roman, Calibri, or other fonts of the sort may be the safe choice, but a unique, yet suitable, typeset would have a more profound effect. It is this small attention to detail that will contribute to your brochure’s exceptionality and increase the chances of capturing your audience, and retaining their interest.
6. Avoid distracters
From the choice in font color and style to the color of the paper that your brochure is being printed on, avoid distracters at all costs. Selecting bright yellow paper with neon pink colored font is an extreme but prime example of exactly what NOT to do. Choose colors that are pleasing to the eye, are coordinated, but will still entice your audience to want to choose your brochure. “Color can masterfully describe a scene. It is often more attention grabbing and realistic. On the other hand, color is easily prone to complexity and color…Which medium you choose depends on the particular message you want the picture to carry to the viewer. The medium you select can, in itself, often become an important part of that message.” (Douglis, 34-35).Distracters don’t just pertain to color either; avoid unnecessary photos, clip-art images, drawings, quotes, etc. If it doesn’t add interest or character to your document or is pertinent to your goal, don’t include it!
7. Write with excitement and style
Like mentioned before, one of the most difficult components involved with any type of writing is retaining the attention and interest of your audience. “Advice: Tap into your unique voice and experiences. Find a quality of ageless appeal and pump it for all it’s worth. (Heckenkamp,1).With this in mind and in addition to the previous tips, make sure that the bulk of your brochure is not only well written, but grammatically correct, entertaining, and motivates the reader to continue throughout the document. Adding character and creativity to your text will do the trick! Avoid general and bland writing; write in a way that would appeal to you.
8. Don’t “flood” your brochure
Be sure to achieve your objective, but don’t overdo it. Just because a typical brochure consists of 6 panels, it does not mean you are obligated to fully populate every panel with images and script. If you need the space to fulfill your goal then do so; but if every panel is covered from top to bottom, take another look at the main points you narrowed down from your brainstorming session. Perhaps your scope is too big and you’re trying to cover too much material. If you can’t accomplish your purpose with 4 panels of text, 1 title panel, and a contact/general (back) panel, most likely your parameters are too wide.
9. Be consistent
Formatting in this regard is absolutely necessary. If your document is not consistent, the reader will question your level of professionalism and ultimately the legitimacy of your stance or argument. Much like any other document, you don’t want to jeopardize losing your audience, much less confusing them. Fortunately, for the easily distracted designer, many computer applications are geared towards maintaining consistency throughout the entirety of the document. Microsoft Word incorporates a “style” utility within its program functionality that retains format components all through the document. “You can use them to format documents on a global basis and maintain consistency throughout.” (Stone, 56).
A consistently formatted document is aesthetically appealing, promotes the utmost level of comprehension, and cohesively flows among all of the elements of design.
10. Choose colors strategically
Similar to font selection, colors should be chosen wisely as well. Although a simple and small component of any document, color can have a profound effect on reader acceptance, comprehension, and attract ability. This aspect of perception is one that is studied rather in depthly in regards to consumer research, advertising and marketing trends, and even interior design! For color is continuously researched for cognitive interpretation, human perception, relation, and psychological meaning. The rise in popularity of FengShui is the direct example of this. “Red invigorates; inspires passion and strength…Orange stimulates; invites cheer and optimism; uplifts; encourages creativity…”(Shades of Meaning, 1). Paired with witty diction, this combination of clever text and strategic color coordination has been proven to be quite the effective audience captor.
The importance of utilizing effective color schemes and images cannot be stressed enough. At first glance, it is imperative that your brochure stands out from the millions of others that it is most likely being grouped with and “grabs” your reader. This is perhaps the most difficult part of brochure formulation simply because of the profusion of competition that exists, regardless of the market. Photographs on the first panel tend to capture one’s attention, as well as bright colors and innovative design. Yet these techniques should always be taken into consideration with the concept of moderation in mind. An abundance of color and superfluous design can deter an audience and therefore may be overlooked. For example, when you encounter a selection of travel brochures, for instance in a hotel lobby, what pamphlets do you tend to focus on? By asking this simple question, you are equipping yourself to integrate these attractive characteristics into your brochure; a practice that is quite useful in the early development stages.
This list is in no way all-inclusive; tips and techniques for brochure formulation can span over a period of days at least, but these are the top things that I take into consideration when formulating a brochure. When in doubt, refer back to the basic elementary fundamentals of writing composition particularly the three components, introduction, body, and conclusion. It never ceases to amaze me the numbers of those that forget this essential facet of writing. Lastly, these tips and techniques should only be taken into consideration; remember to be unique and incorporate your individual character and creativity into your document, it will be much more effective that way! Who knows, maybe someday your unique brochure in your writing portfolio will help land you that big job!
Interview with an Expert: Dennis Henry
Process Improvement Strategist/ 748 SCMG/OMS
By: JennicaSemon
JS: Mr. Henry, first I’d like to thank you for taking time away from your busy schedule to meet with me. I realize that with all of the inspections coming to Hill that the Operations Management Strategy office is especially busy at this time.
DH: No problem, Jennica. I just hope I can provide you with some useful information.
JS: Well, I have had some experience in the past with brochure formulation and find the construction of this type of document to be quite useful…What is your take on them?
DH: I actually construct quite a few brochures throughout the quarter for different events, initiatives, and organization restructurization both electronically and in paper form. Personally, I don’t care too much for electronic brochures. I would much rather produce a hard copy of a brochure.
JS: That was my next question. Why do you prefer printed over electronic form?
DH: After I spend hours on a brochure that will be distributed throughout the group, or even the squadron, I want to ensure that SOMEONE is reading it. I mean how many times in the morning when you get to work and the 748 News Feed pops up, do you click the posted documents? I know I never do and when I’m told to publish it electronically this is exactly what I think of. At least when they are printed and physically handed out, I know that people are more likely to skim through it. Online you’re not given that. It’s just not the same.
JS: I agree completely. Some things are just more effective in paper form. So is there a particular program that you prefer to use?
DH: I’ve tried many different computer applications for constructing brochures, but I always find myself using Microsoft Project. Once you’ve used it a couple times, and done a little research on its many functions, it seems to be the most user friendly and easy to navigate.
JS: Yes, I prefer Microsoft Project as well. Are there any secrets to the trade that you can provide ?
DH: I would say, take advantage of as many relevant visuals that you can. Also, try to avoid stagnant white space and if you need to include boxes of text than don’t be afraid to do it. I know that you’re taught that conciseness is key in Air Force culture, and it is to an extent, but if you need to have a longer portion of text to get your point across then do it. The worst thing that could happen is that you are so worried about being straight and to the point, that your reader becomes confused on what it is that you are trying to convey to them.
JS: Are there any particular examples that you can provide, to elaborate on your previous statement?
DH: Take for instance Colonel Hall’s strategic goals and 3R’s initiative. You can’t just list the strategic goals and a single sentence and expect people to know what he’s talking about. So that brochure is a little longer than your average run of the mill brochure. But in that case you have to add more text, otherwise you butcher the Colonel’s entire vision.
Dennis Henry has been with the OMS office for nearly a decade, and a civil servant for over 15 years. He is a certified black belt with the AFSO21 Six Sigma/Lean process and the point of contact for many squadron level briefings and documents.
References
Drafting. (Cover story). (1994). Learning, 22(6), 25. Retrieved from EBSOhost.
Douglis, P. N. (2001). Color or black & white? When the medium becomes the message. Communication World, 18(3), 34. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.
Douglis, P.N. (2004). When Color Makes the Difference in Conveying Ideas and Meaning. Communication World, 21(4), 52-53. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.
E., B. B. (2007). SHADES OF MEANING. Natural Health, 37(5), 17. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.
Heckenkamp, T.(2004). Young writer tapped her unique voice. Writer, 117(1), 13. Retrieved from EBSCOhost
Litchfield, R., Fan, J., & Brown, V. (2011). Directing idea generation using brainstorming with specific novelty goals.” Motivation & Emotion 35(2), 135-143. Doi:10.1007/s11031-011-9203-3
Pettersson, R. (200). Visual Literacy and Message Design. TechTrends: Linking Research & Practice to Improve Learning, 53(2), 38-40. Doi:10.1007/s11528-009-0266-x
Phinney, T., &Colabucci, L (2010). The Best Font for the Job. Children & Libraries: The Journal of the Association for Library Service to Children, 8(3), 17-26. Retreived from EBSCOhost.
Rhodes, D. G.(2005). Organization in Technical Writing. Journal of Professional Issues in Engineering Education & Practice, 131(3), 213-216. doi:10.1061/(ASCE) 1052-3928(2005) 131:3(213)
Stone, M. (2004). Staying in Style. PC Magazine, 23(13), 56. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.
Vassallo, P.(2004). TURNING EMOTIONAL ENERGY INTO PURPOSEFUL WRITING. ETC: A Review of General Semantics, 61(1), 159-167. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.
No comments:
Post a Comment