Design Basics

In preparing that new brochure or other printed item for your marketing efforts, consider the following simple points:

• Does it appeal to the emotions of your audience?
• Is it professional?
• Does it speak personally to the audience?
• Is it readable?
• Does it speak in the language of the target audience? That is, do you sound like you know the industry?
• Does it focus on benefits rather than features?
• Does it make it's point quickly and is there only one point?
• Is there a call to action?

Simple points, yes, but clear and very doable.

The Executive

Thinking Ahead to the New Year

What plans do you have for the new year? How do you plan to promote your business?

Now is the time to look ahead for those days and times in the upcoming year when you will be promoting certain aspects of your business. A little planning will go along way to saving you money, time and lower your stress level.

Here are some things to think about as you plan your printing needs for the new year:

• What promotions will you be sending out direct mail for and how often?
• How many customers or prospects are you reaching out to?
• Will you have any new employees who will need business cards?
• Are your letterhead and other stationery up to date?
• If you publish a catalog, do you have any specific deadlines for its release?

You can add to this list--it's just a starter kit. The point is to think ahead so that you can plan your spending and time.

The Executive

Types of Printing

The process of printing is fascinating and interesting and, to some degree, a mystery to most people. Here, briefly (and thanks to the folks at "How Stuff Works"), we'll talk about types of printing processes.

There are nine main types of printing processes:

• Offset lithography is the workhorse of printing.
• Engraving is used for fine stationery.
• Thermography relies on raised printing, used in stationery.
• Reprographics is typical copying and duplicating.
• Digital printing has become very common and is high quality able to be used for short runs.
• Letterpress is like what the original Guttenberg process relied upon.
• Screen printing is used for T-shirts and billboards.
• Flexography is usually used on packaging, such as can labels.
• Gravure is used for huge runs of magazines and direct-mail catalogs and relies on large presses and complex processes.

Each, as we have noted, has a special application. We'll cover the specifics of each process in upcoming posts.

The Executive Pressman

What Makes a Good Logo?

What makes a good logo? If you are working on your company's brand and are developing a logo as a part of that process, several things come into play:

• What your company does?
• Who is your primary audience?
• What does your company stand for?

With these (and other criteria) in mind, a designer will consider the following "memorable" list:

• Describable (simple)
  
• Memorable (timeless)
  
• Effective without color
• Scalable (versatile)
  
• Relevant (appropriate)
  

A good logo represents you and your company. This list of attributes is a best case. If you arm a designer with the background information (the first list is a start) they will create something that holds the brand up and together. Don't just give them your desires for color and shape, let them know more about you and your company so the personality of the company shows up in the design.

The Executive

Thanks to Lee Newham, David Airey and Jacob Gass.

Direct Mail Ideas

Now that you have decided to use direct mail as a marketing tool, how can you ensure the campaign's success?

Here's a list of a few things to consider:

• Provide a coupon or some other incentive and give it a time limit. For example, so many cents off until the end of the month.
• Participate in a co-op mailing. Is there a valued partner you can team with to make sure teh mail gets attention?
• Test the program. Try sending the initial mailer and offer to a smaller sample than you plan just to see the response.
• Use the mailer to drive traffic to your website. There they will find teh rich content they are looking for to make a buying decision.
• Use a catchy headline. Underlined copy or colored blocks also help draw attention to what needs to be read.

There are more. These are some basic ideas to start with.

The Executive Pressman