Here’s how to write a brochure, even if you think you know how to write a brochure. In a brochure, you are building “tracks” through the content. The first track is the track that involves the headline and cover of the brochure. That’s Track 1, because that’s all some people will ever read.
Track 2 involves all of the headlines in the brochure. That means the cover plus any of the big headlines in the brochure. Track 3 involves all of the pictures and captions in the brochure. Finally, Track 4 involves all of the body copy of the brochure (omitting pictures and headlines).
Now here is the trick: every one of these four tracks has to deliver the same message. Whether a person just picks up the brochure and glances at the cover or skims it for headlines or sits down and looks at the pictures (not necessarily in order), he or she should get the same message as a person who thoughtfully read the brochure from cover to cover, in order.
Most people write brochures as if all readers were this last reader: one who reads the brochure, intently, from cover to cover, skipping nothing. Let me let you in on a secret: this person does not exist in the real world. The only person who comes close to approximating this behavior is the product manager or person commissioning the brochure. In the real world, nobody engages with a brochure like it’s a spy novel. People glance at brochures. Watch them. They skim, they pause, they bounce around. You have to accommodate that reading style in your writing style.
Every track contains the same message. Obviously you have to condense the message mightily for the brochure cover. But you should make sure that all of these tracks make the key points.
There are two pitfalls in brochure writing. The first is trying to avoid redundancy. I’m frequently accused of redundancy (yes, redundancy) when writing brochures, and I always explain that I do it on purpose. Let’s say you’re writing a brochure about a new upscale casino resort. One of the key points that the casino might want to make is that it offers lavish entertainment. That fact should be mentioned in the pictures (show some entertainment) with a caption. It should be mentioned in a header (“Spectacular Entertainment”) and it should also be in some body copy, maybe listing some upcoming performers. If the casino brochure also wants to be sure that it promotes its slot machines, this should be done in an image/caption, and in a header, and in body copy.
If you read the brochure cover-to-cover, you will read about these things over and over. But you know what? That’s good. Adult learners do well with repetition. Plus a good writer does not just repeat content over and over. It’s presented a little bit differently each time. Each time helps drive home the point. But even if a person skims the brochure, he gets the message. For instance, entertainment may be mentioned in the tagline on the cover–there may be a picture of sumptuous theater with a Broadway-style dance number going on and a caption about some of the types of shows that are offered and then there is a header about spectacular entertainment and then some body copy listing performers who are expected to grace the stage in the coming year. What does all of that do? It keeps driving home the message, “Hey, if we go to this resort, we could catch a show.”
All tracks say the same thing but they should be at different depths. The cover can only–at most–hint at a feature like entertainment. Headers are great but they are brief. Pictures offer more depth and tend to focus on one particular aspect. The body copy gives you the most room to really expand on the subject. Each track gives you progressively more room and depth to get into the topic.
In a brochure, you probably have anywhere from three to maybe a dozen points to make. Each one of those points becomes part of the track system. The body copy not only gives depth, it offers you some freedom to knit the various points together. Only remember–only a tiny percentage of readers will ever read body copy. Most non-writers will spend 90% of their time on body copy. Instead, devote most of your energy to the other tracks–the headers and pictures–since that’s where the majority of your readers will focus.
By the way, when it comes to headers, avoid being cute. I don’t know why but some writers and most non-writers think that clever headlines are very powerful. On its best day, a clever headline is clever. It’s almost always ineffective and at times it can be downright annoying. Here’s why: the average reader is just skimming the brochure. He or she is not intently focusing on digging out your message or unraveling a puzzle. The reader is just glancing. You have–maybe–two seconds to deliver a message. Some writers think they have two seconds to capture the reader’s attention but getting someone’s attention is not the same as communicating with them. For instance, I could write a headline like “Naked People” and get attention–but if I’m selling mutual funds in a brochure, I haven’t done one thing to advance my message or communicate with the reader in a meaningful way.
A lot of folks like double-entendres or clever headlines but they are usually trouble. The reader is not really a reader–he’s a glancer. And glancers don’t have lots of focus. If your headline is not instantly and immediately clear, it registers in the reader’s mind as “gibberish,” “nonsense,” “this brochure doesn’t make sense,” or “what are they trying to say?” Any of these messages is a bad one. You’ve just communicated with your reader that you’re hard to understand or unable to say what you mean.
The best headers are super-clear even if they are rather plain. Some writers get bored with headers like, “Introducing …” or “The New Solution for ….” or even “Spectacular Entertainment” because they seem so plain. The reason they’re borin is you’ve seen them a lot and the reason you see them a lot is because they work. Your goal in writing is to communicate, not to dazzle the readers with your ability to make puns. (Face it, nobody is dazzled by a pun.)
I have heard the argument advanced that cryptic headers will make the reader want to try to figure out what is meant and force the reader to read the body copy. I know of no evidence for that and, from my own experience as a consumer, can tell you that the opposite is more likely. People today are busy and distracted and if you can’t communicate clearly, they are not going to hunt through a lot of text to dig up your meaning.
Building a brochure involves building multiple tracks and then fusing them together. And, yes, sometimes you do repeat yourself.
