Leaflets can grab attention in ways digital marketing like tweets and emails cannot.
When produced and distributed effectively, leaflets help you land the right messages, with the right audience, at the right time. Leaflets can:
- Showcase your product or service to new customers
- Increase attendance for your events and exhibitions
- Frame your key USPs in digestible format
Let’s discover the top 10 advantages leaflets can provide to businesses, organisations and individuals.
1. Long-term event promotion
One-sided flyers tend to be the go-to format for promoting the date, time and venue of an event. Leaflets go a step further – providing the opportunity to capture your audience’s interest with the who, what and why of your event.
- Promoting a festival? List your performers, events and activities.
- Advertising an art exhibition? Go in-depth on the meaning of the work.
Leaflets are conversation-starters that change hands – spreading your message way beyond your target market.
Top tip: Craft messaging that urges readers to act – for example, buying a ticket. Direct them to a ticketing website by embedding a QR code.
2. Succinctly frame your key messages
Whether you’re a florist or a FTSE 100-listed firm, leaflets are a powerful way of communicating your messages.
In a sales pitch, a leaflet could be your ‘leave behind’ summary of why your team has what it takes for the job. Hand it over to your prospect after the pitch. Giving them something to mull over post-meeting might help seal the deal.
Leaflets are also invaluable at trade fairs. Hand out on your stand or after a presentation so people know how to follow-up with you. Measure the event’s success by calculating how many enquiries you get for every leaflet you’ve given out.
3. Great return on investment
Many businesses are wary of spending too much on the wrong marketing channel. Leaflets come with little financial risk, as they’re significantly cheaper than TV, radio and newspaper advertising.
They cost just pence to produce, especially when you order in bulk. Plus, they have a longer shelf-life than a radio advertisement, which may be forgotten by the listener soon after hearing.
Also, when you need to get a message out far and wide – promoting a product, service or event across a large geographical area – leaflets offer an impressive return on investment.
4. Eye-catching folding styles
Unlike other printed materials, such as flyers and posters, leaflets can be folded in different styles. This added dimension gives you another way to deliver your message with eye-catching impact.
Among the more attention-grabbing folding options are:
- Gate Fold – two parallel folds create six panels (three on each side) which open like a double gate
- Concertina Fold – also known as a zig-zag fold, in which the leaflet is printed in an accordion-like fashion
- Cross Fold – a large printed sheet, such as a map, reduced in size by being folded down several times
When it comes to folding options, be sure to shape your leaflet to fit your message.
5. Create tailored and on-brand designs
Whether you want to include lots of design elements, several images, lots of text, or a mixture of all three, leaflets are a blank canvas.
You may be restricted by your brand guidelines and key messages. But you can still use visuals to inspire people to interact with your brand.
Think outside the box and you can make a striking statement that makes your product, service or event unforgettable.
6. Key messages made easy to digest
You only have a short time to get your message across – whether online or in print. Keep things short and sweet.
Well-designed leaflets provide the key information in an easy-to-read format. Use bullet points and plain English to frame your product or service against your customers’ needs.
Make them want to find out more. Your website, event and social channels should be well signposted from your leaflet.
7. Put them in front of your target audience
Leaflets can be distributed anywhere, meaning you can place them in locations you expect your target audience to be.
For example, if you’re promoting a student event, hand them out during Freshers’ Week. Include coupons or discount codes to tap into certain spending brackets.
If you’re promoting a new business in a community, post leaflets through the letterboxes of a given postcode, or distribute them in locations you expect to be popular with your chosen demographic.
8. Creative expression
Leaflets don’t just benefit businesses – they empower people to express themselves.
Artists use leaflets to showcase their work, displaying them proudly at exhibitions. Writers also use leaflets to share their creativity, particularly in the modern literary scene, where zines are increasingly popular.
Leaflets can help professionals climb the career ladder. The next time you apply for a job, why not print your CV as a leaflet? While many other candidates are likely to apply with a pdf attached to an email, taking an alternative approach could set you apart from the crowd in recruiters’ eyes.
9. People still trust print
People trust print more than digital, according to an international survey of over 10,000 people. It found people have more faith in printed information and are less likely to take on digital messages.
In the UK, 78% of respondents preferred print magazines to websites, for example. While it’s important for your business to have a strong online presence, information in a well-targeted leaflet has the potential to be taken in more readily by your audience.
Think of it like this. There are 2 million articles published online every day. That’s as many bubbles as you’ll find in the average champagne flute.
10: Build relationships at events and at home
Leaflets often sit on the table in your customers’ homes for weeks – unlike online adverts or blogs – boosting their chances of being read, understood, and acted upon.
Then there’s the impact after an event. A well-designed leaflet can help you close a sale with a customer who you spoke with during the event.
This means you can continue building a relationship with that customer even after you’ve made initial contact – all thanks to the leaflet.
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