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How easy is it to buy your product?
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Clip Art Mania
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A Report to be Proud Of
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Idea of the Week |
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Focus Check — Focus on the “Buy”
Some marketing experts recommend that in creating a direct mail program, you should devote half your time to creating the reply form. Most clients are surprised, if not shocked, when they hear this very revealing rule. The rule is revealing because it suggests that most marketers spend too much effort on the sale and too little on the “buy.”
 Think how often you have been virtually sold on something, but chose not to make the purchase because it was too hard to buy. The salesperson offered all sorts of options, for example, or made you worry about the value of an extended warranty. Perhaps they offered more complicated financing packages than you could intelligently choose among. The product was too hard to buy. Now, think of your opposite experiences. Something appealed to you a little, not necessarily a lot and the ease with which you could order, pay for, and receive the product ultimately led you to make the purchase.
Good marketing must focus on the buy. How clear is your offer? Can the prospects sample the service, thereby reducing their risk? How clear is the price? How easy is it to buy?
Save your customers some hassle and make your product easy to buy.
See more great ideas like this!
Click here to visit the Town Press Ideas Collection.
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Marketing Tip |
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Enhance with Clip Art
Visual images can often create interest, express meaning, and clarify content in a way that words alone cannot accomplish. Here are a few tips on how to easily select and utilize clip art to enhance your next project:
- Select an image that makes sense in the context you're using it in, not just because it's pretty. And avoid using too many images, which can make your document look cluttered.
- Use adequately sized images. If an image is too small, readers may struggle to see it. If the image is too large, it can distract readers from the text as well as increase your document's file size.
- Purchase images at the resolution for the size you need. A low res image will reproduce poorly when enlarged, appearing bitmapped or jagged.
- Choose a style of clip art that matches the personality of your piece. The use of coloring, shading, contours, etc. can create completely different looks and feels.
- Be sure the shape of the image matches the area where you will be using it. For example, a tall vertical image may not work well on a horizontal business card.
- Consider using captions or labels to connect the image to your text.
- Choose the right format for your needs. For example, GIFs are easily animated for online use but do not provide the high quality that can be obtained from a TIFF file.
- Consider modifying stock clip art to increase its usefulness. Flip, resize, rotate, distort, convert, and combine multiple pieces of clip art into new pictures.
- Crop clip art images to easily simplify or change the meaning of images. Clip art can often be used as separate bits and pieces.
- Colorize images or convert to black and white or grayscale. Not only can you control the colors used, but also the focus of the image.
- Consider how the publication will be printed. If it will be photocopied, crisp black and white clip art is ideal.
- If you're interested in a copyrighted image, contact the owner and ask for permission to use it. Be sure to specify where and how the image will be used.
- Keep a copy of any written permission you receive, and give credit where credit is due.
If you're looking for other ways to add appeal to your printed pieces, stop by today. We have endless creative ideas on how to capture your audience's attention.
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Uncommon Product |
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Communicate with Annual Reports
Annual reports are powerful communication tools that reflect your organization's commitment to success. Not only do they support your corporate brand, identity, and marketing communications, but they also give you an opportunity to present your best image when connecting with customers, employees, and investors. Here are a few tips on how to create an impressive annual report:
- Create a schedule and a table of contents. Plan all content in advance, assigning pieces to appropriate personnel. For example, ask the accounting department for necessary financial reports.
- Include a letter from an organizational leader to provide an overview of the year's activities and accomplishments and communicate your vision for the future.
- Provide supplemental data to support your account of the company's performance. If you don't provide answers to questions that are out there, readers may come up with their own answers, which may not always be in your favor.
- Focus on numbers, since annual reports are typically driven by financial data. The financial status of your organization will help you choose the layout and appearance of your annual report.
- Create a layout that is consistent and recognizable with your brand image, utilizing logos, corporate colors, fonts, and graphics consistent with other publications.
- Provide recognition when appropriate, such as donors and volunteers in nonprofits or key staff members in for-profit organizations.
- Take advantage of the opportunity to tell your story and showcase accomplishments, irresistible photos, and projects coming up in the future. Don't forget to include contact information should the reader want more information.
- Develop a design that is attractive and easy to read, utilizing white space, color photos, simple fonts, headlines, text callouts, and brief paragraphs.
- Be consistent with messaging from other communications. When thinking of content, consider previous presentations or marketing materials.
- Utilize reader-friendly graphs and charts that help convey detailed financial and statistical data.
- Consider hiring an experienced designer and writer to create a professional document in a fraction of time it would take internal staff.
- Think green. If you are using environmentally friendly sources and processes, such as recycled paper and soy inks, be sure to publish these efforts to take full advantage of their impact.
Look to our team of experts if you'd like help creating a professional annual report you are proud to distribute.
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