When people think about business stationery design it is always about business cards, letterheads and compliment slips. However there is another stationery item which can make a huge difference to the number of customers you gain, and more importantly keep. The loyalty card. Loyalty cards are reknown for their use in coffee shops and restaurants, but the idea can be easily adapted to any business where there is substantial competition and repeat custom needs to be positively encouraged.

Introduction to the concept of loyalty

There is a famous statistic which is often quoted by business advisors – 80% of revenue is made up by 20% of customers. Of course, this statistic can’t be right for everyone but it does put the financial emphasis on the importance of repeat customers and keeping your most important customers as happy as possible. This idea of loyalty is now at the absolute heart of modern marketing and some of the largest companies spend a lot of money looking for and implementing ways to increase loyalty from customers. There is even a huge annual event devoted to the subject – Loyalty World in London which is attended by speakers from the largest companies in the world including Google, Facebook, Pepsi Co, Tesco, Sky and others.

Introduction to loyalty cards

Loyalty can be encouraged in a whole number of ways, but the loyalty card is one of the most familiar, simple to implement and successful. For many businesses it is now part of their standard business stationery design. Customers are given the option of a free card on which they can collect points every time they purchase. When full, the card is redeemed for a pre-set reward and the full loyalty card is replaced with a new card so point collection can begin again.

The loyalty card is usually a double sided business card, or fold-over business card. This allows one half to be devoted to the collection of points, while the front side can be used for branding and key contact details. Individual sales are usually marked on the card with a unique sticker, or an ink stamp.

The advantages of using loyalty cards

So what benefits can introducing loyalty cards have for your business? Here are a few ways in which adding a loyalty card to your business stationery design can increase customers.

Advantage over the competition

One of the key advantages of increasing loyalty is to stop customers experimenting with the competition. This isn’t just about buying coffee, it can work for all kinds of businesses both consumer and B2B.  In fact, the greater the individual spend, the less likely a customer is to risk not having that larger sum of money contributing towards the reward. At a salon for example, if a haircut is usually £50 and a loyalty card will provide  a half price haircut after every five purchases then a customer will think twice about risking the £50 elsewhere and not contributing towards this reward of £25. Even through, in real terms the half price haircut only represents less than a 5% discount across the total spend of £525.

Relationship building

However, the equation is not just financial. By offering a reward for loyalty you are showing customers that you understand there is a two sided relationship and reciprocal agreement. By both investing something in the relationship, it is likely to be stronger and last longer.

Advertising & branding

What would businesses usually pay for having their advert in every customers’ wallet – right next to the credit cards. A well designed and well branded loyalty card can act as an permanent reminder and reinforcement of your brand. It also puts your contact details directly at a customers fingertips.

Customer detail collection

A folded business card design allows you to add an additional section to your loyalty card and many of our customers use this for customer data collection. By asking customers to complete some basic information in order to redeem a card you can build up a database of some of your most loyal customers for targeted discounts and advertising. Just make sure your customer knows how you are going to use their data and provide an opt-out option.

Business Stationery Design – Add Design can assist you with all of your graphic design needs, including the design and print of loyalty cards. Click here to view our Business Stationery Design Packages.

We create brochures, flyers, leaflets and stationery for companies across the UK. However, one of our largest areas of work is in creating brochures and folders for businesses in London. Over the last five years we have built up relationships with customers right across the capital and our current London clients include everybody from taxi companies to asset management firms.

So why when we are based in the countryside of Suffolk, are we so popular in London. Here are just a few reasons why we believe that Add Design are the popular choice for brochure design London.

Time

If there is one thing that businesses all over the UK never have enough of, it is time. From our experience this is especially true for London companies. Our unique brochure design process cuts out a lot of the time wasted in meetings and presenting ideas by moving everything online.  While you work, we are using our time to create designs for your project. When we have a draft to show you, we send it via e-mail so you can take a look when it is most convenient. Your feedback can be sent to us via email, or you can call your account handler to discuss the design at any time during office hours.

Cost

For us, not being in London does have its advantages and we pass these on directly to our customers. By being based outside of the capital our costs are significantly lower than London based brochure designers. Add in the cost advantages of our unique brochure design process and we are able to offer professional graphic design, high quality print and delivery anywhere in the UK for one very attractive price. Our prices are also fixed across all our work, so a London based business will get exactly the same brochure design, print and delivery cost as a business anywhere in the UK. Need proof that our prices are the best around? Call us for a brochure design quotation.

Experience

We work everyday with companies in London, producing innovative and eye-catching designs to match their individual marketing aims. This experience puts us one step ahead when it comes to understanding and interpreting your own aims and ideas for your London brochure design. Whether you have a comprehensive design brief and need a graphic design company which can follow instructions or you are looking for a large amount of creative input, we can provide the right level of service for your exact requirements.

Design

We are not based in London, but this certainly does not mean that our brochure design work is behind the trends. We make a point of keeping up-to-date with the latest developments in design and marketing, and we can name amongst our customers some of the most innovative and unusual businesses in the UK. Not all the new trends start in London, and by working for businesses across the UK we are exposed to new approaches and design ideas which we can bring to any project regardless of where you are located.

We have also worked with numerous companies within the City of London, producing top-of-the-line design and print work for companies where presentation is absolutely everything. Alongside our standard print options our designers can suggest a whole range of innovative finishes to make sure your brochure gets noticed even by the most selective of clients.

Innovation

While traditionally printed material suits a lot of companies, many others need literature which can be e-mailed or accessed instantly online. London provides the headquarters for many business which operate UK wide or globally. Therefore being able to deliver promotional material to salespeople and clients wherever they are located can be a priority. Alongside our printing services, we also have options for converting brochure designs into digital brochures.

Delivery

On a deadline? We may be able to deliver when other graphic designs cannot. Without meetings to schedule, our unique design process allows us to produce designs faster than most other graphic design companies, delivering ideas and drafts directly to your inbox. As well as our standard print service, we can also offer express printing options for customers on a tight deadline with overnight courier delivery to anywhere in London.

Brochure Design London – Add Design Ltd are graphic design agency based in Suffolk, East Anglia. We specialise in brochure design and catalogue design and work with clients in London, Essex and Hertfordshire  - as well as throughout the UK.

The UK VAT rules for printing promotional literature such as leaflets, flyers and brochures are complex to say the least. It can be very difficult to understand why one product will incur the usual standard rate VAT, yet something very similar will be zero-rated for VAT.

To provide some guidance for our customers here is our attempt to explain the VAT rules for flyer design printing and other types of printing. This is designed to be a general guide, so if you need more specific information for your item then please contact us directly or talk to HM Customs and Revenue (HMRC). Unlike other printers and designers who will charge a blanket standard rate VAT on all items, we review each flyer design printing project individually in relation to VAT rules and only charge where we are sure it is appropriate. This is especially important for start-ups and smaller businesses who are not VAT registered and can sometimes see a significant saving if VAT is zero-rated on their flyer design printing.

Which items are always standard rated VAT?

There are some print items which are always classed as VAT standard rated. These include letterheads, compliment slips, business cards, folders, posters, greeting cards and items such as tickets, invitations and gift vouchers. We therefore always charge a standard rate of VAT on these items.

Which items are always zero-rated VAT?

Generally most books and booklets will be zero-rated for VAT as long as they fall under the HMRC’s definition of books and booklets which reads ‘These normally consist of text and illustrations, bound in a cover stiffer than their pages. They may be printed in any language or characters (including Braille or shorthand), photocopied, typed or hand-written, so long as they are found in book or booklet form’.

According to HMRC, brochures do not have an exact definition in law but they do come up with the following definition as guidance ‘Brochures usually consist of several sheets of reading matter fastened or folded together, which are not necessarily bound in covers. They usually contain advertising material in the form of text or illustrations.’

Items fitting these descriptions will be classed as zero-rated as long as they don’t fall under any separate definition or exclusion put forward by the HMRC.

What about the VAT rules for flyer design printing?

Here is where it gets complicated, not least because there is no absolute exact definition for a leaflet or flyer. The distinction which HMRC make is primarily one of permanence.

A leaflet is either a single sheet or folded sheet at A4 size or smaller. It is either designed to be read a few times and then thrown away, or is designed to accompany some other product or service. If the flyer or leaflet fits this general description then it is zero-rated for VAT.

However, there are some key exceptions which means that standard rated VAT would apply.

> If it is designed for general display rather than to be held in the hand
> If it is printed in insufficient quantity to permit general distribution (less than 50 copies)
> If it is larger than A4 size after final folding
> If it is printed onto stiff paper or card. This doesn’t automatically mean that an item becomes standard rated VAT but HMRC make it clear that use of thick paper and card is an indicator which suggests permanence and therefore excludes it from a zero-rated status.
> If it is used to obtain admission to a premises
> If it is used to obtain a discount off products or services
> If it includes a section designed for completion and return such as a form or an area which is designed to be detached from the main leaflet or flyer (i.e. tear-off section)
> If it is laminated or encapsulated
> If it is designed to hold another item – i.e. it fits the definition of a folder
> If it includes die-cutting to a particular shape

This is a general overview of the rules which we apply when making a judgement on whether VAT should apply on flyer design printing. More detailed information can be found on the HMRC website and we recommend that HMRC are always consulted prior to making any judgements regarding VAT payments.

Flyer Design Printing – Add Design specialise in all forms of business stationery design and print including flyers, company leaflets and brochures.

Flyers are perfect for getting a simple message directly to customers and getting them to act. While flyers can be effectively used to build brands and inform customers of latest developments, they are especially good for advertising short-term special offers and creating a spike in interest and orders. This is because the lifespan of a flyer is usually quite short-lived. It is delivered, picked-up, read and processed within a short period of time. However, the presence of an offer or exclusive discount not only encourages immediate action, it increases the chance of the flyer being kept until the time of purchase.

Why include a special offer on your flyer?

Apart from increasing instant response rates (as limited time offers increase sales) and extending the lifespan of flyer, there are other reasons to include a special offer. Even if the offer is not ultimately redeemed, the increased lifespan of the flyer can increase the amount of engagement with the advert and increase brand recognition and the likelihood of a sales taking place in the future. Again, even if the offer is not redeemed the very act of providing a discount gives a strong message that you are conscious of price and always working on behalf of the customer – even if they are interested in a different product/service from that advertised. A good special offer also helps you to measure response rates. Simply by collecting the redeemed offers gives you a metric by which to measure the success and benefits of a campaign – although it should not be the only thing you consider when measuring the ultimate success of a campaign. If possible, try to collect customer details when they redeem the offer as this will help you monitor which group responded best to the discount and can also build up a database for future marketing.

Which is the right special offer to use on your flyer?

A special offer alone is not enough. It has to the be the right offer in order to illicit a response from the target audience. You need to put yourselves in the shoes of your buyer – what are the barriers to you purchasing a product? What would encourage you to spend on an item? Here are some examples.

Straight discount or exclusive price.
A simple percentage discount or exclusive price is great as long as it is not too exclusive to a very select product, comes with too many terms, or is not sufficient to drop the price below that of a well known competitor. In this age of discounts, a 5% or 10% off is often not enough to impress a customer so it can pay to be more creative with what you offer.

Exclusive package.
Packaging up products/services for an exclusive price is an excellent way to create an original offer on your flyer design, which catches the attention and makes shopping easier for your customer. It can also be tuned to events or time of the year – ‘All you need for your Summer BBQ’, ‘Winter Warmer Package’ . . . Just make sure that the products selected are naturally complementary.

Free Gift.
Giving your customer a free gift is a great way to show them how much you appreciate their business. However be careful in selecting the freebie. It must be something desirable, universal to everyone and of a good quality – not just a way to shift a bad selling item which you have too much of.

Free Samples.
Try before you buy. Being open about customers trialing a new product/service before purchase is great – especially when you can get them hooked on it easily or you are trying to push something new. However free samples often need to be supported with further discounts and advertising to make sure customers return to where it came from to repurchase. You might also need to control the samples to make sure that customers cannot survive on samples alone.

New Customer Discount.
A loyal repeat customer can be worth their weight in gold – so it can be worth sacrificing profit or even losing money on that important first sale. Think about the chances of return custom and life-time value of a customer before being overly generous on new customers. Also be aware that being so generous to new customers can be off-putting to those who are already loyal to you but are not often rewarded. They may well become disloyal in pursuit of someone else’s new customer discount. New customer discounts are also great to encourage people to sample a product/service they may be nervous or uncertain about.

Discount Tied to Spend
Spend £100 and get 10% discount. These types of offers are loved by businesses because they can actually generate money by talking customers up, rather than losing revenue. Just be careful how this fits in with your product/service selection and pricing. If you have a low margin item at £105 – you could end up with lots of sales and no profit.

Free Delivery
The cost of delivery is one extra that a customer hates – as it is often not budgeted for beforehand and is unknown until time to pay. Therefore removing the delivery cost can instantly remove a psychological barrier to purchasing – especially online.

Flyer Design Company – Add Design are graphic designers based in Suffolk offering a full selection of graphic design services to customers throughout the UK and worldwide.

In itself, having a logo is not the same thing as having a brand for a company. Although the logo is an important part, a brand is something much greater than just an icon. It includes the colours, the style, and the personality of the company. The aim of a good brand; to differentiate your company from others in the same marketplace and to represent qualities which your target market will find innately appealing. All other things being equal, a well branded company is much more likely to succeed in winning customers that a businesses with a weak or confused brand.

Here is a simple example to illustrate the point. Take two identical pairs of shorts with an identical price and put them in the same shop. Now if you add the Nike logo to one of them, you will find sales of the Nike pair will far outstrip the other. This is not just because of the logo, it is for what the logo represents to the buyer (higher quality, better engineering, better materials), and what the buyer believes the logo will represent to others when the shorts are worn (that s/he is wealthier, more professional, trendier etc.)

Creating a brand is not just for large companies, it is also vital for smaller businesses – especially if they are operating in a crowded marketplace. By becoming recognisable to customers and reinforcing positive values, the chances of winning new business and attracting repeat custom is greatly increased.

Creating a new brand for small & medium sized companies.

Many new businesses ask us to help them create a brand. It often starts with a logo design, but then takes the key logo qualities and expands them to a distinctive look, feel and tone of voice which ties together all the promotional material. Although every branding project is slightly different depending on the individual demands of the customer, here are the typical elements of a branding project.

Business Logo Design

The logo design will be the absolute cornerstone of a brand. It will determine the shapes, colours and characteristics which will then be expanded across all the company’s promotional material. All our logo design packages start with the creation of a strong design brief. By understanding as much as we can about the business and the target customers, we can ensure that the concepts we create will be suitable for the way the company needs to engage with its audience.
However, although we can advise, it is always our client who chooses the logo concept from our selection of ideas which they would like to take forward in development. While it is very important that the brand will appeal to target customers, it also has to be a logo design which the client themselves likes, believes in and is proud to use to represent themselves.

Business Stationery Design

The business stationery is often the first opportunity we have to expand the chosen logo into a wider design which will come to characterise the overall brand. The company letterheads, compliment slips and business cards do not allow much space or potential for text, but they all start as plain white sheets so allow plenty of space for the colours and shapes which will come to represent the brand. In terms of style, it is often the stationery which forms the bridge between the logo design and the broader design of brochures, flyers and other promotional material.

The stationery is also the time to think about a ‘tag line’ – a short and simple statement which tells potential customers instantly about what you do. The choice of words in describing your business can be as important as any element of the design in forming a brand.

Marketing Material

Now that the logo and colour schemes are largely determined, it is time to start selling the brand and the business to potential customers. In engaging new clients and establishing a brand, the choice of marketing material to use can be just as important as the message and design itself. If the brand is intended to be young, funky and fresh – then the choice of traditional A5 flyers might not be right for the brand. Likewise, if you need to convey values of trust, stability and tradition then choosing unusual marketing approaches can do more harm than good.

Alongside the choice of format, the design, the message and the tone of the text for your marketing material will all ultimately contribute to the brand. On each piece of marketing, it is important to consider all of these elements together as part of a greater whole. They should all be working together to create a strong message and an effective piece of marketing. Remember that a great brand is not all about strict rules on what should and shouldn’t be done. It is about a spirit and recognition which holds everything together.

Add Design can assist you in all aspects of developing an effective company brand. From professional logo design, to business stationery design, flyers and leaflets and business brochures and catalogues, we offer a full range of cost effective graphic design services.

We design promotional leaflets for all kinds of businesses and purposes – from launching new products to hitting customers with exclusive discounts. However, one use of leaflets which always provides our graphic designers with a unique challenge is the creation of menus and price lists. Menus have to be logically layed-out and easy to read but in most cases they also have to be effective in building the brand and encouraging sales. A fine balance therefore has to be struck between information and design. If you let the design elements get out of control then your menu can be difficult to read and displeasing to the eye. If information overrules then it can be dry and not engaging.

Here are our leaflet graphic design tips for creating an effective promotional menus or pricelist.

Selecting the right leaflet type

We offer a large selection of leaflet types – from a single fold (A4 folded to A5 size – 4 pages), up to four folds (10 pages). These come in all different sizes from 110mm square up to A4 size. It is worth considering which leaflet design option will match the information and your budget the best. Having the correct amount of information on each panel is essential to make sure the leaflet design doesn’t look crammed, or too spacious. Many customers choose to send us the information first, so we can advise on the best size and shape for the job.

Get the essence of the brand

With so much information to include on your leaflet, there is often limited space for design. Therefore it is important to capture the essence of the brand in the space available. This will make sure that a customer instantly recognises who the menu or price list belongs to. Using designs which incorporate the logo design, or the corporate colours, or photographs of the premises instantly tells the customer who you are without impeding too much on the information. The graphic design also wants to ‘hold together’ all the pages of information under the same brand – so even if the services or products differ from page to page, there is a common thread holding the entire leaflet together.

The right amount of information

Think carefully about your audience and the amount of information they need to make an educated decision. If, for example, you are an Indian Restaurant then a short description of each dish might be essential to help people decide, or perhaps a ‘hotness’ scale to make sure that your customer gets a product they are happy with. Likewise, for a beauty salon stating the important differences between treatments is likely to guide a reader’s decision. Numerous studies have shown that too much choice is actually off-putting to potential customers who will decide not to buy rather than make a purchase they are uncertain about.

Using headings and sub-headings.

It is essential to divide your information up logically using headings. This allows readers to instantly find the area which interests them, and also breaks up the wall of information – making the leaflet less daunting to engage with. Always consider your audience when choosing how to divide your information. Do you clients typically shop by brandname, product type, price, age/gender, specification.

Use pictures, logos and brandnames

Drawing people to picking up and reading a menu or pricelist can be difficult when there is only a page of text. Using well chosen small pictures, recognisable logos and brandnames within the information is a great way to draw people in. If I drive a BMW and see the BMW logo on a page (no matter how small) then I am unconsciously drawn to it as I will feel it has relevance. Consider what names, logos and pictures would be best at pulling your target audiences attention and use them to divide up the information.

Leaflet Design – Add Design specialise in leaflet design, flyer design, brochure design, logo design and business stationery design. Visit our web site to view our range of competitively priced, graphic design packages which include bespoke design work, high quality printing and UK delivery. We also deliver to European and international addresses for a small additional fee.

Taking a strong design brief from our customers is hugely important in creating a great brochure design. By understanding the company, its aims and its intended target market we can make sure that the design and content of the brochure will work to is full advantage. While many clients may have a strong idea of what they require, our experience in creating brochures for all sizes of companies across a range of industries means that we can often add value and find ways to engage with the target audience which they may not have considered. Only by really understanding what they are designing and why, can our brochure designers create a product which will exceed our customers expectations.

Our brochure design service starts by taking a design brief. We ask clients to either complete a a design brief questionnaire which can be e-mailed for completion prior to starting a project, or alternatively we can take the design brief over the phone. In either case, this is what we ask about before starting on any major project with a new customer.

About the business – questions concerning the size, types and nature of the business, as well as the products and services it offers help us to put the company in the context of a wider market place. It also helps us understand some of the key selling points and points of differentiation which might be central to a successful promotional message.

Target market – there is no doubt that we can design a more effective brochure if we know as much as possible about the target recipients. This may include details on their position within a company (b2b communcations), age, gender, socio-economic information, geographical location and anything else which helps us build a picture of who you want to engage. If there is a wide target market of several different groups then we can make sure that the brochure will have a broader appeal, without side lining any particular group of people.

Previous look – For many of the companies we work with, this will not be the first piece of promotional literature they have created. They may have created some smaller items in-house, or relied on different companies to create each element of their promotional material. In many cases, our clients have moved away from their current graphic designers in search of a fresh approach or keener price. So while most clients are looking for a new creative input, they do not necessarily want a complete departure from their current branding or current material. By supplying any previous promotional material you like, we can make sure the new brochure design keeps context with the current presentation of the company.

Colour schemes – Although they may not have a design in mind, many clients will have an idea on colour scheme. This may relate to their personal preferences, the industry that they are in or the existing colours used in the branding for the business. It is also useful if we know any colours to specifically avoid, such as those which are synonymous with a competitor or ones which the company has previously tried and rejected.

Competition – Knowing the names and web addresses of your competitors is important for two reasons. Firstly, it ensures that the design we create does not repeat or look similar to the promotional material of a competitor. One of the key elements of successful branding is being distinctly recognisable, so instant differentiation is often important in the design. Secondly, it allows our designer to ensure that your own design will stand above that of the competition, without looking out of context for the industry.

Want to know more about our brochure design service? Click here to view our brochure design packages, look through our other brochure design blog articles or call one of our account handlers to discuss your project.

Add Design are a graphic design agency based in Suffolk providing a wide range of fixed price graphic design services to clients throughout the UK and internationally.

The majority of the brochures we are asked to design are for business to business use. This means that while the design will change significantly depending on the industry and purpose of the brochure, the audience are generally similar – business professionals looking for new suppliers and products. However, every so often a project comes along which has a different audience in mind – Young People. While designing for a young audience often lets our graphic designers stretch their creativity, it also presents a unique set of challenges due to the way that Young People engage with, and consume advertising literature.

Here are just some of the key things our graphic designers need to consider when creating brochure graphic design to engage a younger audience.

The exact age of the audience.

When designing for an adult audience, the age-bands for targeting tend to be very wide. Target markets are often defined as 24-30, 30-40, etc. However, with a younger audience the target age needs to be much more precise. What appeals to an 11 year old, is likely to be off-putting to a 16 year old. To create a successful brochure design it is therefore necessary to understand the exact ages you are appealing to.

The media they consume.

Trends and fashions change very quickly, especially amongst the young. What appealed to us as teenagers, is unlikely to be the same as what will engage teenagers today. Even when the same trends circle-round, they often do so with subtle but important twist. It may sound like a cliché, but you have to really ‘get into the shoes’ of the target market to understand the best way to convey your message. One of the best ways of doing this with a younger audience is to look at the media and brands which your specific age group consumes. Whether it is cartoon characters, TV programmes, websites, adverts, mobile phone apps, or clothes, these will all build up a picture which will help develop a design which will appeal.

The layout of the information.

There is a misconception that to appeal to a younger audience means that everything has to be in bright colours, capital letters and tilted off to the side. While breaking the conventions of traditional page layout is important to attract the interest of the audience (you do not want to look like a school textbook), the information still needs to be easy to read and easy to follow. The majority of young people do not make patient readers. A balance is therefore often necessary between creating something which is visually interesting and stimulating, but which makes sense on the page. The secret is not to throw everything at the page. Use bright colours, but not too many different ones. Use different font sizes, but in a logical way to show headings and key points. Move the text around the page, but make sure a logical line can be drawn from one piece of information to the next.

The text.

In terms of text, the right tone is really important. While there might be a tendency to imitate the way young people speak in writing, this often fails. Just as with an adult audience, the way we speak is very different from how we expect text to read. So while slang and txtspeak can be used in certain contexts, it shouldn’t be over used. Instead simple and straightforward language with a friendly tone can be much more effective. Again, looking at your target group’s favourite media will help get the tone right. If in doubt, we ask a member of the target audience to give it a read and cross out anything which sounds like an adult trying to be young.

The call to action.

Brochures and all forms of advertising media should always have ‘a call to action’; the course of action you would like your reader to take once they have finished reading. This is often something like ‘Call Now to talk to an advisor’ or ‘Visit www. to find out more’. The call to action is still an important element for a younger audience, but it must be aligned with the natural way your audience communicates. In an advertising context this might be ‘Text INFO to 88830′, ‘Sign up at www.’, or ‘Find Us on Facebook’. Just as long as you make it clear what you would like your reader to do once they have finished consuming the message.

Brochure Graphic Design – Add Design specialise in design and print for a wide range of industries including young people. Click here to view our brochure graphic design packages and examples of our recent work.

Great supporting promotional literature is key for any salesperson to do their job. While a good sales person will often be very persuasive, bringing out a quality corporate brochure can instantly develop trust in the company they represent and demonstrate to a customer that they are being correctly informed about the product or service on offer. Even if a brochure is not used during an engagement with a new client, it is a good rule of sales that you should always leave your new lead with something. This not only allows them to find out more about you, but by having the literature around on their desk it reminds them of your meeting and the course of action that needs to be taken.

While many large firms supply salespeople with everything they need, many smaller teams find it hard to invest in a high quality brochure. This is not only due to the time and cost of producing a single large brochure, but also because many smaller firms need to be flexible as product lines, prices and elements of service often change. The greatest fear most of our customers have is of investing in a brochure, only to find that it is not a good representation of their business six months into the future.

This probably explains the popularity of the Corporate Folder. While demonstrating the same level of professionalism as a brochure, a bespoke folder can hold any combination of inserts and other documents for presentation to the customer. Not only is this significantly cheaper to produce than a typical brochure but salespeople also find they have a number of other advantages to advancing sales.

Here is why salespeople love corporate folders.

Choice of material.

Salespeople want to direct clients to a decision. One way of doing this is to foreground one solution above other, less suitable, options. While a brochure will show the client everything, with a range of inserts at hand, a corporate folder allows the salesperson to select only the information they want the client to have – focusing them on a specific product or solution.

New products/services can be added quickly.

When a new product, service or add-on is launched, salespeople want to be selling it. It is often easier to sell something new, than something familiar and it also provides the opportunity for salespeople to visit old clients and leads with a new offering. Rather than waiting for next years brochure, with corporate folders a new insert focussing specifically on what’s new can be produced in just a matter of days and added alongside the current selection.

Presentation

Sales can sometimes come with a lot of paperwork. Quotes, pricelists, terms and conditions, and technical specifications are all items which are commonly supplied to customers during the process of a sale. Rather than single pieces of paper, the folder allows all this information to be presented neatly together alongside the main advertising literature – holding everything together as a single point of reference for the customer. Many of our customers ask us to produce a branded Word template or electronic letterhead, which allows sales staff to print their own branded paperwork and documentation.

The Business Card

Lastly, as a standard option our corporate folders can have 2 slits easily cut into the inner flap. This allows the salesperson to slot their business card right in front of the information. Not only does this create the personal touch, but puts the salesperson’s contacts instantly at the fingertips of the customer. When designing a corporate folder we often ask for a copy of the company business card to make sure that this fits within the design we are creating. We can also design business cards for clients which will fit seamlessly with the folder design creating an immaculate overall impression.

Corporate Folders - click here to view our printed folder graphic design packages

Although we work we clients right across the UK, the county of Suffolk has been the home of Add Design, design agency since we started over 5 years ago. During this time, we have been lucky enough to have the opportunity to put our mark right across the region through the businesses which ask us to help with their branding and marketing material.

In fact, we see our work everywhere we go, from estate agent boards outside houses for sale, to restaurants, shops, dental surgeries, adverts on roundabouts, graphics on vans, even brochures and leaflets on kitchen tables.

However, there are a few Suffolk projects which are particularly satisfying to see. Not just because they represent the quality of our work, but because of the challenges and enjoyment which went into creating them. Here is our pick of some of Add Design’s Suffolk graphic design projects.

Aldeburgh Restaurant

This Aldeburgh restaurant is one of our favourites. Not only did we help to name it (after Sir Frances Drake’s Ship which was built in the town), but we also designed the branding, signage, and interior. The artwork on the wall was all created by us to take diners on a tour of Drake’s travels around the world. The brand takes the historical reference, and converts it into something fun, colourful and lively . . just as any family-friendly restaurant should be.

Woodbridge Furniture Maker

Some projects come with a challenge. This company made its reputation with beautiful hand-crafted reproduction antique furniture. All made in their own Suffolk workshops. However, the company had recently developed a stunning range of contemporary designs and wanted the brochure to reflect this shift without putting off those who prefer the traditional selection. Presenting all the furniture against a crisp white background, this contemporary brochure design concentrates on the values which are universal to both the modern and traditional – natural materials, bespoke service and high quality craftmanship.

Dog Day Care

It is not everyday you are asked to brand one of the area’s first Doggy Day Care facilities, so the design you create needs to be something special. Big, small, and of any breed, our logo design shows that all dogs are welcome. Using the bright colours of the logo we have also had fun creating postcards, business cards and Christmas cards for this great dog-loving company.

National Sign Company

While it can be enormous fun playing with bright colours, sometimes you have to be serious. The marketing material we create for this sign company is seen by decision makers in some of the UK’s largest companies and organisations – so it has to be good. From large brochure designs, to websites, flyers, e-literature and full page adverts in Design Week, we have working with this client for over 4 years evolving their brand and material as the company goes from strength to strength.

Adventure Logistics Company

A small company with a truly global outlook. This business specialises in ‘adventure logistics’, helping madcap adventurers get themselves into and out of trouble in some of the most remote, dangerous and bizarre places across the world. This made the branding a very delicate balancing act. It needed to be fun and adventuresome, but also hold the weight of years of experience and expertise which makes them the preferred partner for individuals, organisations and television companies heading into the unknown.

Suffolk Designer

Lastly, a word for one of our favourite fellow designers. All the shapes, colours and designs you see are Adele’s own, but we have worked with her to get the work from paper and print and out into the world. From her logo, to promotional postcards, packaging, and the ultra-bold website we have enjoyed every minute of making her fantastic ideas a reality. Want to see more, all Adele’s work is for sale on Notonthehighstreet.com.

Add Design are a Design Agency in Suffolk, specialising in business logo design, business stationery design, corporate brochure design, leaflet design and company flyer design.