Have you ever looked at your business card or marketing collateral and thought to yourself, “This looks pretty standard. It’s not going to set me apart from my competition.”? You’re not alone. A lot of people think that. In the world of marketing, there are tons of ways to make your marketing collateral stand out from the rest. You don’t have to spend big money to get a unique look for your business cards, brochures, posters, and so on. There are just a few things you can do to make your marketing collateral stand out. Read on for 8 unique ways to make your marketing collateral stand out.
When you spend so much time and energy promoting your business, it can be hard to keep it all in perspective. After all, you have to constantly remind yourself that you’re doing this for a reason — and that reason is to reach potential clients.
With so much going on, it can be easy to lose sight of your goals and your marketing collateral can end up feeling like a necessary evil. If you’re feeling like your company’s marketing feels a little stale, though, it’s time to take a look at some of the ways you can make your marketing collateral stand out.
Keep reading to learn about some of the most unique ways to make your marketing collateral stand out and drive new leads.
Give your marketing collateral a personality
When you think of marketing collateral, you probably think of it as a faceless, nameless entity that exists solely to sell products and services. But that’s not how marketing works. In today’s marketing landscape, brands have personalities. They represent unique and specialized companies that have a distinct and recognizable brand voice. They represent those companies that really get to know their clients. They represent those companies that are not only comfortable being themselves, but their marketing & collateral is their personality. Think of your marketing like an extroverted friend who knows when to be fun and when to be serious.
Is your brand uplifting, humorous, strong or formal? The ultimate goal is to speak in a tone that your ideal audience can identify with. This sparks your potential clients interest and helps prompt them to take an action.
Maintain Brand Consistency
It’ll make your marketing collateral stand out if you maintain consistency across all of your marketing collateral. After all, it’s no good having unique & beautiful pieces of marketing collateral that are inconsistent and don’t align with your brand, colors and fonts.
Not only does keeping your brand cohesive give your brand a unified feel and appeals to your target clients, but it also helps to reduce confusion among your target markets. It might seem like a no-brainer, but many brands often overlook the importance of keeping their brand consistent. It’s important to remember that consistency is key and it can help to make your marketing collateral stand out and your brand easily identifiable.
Use High Materials & Break the Mold
I can’t stress this one enough. Have you ever had someone hand you a flimsy business card? What was your immediate impression of them? How your marketing collateral looks and feels is a direct representation of your business.
There is so much value in investing a few dollars more to use high quality paper stock. You’d be surprised how affordable it can be and how it can take your marketing material to the next level. There is a wide range of paper stocks such as gloss, linen, matte, velvet and so on. The goal is use the appropriate paper weight and stock for each media.
There are so many ways to break the mold to stand out. The array of paper stocks, finishes and textures is limitless. Spot UV adds a nice sheen to specific areas of your design, raised foil creates an embossed area with foil stamping and painted edge allows you to feature color accents on the edges of your collateral. Break the mold and get creative!
Make sure content is current & not overwhelming
It’s ideal to review all of your marketing collateral annually to ensure that the content and message is still relevant to your business. Staff changes, products and services change and all of this needs to be reflected accurately on your marketing collateral.
You also want to make sure that your content on brochures and other longer form materials isn’t overwhelming with text. It should be direct, engaging and more of a summarization that entices a potential client to contact you. Emphasize key points with bullet points versus paragraphs. Balance your text with images and design.
Conclusion
When you spend so much time and energy promoting your business, it can be hard to keep it all in perspective. After all, you have to constantly remind yourself that you’re doing this for a reason — and that reason is to reach potential clients.
With so much going on, it can be easy to lose sight of your goals and your marketing collateral can end up feeling like a necessary evil. If you’re feeling like your company’s marketing feels a little stale, though, it’s time to take a look at some of the ways you can make your marketing collateral stand out.