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5 Portfolio Design Options

Jennifer — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 14:31:09 +0000

One of the most important tools in your graphic design arsenal is a good portfolio. This is the best of the best of all the work you’ve done for clients, school and practice. But what’s all that work worth if it’s not nicely displayed? The worst form of marketing for a designer is a poor showing of his or her work. No matter which of the following portfolio styles you use, be sure it’s a stunning showcase of your talent.

Online. This is among the most popular forms of portfolio design. It’s easy to access by anyone with the Internet, and it shows that in addition to creating all the lovely projects in your portfolio, you can also create a user-friendly, attractive website. One tip is to let your work shine through – don’t go too crazy with the bells and whistles on the website at the risk of crowding your portfolio pieces.

Brochure. This is old school. A brochure is something you can physically hand to potential clients. It’s a shiny, classy way to be sure your work detail shows up. A brochure is a good choice – in addition to an online portfolio – for more artsy pieces, as creativity can sometimes get lost when it’s pixilated.

Booklet. A cheaper alternative to a brochure is a booklet. Freelance illustrator Steve Harpster recently ordered a batch of booklet portfolios after marketing attempts with postcards and directory listings. The booklets contain 30 of his images as well as his variety of styles. They’re much less expensive to ship to prospects than brochures.

PDF. Less expensive to produce than a website is a PDF. Despite the grumblings in the past, most potential clients will have a PDF reader on their computer, and they can easily open up your work and see it intact. A layered PDF allows the viewer to flip through multiple pieces of your work, and you can create buttons and links.

Business card. For a bonus way to market yourself, use up that real estate on your business card. Create fold-out business cards and include thumbnails of your best portfolio work. Be sure to include how to get access to the rest of your portfolio.

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Spring Into Marketing

Jennifer — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 14:48:02 +0000

The start of spring may not be until March 20, but that doesn’t mean you should delay on your seasonal marketing plans. You don’t have to let Punxsutawney Phil’s prediction of six more weeks of winter get you down. Take advantage of the torrential weather during the next month to huddle indoors and plot out an attractive promotional campaign! Here are a bunch of resources and tips to help make your small business bloom.

You can always count on PsPrint for free resources. Need ideas, links and inspiration? Here’s a host of graphic design tips for specific spring holidays:

St. Patrick’s Day – March 17
April Fools’ Day – April 1
Easter – April 4
Earth Day – April 22
Cinco de Mayo – May 5
Mother’s Day – May 9
Father’s Day – June 20

Of course, the best design means nothing without good execution.

For St. Patrick’s Day, print green die-cut flyers in the shape of shamrocks.

Use humor in your flyers, postcards and banners for April Fools’ Day.

Whether your customers are Christian or not, Easter symbolizes renewal, so remember that theme when creating postcards and brochures .

Want to do good and get your business name out there? Adopt a highway for Earth Day!

Throwing a fiesta is a fun idea for Cinco de Mayo. Be sure to include lots of bright colors and Mexican icons in your promotional items.

Take a good look at your mailing list when get around to Mother’s Day. Pay close attention to your demographics and keep your marketing tuned in to those clients.

Memorial Day (May 30) and Flag Day (June 14) call for pride. Flags and the use of red, white and blue are obvious, but be sure to keep the right mood and theme for these holidays. Have fun, but be respectful.

Father’s Day may be for dads, but don’t forget that women do a lot of the shopping. Giveaways are always a big hit, but be aware of your clientele when deciding what product to give away.

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The Brochure: A Key Ingredient to Sales

Britt — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 14:40:16 +0000

Don’t rely on a simple face-to-face pitch, exchange of business cards or an e-mail message to help you make a sale or land a new client. Even if you have a successful business meeting with a client, when you walk out the door you should be leaving more than just a business card behind. As a giveaway handed to clients or prospective customers, or as part of a direct-mail package, the brochure can be your key to sales success.

Brochures help restate the selling points of your product or service in an easy-to-read format. They can also be passed along via your point-of-contact, so that the actual decision-makers or purchasers can get a sense of the pitch as well.

Below are some tips for designing brochures as give-aways or as part of a direct-mail package.

Brochures as give-aways
Brochures are perfect for trade shows, events, meetings or just to carry in your briefcase or purse just in case the opportunity to talk about business arises. For a compact format that packs a lot of real estate try the right-angle half-fold brochure. Some more familiar formats are the half-fold or letter-fold brochure templates. With any format you choose, it’s best to include a perforated panel inside the brochure, so that folks can tear out and mail in a postage-paid reply (4.25-inch by 6-inch is the standard postcard size). Try borrowing a direct-mail trick and include a formal letter on the first spread of the brochure. Get a headshot and a digital image or scan of your actual signature to include with the letter. This will give the brochure a more personal touch.

Brochures in the mail
Every brochure template can also be turned into a mailing, simply by using one of the outside panels as a mailing and postage surface. Talk to your printing vendor about doing part of a brochure print run with a mailing panel and part without. This will give you the ability to use the printed brochures in either fashion. If you are including a brochure inside of a larger direct-mail package, keep in mind that there’s already a letter and a reply device in the mailing, so you do not need to include these elements in the brochure. Printing in a full-color format ensures that your brochure will be eye-catching. It also helps to include a lot of product images or other relevant artwork to draw readers in. Some folks may skip over the direct-mail letter, so reiterate all the product or services’ selling points in the brochure as if it’s the first time the reader is hearing about it.

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Three important direct-marketing musts

Jerry — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 15:00:21 +0000

I realize that direct marketing has been discussed ad nauseum on the Internet and in the classroom. You can read until your eyes burst and your stomach turns and still not understand what is going on. Things change quickly and everyone has their opinion, but no one seems to agree on much of anything. When they do agree, it is never spelled out simply and directly. What I want to do here is offer three simple, easy direct-marketing musts that anyone can use.

1. The first thing that you are going to need is a good design for your direct-marketing pieces. Whether they are flyers, postcards or brochures, you have to have a consistent and memorable design that does many things at once. Your design has to catch the eye, send a message, brand your product and build trust. Not much to expect out of a design is it? Your next question is ”How do I make that happen?” Your best bet is to hire a professional graphic designer. I’m not stumping for any one in particular, but a good one will accomplish all of your goals quickly and expertly.

2. You have to have good copy on your printed pieces. Each piece of direct-marketing material has to capture the benefits of your product, the benefits of using your company, and convey a convincing call to action if you are ever to see sales conversions. Again, you will be better off if you hire a professional.

3. Lastly, comes the printer that you will entrust your campaign to. This will take more research than you think. Any printer can get the job done, but will it fit your needs? Will they ship where you want? Do they offer a direct-mailing service that you can plug your mailing list into? The best printer for you can answer yes to all of these questions, then followup by performing to their word.

To me, these are the three most important aspects of a direct-marketing campaign. Do you have any other ideas or points that you think should be addressed?

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Printing headaches

Jerry — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 14:39:07 +0000

My business is not what you would call traditional. I sell in all 50 states. That is pretty common nowadays, but my product is individualized for each group based on their geographical location. The product varies from county to county inside of a state. Since the product varies, the sales material must meet that particular customer’s demands. I have to know that when I order brochures and sales materials that they will be done correctly and delivered on time. I need everything to fall into place every time. There is no time to reorder or get corrections.

Online printing offers that. I can be in Tennessee, have a meeting in Nevada the next day, and know that the material I need will be delivered to the hotel I am staying at and be correct and ready to go when I am. A few days heads up and everything is ready. I tried that with a brick-and-mortar location. That was a disaster. Material wasn’t shipped on time, shipped to the wrong address or printed incorrectly. I even tried some of the “bargain” online printers. Yeah, they were a bargain alright. What a waste of time. You don’t understand the peace of mind that a reliable company offers until you suffer the results of an unreliable one.

The only universal truth in online printing is that you have to research the company and be able to trust the one you work with. Most companies offer the same services, but it is the reliability factor that will help you get the sale.

Are there any other printing issues that you think are important? What do you look for in a printer?

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Quality is king

Jerry — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 17:55:54 +0000

As a freelancer writer and marketing guru(self proclaimed) I have faced the every depressing feeling of being overwhelmed with work. You know, you turn on the computer and 30+ emails, sales notices, and people with questions or revision requests. These are all money to be had, but how do you make time to get to them all?

As you fall farther and farther behind, you start to feel the urge to slack in the quality department. Maybe rush through the proofreading, maybe only research from one source. In truth, what good will it do you? You might get away with it on occasion, but in general people want quality copy. Content is still king on the internet and people want theirs to be good. I charge more than other people do, so what I write needs to earn that money.

How would you like it if you sent your brochures or business cards out to the printer and got back a sloppy job that you could tell had been rushed? It would go right back for a reprint wouldn’t it. So, did the printer save time in the long run? No, he actually doubled his time on the project thereby lowering his profit

Quality is king in any industry. Spec out jobs with a little fluff time to insure that you are able to get them done with quality in mind. What do you think?

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