A calendar is more than just a promotional item: It's a way to provide a useful free gift to current and prospective clients and keep your company at the top of their mind all year round. A business can even use a calendar to show its human side, by sharing images and facts within the calendar about its employees and history.
And there's no better time to print a promotional calendar than right around the New Year. If you are thinking of printing and distributing a calendar to promote your business, keep these four tips in mind. 1. Select a number of months Print vendors usually offer calendars in 6, 12 or 18 month formats. Think about what time of year you'll be distributing the calendar. If it's close to January 1, then a 12-month calendar will work. However, if you are going to be distributing the calendar any other time throughout the year, think about how a 6- or 18-month version might better meet user's needs. 2. Decide on a message A good calendar is not only useful, but it has an inspirational message or theme that folks will want to return to every day. First brainstorm the overall message you want to communicate in your calendar about your product, service, industry or cause. Then make sure there are enough design, photography, illustration and copywriting resources to get the message across. It's best to use one image at the top of each monthly spread and feature the most compelling monthly image on the front cover. 3. Use all of the calendar's 'real estate' It's imperative to include copy in the calendar that describes your business and provides a way for people to contact you. Ask your print vendor for a sample layout of the calendar and use any extra introductory pages at the beginning or end of the booklet, and any large margins, for copy. You can even slip some fun, extra copy onto the calendar grid itself, such as an upcoming sale, relevant event or a fact about your company- for example, the anniversary of the businesses' founding. 4. Focus on production details Think about the production techniques that will: a) work best with your calendar's theme or message; and b) make the calendar easy for recipients to use. Consider how matte versus glossy paper stock and different trim sizes will look with your design. Printing vendors also offer different types of binding, such as traditional saddle-stitched or stapled bindings and wire-o or spiral bindings. A spiral binding allows users to hang the calendar on a wall, as does a stapled binding plus a small hole for a thumbtack.
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