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Brochures 101: Tips for your next trifold

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Brochures are a staple in the business toolkit. When you need communicate specific and detailed information with clients, the trifold brochure is a go-to. Its folded design can create natural breaks, making it easy to organize material clearly for the reader.

White space is your friend

When given six panels of space, it might be temping to fill them to the brim. It’s important to balance information and visuals to create a brochure that communicates and captivates.Here are a few things you can do to create a brochure that’s information-rich but not so saturated it confuses the reader:

  • Limit yourself to two or three fonts: using one or two for headers and one for body text.
  • Don’t cram: Keep the font point size readable.
  • Use visuals that help illustrate the relationship between pieces of information and break up large chunks of text with images to make them easier to read.
  • Use bullets, numbered lists or other hierarchical text formats to convey information without unnecessary wordiness.

Templates are also your friend

If your printer can provide you with a template (and West Press is happy to), use it. Often the inside flap is designed to be slightly smaller than the outer one. This way it folds and opens neatly. You can figure out these details yourself, but a template will ensure it’s correct and matches the printer’s expectations.

Whether you are designing the brochure yourself or receiving a proof from your graphic designer, print it and fold it up. Printing it at full size ensures that the type size is as you expect (don’t rely on just viewing it on-screen). Folding it will force you to make sure your panels are in the right order and elements align pleasingly from one part of the layout to another.

The natural order of panels

Think of the natural order of a trifold brochure. Keep it easy for your customers to read by offering small amounts of information on the front cover and small inside panel. Use the inside three panels for your product descriptions and services. Avoid placing important information on the far right inside panel. This is the last panel seen when reading a brochure and it can sometimes be overlooked.

Don’t rule out the back panel. Often this panel gets left blank or something simple and irrelevant gets thrown there. Think of this space as an oversized business card. Add your location and contact information so your customer can find it easily. You can also add a reinforcing statement and a call-to-action here.

Traditional trifold brochures are set up to have three separate columns of information on the inside panels. Think outside the box by designing your inside full page with the far left panel as a title page and your story or information spreading across the remaining two panels. A high-resolution image bleeding into two or three panels would also be visually striking.

Whether you need help designing your brochure or assistance printing your design, West Press’ talented staff is here to help your business achieve its goals. Contact West Press or your Account Executive at 520-624-4939 today.