Your marketing collaterals are your "first date" with an audience.

Unfortunately, a lot of brochures, web sites, slide shows and other collateral materials feel like the worst kind of first date: Too much "Me," not enough "You." Too little insight into what really matters. Appearances that are either over-dressed or under-dressed for the occasion. An overall impression of trying too hard or not hard enough.

If you want to make a good impression, that's not the way.

• Almost no one has to read your marketing collaterals.
• Three secrets to great marketing collaterals.
• A few examples from my portfolio.

Almost no one has to read your marketing collaterals.

Or sit through your presentation. Or click through your web site. Our job is to make them want to. Here's how:

1. Be true to your mission. Your organization does important work. If your choices (words, graphics, even type font) reflect what you stand for, people will respond.
2. Find your true message. This takes deep digging, all the way to the indivisible kernel of your message. That's where clarity lies.
3. Speak to your audience. Are you talking to a joyful new grandparent? Or to an American Indian with HIV? Getting and holding someone's attention starts with knowing who they are, how they think and feel, what they need and want. (Sometimes this takes research.) Speak to one individual in your audience; others will respond too.
4. Choose the approach that's right for you. Is your organization or project high-style corporate, informal and friendly, somewhere in between--or one of a kind?
5. Work with the best possible creative talent. Getting your collaterals right takes a combination of hard work, experience, clarity, and, yes, talent.

Three secrets to great marketing collaterals:

• Sincerity. If you mean it, your audience will know it.
• Specificity. If your audience has heard it before, it's not really you. Every organization, every plan is unique.
• Simplicity. Nothing is harder to achieve — or easier to know when you see it. Look for clear, appealing language and design, in a style that fits the approach you want to take (See #4, "Choose the approach that's right for you" above)

A few examples from my portfolio:

 For proud new grandparents.
 For American Indians with HIV.
 For families shopping for assisted living.
 For student recruitment.

 Go here if you need the free Adobe Acrobat Reader.

---

Contact me (Gail Terry Grimes) to talk about your marketing collaterals.