23 Jan 11 Tips for Brochure Writing
Brochure writing is an art besides its scientific approach. If you are new to brochure here are few helpful tips for you.
Detailed yet interesting
Brochure writing is a detailed affair, yet crispy. Modern brochure writing style is crisp yet very effective. A brochure may run over many pages or consist just 3-4 pages, depending upon its nature. Make sure you include all important information like company’s history and description, CEO’s message, mission and vision statement, product or service detail, achievements. Since brochures are long in nature it will be all inclusive yet crisp.
Keep the style same
Irrespective of brochure’s total number of pages, keep the writing style same all over. If you are talking in passive voice, talk in the same style throughout. Don’t switch on and off between styles. If you have taken a poetic style of writing maintain that throughout. Sign off with the same flavor. Even keep your font style same.
Understand the purpose
There’s no set formula of brochure writing. Brochure writing style may vary depending upon the purpose of writing. A technical brochure or a product brochure; corporate brochure or sales brochure, each calls for a different style and purpose of writing.
Don’t overstuff
Often marketers are tempted to stuff a brochure with maximum amount of factual data. It certainly bores the reader. Don’t overstuff a brochure with data. Keep it light, crispy yet all inclusive. Touch upon all important points needed to be conveyed, and elaborating in short only most important parts. If you are mentioning product features, make sure you convert those features into benefits. Translate each feature into functional and emotional benefit. Break the paragraphs into bullet points when needed, else into short paragraphs. Don’t write a page full, in one single paragraph. Make sure you leave enough blank space or space for images on a page. It makes reading interesting.
Put quotations whenever applicable
Quotations are always appealing. While you craft a brochure page, try to put some quotations wherever they are applicable. It can be some words from the company’s chairman or some famous quotes or simply few lines you wish to emphasize. When the brochure page is designed such quotations can be nicely used in bold and bigger fonts. It easily grabs attention.
Tags: Blank Space, Brochure Writing, Bullet Points, Corporate Brochure, Different Style, Emotional Benefit, Factual Data, Font Style, Helpful Tips, Marketers, Passive Voice, Poetic Style, Product Brochure, Product Features, Sales Brochure, Service Detail, Short Paragraphs, Technical Brochure, Vision Statement, Writing Style
16 Sep 10 Freelance Writing – Confused about samples?
The worst part of a freelance writing career is uncertainty. A freelance writer, unlike a staff writer, has to search for gigs every now and then, and each time he needs to show some samples in order to get the work. And this is where problem starts, and contrary to common perception, the more experienced you are, the more jitter the idea of showing samples give.
What samples to show and what not to show, and how many to show? These questions often haunt a freelance writer, more so because there is no one right answer to this. Every client is different so is there demand, and so is the solution to that.
The question is then how to decide what to show and what not to show? As said, there is not any definite answer to this question, but I can tell you about what I do when it comes to hunting writing gigs. That will help you devise your plan of action.
How to decide which sample to show
What clients want?
The first step in the process is to see what client is asking for, as sending relevant samples is what you should do. Sending a sample of how-to article to a client who wants a sales page will do no good. Similarly sending a sample of an article to one who is asking for a press release will also not get you the job.
Have you written on the topic?
If you have written on the topic related to project advertise then send that sample, but while doing so do keep the following tip in mind.
When did you write that one?
This is very important. We all grow one article at a time, so sending a sample that you wrote 2 or 3 years back will do more harm than good, as it will not demonstrate you current style. Do not mistake in thinking that writing style is static; rather nothing is more organic than writing style. The more you write the better you become. You should, therefore, send the samples that you wrote in last month, or last to last month. Do not send any sample that you wrote more than 6 months back.
How many
As many as required to get the work. This is a judgment call you have to take. If the work advertised is going to last long than I provide more samples and if it is a small project then I do not send too many samples, or too many types of samples. It also depends on what a client is asking for.
This is how I decide on what samples to send and how many to send. I hope this will help you decide as well.
Tags: 3 Years, Definite Answer, Freelance Writer, Freelance Writing Career, Hunting, Job, Mistake, Organic Style, Perception, Press Release, Relevant Samples, Staff Writer, Uncertainty, Writing Samples, Writing Style
11 Aug 10 Why Should You Develop a Habit of Adding Details to Your Written Works?
Romeo saw Juliet for the first time and he fell for her. He now wanted to marry her, but their families’ animosity didn’t let them meet, and at the end they died, followed which both their families reconciled.
Was this narration of Romeo and Juliet interesting? Was it even one millionth of excitement that you got from reading the famous tragedy?
Why didn’t you enjoy it? It had all the key elements that were present in the original play. It told you everything that Shakespeare wanted to tell you then why didn’t you enjoy?
Because it lacked the details, isn’t it?
People like stories not because it connects with them at the level deeper than mere comprehension and consciousness, and details do exactly that. It provides fuel to emotion. Greatness of a story lies in detail. When writing a story, or an article, a feeble writer tends to wander around the subject matter using useless adjectives, dead cliché, etc. But when a great writer writes a story, he goes directly to the heart of the matter, and covers all he sees in his journey to the heart of the matter.
Photograph in outlines
If story is a photograph, details are color, texture, shades, and patterns, without which the photograph is nothing but mere outlines. And I am sure not many people enjoy outlines. A great picture is made when colors, shades, textures, patterns, and other things are added to the outline. Similarly, a great story comes to life when required detail is added.
What about articles?
An Article is a non-fiction cousin of story. It just differs in the subject matter it handles, people who are reading it, and slightly in the writing style.
There is no reason why a non-fictional piece could not be written in story form. After all, the goal of a communication is to connect and inform, and you cannot inform anyone, not with any credibility, without establishing a deep connection with he or she.
Tags: Adjectives, Animosity, Color Texture, Comprehension, Consciousness, Credibility, Fictional Piece, Greatness, Heart Of The Matter, Journey To The Heart, Millionth, Narration, Non Fiction, Outlines, Photograph, Romeo And Juliet, Romeo Juliet, Shades, Subject Matter, Writing Style
