How to Create an Effective Marketing Collateral

We all know marketing is important because it helps us sell our products or services by reaching out to people. Without marketing, many businesses wouldn’t exist because it is what ultimately drives sales. It is our way of connecting and communicating with people by introducing the products or services we are offering.

When developing materials to communicate about your goods or services and the needs they serve, you need to know what influences buying decisions among your prospects. This knowledge will help you to develop communication strategies that increase sales or build brand loyalty.

What impression did you want to create for prospective customers? You have to remember, you only have one “first impression”, so you really need to make an impact and make the most of it to catch their attention. Make sure your marketing collateral should target your prospect’s problem or needs, then impart how you are going to address them.

The customer should be able to understand what it is you offer with very little work. Your message needs to be both informative and enticing. Use imagery or language in a way that ensures the prospect is both comfortable and well-informed. It should be concise, complete, and clear so that the customer can easily find answers to typical questions: price, how to order, specifications, and other business details. Marketing collateral negotiates with prospects without feeling pressured versus to its counterpart, in-person selling.

Your materials should persuade your customers and inform them that you have something valuable to them. They should motivate them to purchase your product or service.

You can do this by simply putting your collaterals through the following simple six-point test:

Question 1: Are your product/service’s interesting features highlighted to your prospects?

Question 2: Have you positioned your product or service to clearly define why it is different from your competitor? Do you have a clear reason why your customers need it?

Question 3: Does your marketing material sound like your prospects? You should know how your prospects talk and think. If you don’t come from your own customer base, you’d be wise to do a demographic study of your potential customers, including surveying the collaterals of your competitors.

Question 4: Is your collateral easy to understand? Does it flow smoothly and logically without causing confusion? Does it use a friendly, neutral tone? Is it uncluttered, persuasive, and engaging?

Question 5: Is your marketing collateral well designed? The layout of the collateral should not only be informative but also attractive to the eye. You may want to invest in producing your collaterals professionally for it may pay you back many times over.

Question 6: Can your sales team distribute the material and know that it will spark the interest of your customers? They may not have the final say on design and content but if they really hate your collaterals you’ll find it hard trying to connect with them.

Keep these questions in mind when you are writing newsletters, advertising, website marketing messages, supporting collateral, and sales letters. Always keep think of your readers, and always remember, people want to buy, they just don’t want to be sold. With these important guidelines in mind, you can create marketing collateral that will lead to increased sales and take your business to the next level.