For most businesses, marketing is an important function that is necessary in order for the business to grow and compete. In the past, word of mouth was enough for any company to succeed. However, as the volume of noise consumers were faced with grew, so did the need for companies to do more, say more, and reach out further to each client and potential client.

Companies now know that business promotion is as essential as their business structure and their employees. As businesses are faced with competition both online and off, they are forced to reach consumers by using offline tactics to complement and support their online marketing goals. For years marketers have successfully used brochures to work in both their online and offline sales and marketing efforts. In short:

Brochures inform: Marketing brochures are an excellent way to communicate everything from ‘what is your business?' and ‘what does it do?' to ‘why you do things the way you do' as well as the rather commonly found ‘contact information' like email addresses and website location. Brochures are the foundation of any well-planned marketing campaign and provide your customers with a tangible document that communicates your most pertinent information in a colorful, glossy, well-designed, and informative piece of collateral.

Brochures are cost-effective and results-oriented: For a small business which lacks the resources to deploy mainstream media campaigns, brochures can be an incredibly cost-effective and results-oriented method of marketing one's business. While the unit cost of producing a brochure decreases as the number being printed increases, the costs are still a very low compared to even a one day's worth of ad placements in a newspaper or on television.

Brochures are too well-designed to be discarded: Ever wondered why so much emphasis is placed on designing a brochure? One of the reasons is certainly to make it look good (which goes without saying), but also to ensure that they aren't hastily thrown into the trash can or recycling bin. The higher the quality that is perceived in brochure printing, the more likely it is that a consumer will read it before discarding. When was the last time you ripped a high-quality brochure apart and threw it into the waste paper basket without at least glancing at its contents?

Brochures are durable and long lasting: You probably read the daily newspaper just once and then you might never read it again. On rare occasions, you might take another peek at it, if you had a compelling reason for doing so. Television ads run for mere seconds and often miss the bulk of their intended target audience. In comparison, a brochure's lifespan is much longer, increasing the chance that it will be read again and again.

Brochures help build and sustain a brand: There are many important attributes of an effective brochure, including paper type (coated or uncoated?), content, format size, design, color selection, and overall print quality. Combined, all of these attributes help define your product or service in the eyes of prospective customers, as well as build brand awareness for your offering. Conversely, a poorly designed and executed brochure will reflect negatively on your business, and may in fact have the opposite effect of a well-designed, high-quality brochure. By careful planning and execution, you can produce an effective brochure that will help ensure the success of your product or service.

Despite the popularity of other more expensive forms of advertising and marketing, brochures are still on of the most important and cost-effective ways to promote your products and services.