The Essentials of Print Marketing Collateral

Print marketing collateral is a diverse category of marketing products, forming the cornerstone of most successful marketing strategies. It encompasses a dizzying spectrum of formats, and its success relies heavily on the quality of its design and materials. As a marketing medium, its main advantages include being:

• Stable: Print collateral is a tangible object. It persists in a person’s possession as a stable, physical reminder of your company and what it has to offer.
• Controllable: The look and feel of your print collateral is completely under your control. It cannot distort, corrupt, or be unwittingly associated with negative content the same way some digital collateral can.
• Flexible: Print collateral encompasses countless formats, variations, functions, and finishes. In other words, there’s a piece of print collateral out there to suit any application.

At Wallace Carlson Printing, we understand that every piece of collateral you invest in is pivotal to telling your brand’s story. To help improve the return on that investment, we’ve developed this article covering the key elements that make print collateral effective, from design and messaging to material selection and printing techniques.

Understanding the Role of Print Collateral

Print collateral is arguably the most varied category of marketing materials. It includes any printed item used to promote your company’s brand, products, services, or message. Some popular examples of marketing print collateral include:

• Booklets
  • Catalogs
  • Company Magazines
  • Newsletters
• Direct Mail
  • Brochures
  • Flyers
  • Postcards
• Displays
  • Product Displays
  • Signs
  • Window Clings
• Leave Behinds
  • Business Cards
  • Pamphlets
  • Sell Sheets
• Promotional Gifts
  • Calendars
  • Notebooks
  • Sticky Notes

Obviously, different types of print collateral are used for different purposes. Some, like promotional gifts, are better suited to building brand reputation. Others, like direct mail, are best used for informing your audience about products, services, promotions, etc.

However, there is one shared element that binds every type of print collateral together, regardless of its use: quality. The visual and physical quality of a print item has a drastic effect on its performance. As such, all print collateral needs to optimize its design, printing, materials, and construction to ensure the desired impression is made.

Designing Print Collateral That Works 

Good design for print collateral relies on finding the right balance between words and images. This balance looks different depending on the specific format, but is generally based on two core design principles:

• Clarity: To be successful, print collateral needs to clearly communicate both its key information and the overall brand image. Font readability, information hierarchy, and the consistent application of brand colors and logos all play a part in ensuring good clarity.
• Visual Appeal: Regardless of the specific visuals used, print collateral must look compelling and entice viewers to engage with it. Concepts important to visual appeal include alignment of elements, compositional balance, contrast between elements, and thematic consistency.

Of course, there can be a world of difference between a design that works well on a computer screen, and a design that truly pops when printed. So don’t be afraid to ask your printer for advice or feedback about your design. An experienced printing partner, like Wallace Carlson, will be happy to provide guidance on how to adjust your file and ensure the best possible print results.

The Impact of Material Selection and Printing Techniques

Material selection, printing methods, and construction techniques all combine to create the final physical pieces of print collateral. While quality is always the name of the game, that doesn’t mean every piece of print collateral needs to use ultra-premium methods and materials. Creating quality print collateral is about selecting the options that are best suited to your goals, your budget, and the conditions in which the collateral will be used. 

For example, direct mail postcards require heavier cardstock that can withstand being sent through the mail, while large catalogs may use light weight paper to keep their overall size manageable. Similarly, while a high-value promotional gift may benefit from luxurious finishes like foil, a short-term promotional flyer will usually warrant a more utilitarian approach.

Take advantage of your printer’s expertise when choosing your print techniques and materials. Even if you think a particular finish or material is out of your scope, they may be able to offer innovative solutions or novel combinations that you hadn’t considered.

Interested in more details about how to optimize your print collateral? Learn how to choose the right paper and finishes to elevate your materials, or explore which design technique best suits your needs!