10 Tips to Improve Your Flyer Ads

By Allan Pulga

Flyers are traditionally cheap and effective ways to get people’s attention in a busy marketplace. But because flyers are such a popular marketing tool, retailers need to do something special to differentiate themselves from their competition.

This isn’t a matter of reinventing the wheel, however, as Karen Saunders from businessknowhow.com can attest. She offers 10 techniques that professional designers use to make flyers “stand out in a crowd.”

First impressions matter. “Make it memorable, unusual or provocative using a few carefully chosen powerful words,” says Saunders. She suggests using words like “easy, finally, now you can,” and “discover” to draw attention.

One large image will make more of an impact that many smaller images. “This image is your ‘focal point’ and will draw readers in.” It should grab, provoke and intrigue people to read on.

Your prospects will ask, “What’s in it for me?” So make sure you write to their perspective – use the words “you” and “your.” Avoid using “we, us, I” and “our.” Keep your text short and meaningful. Saunders suggests using the words “free, save, love, new, results” or “guarantee.”

Endorsements from happy customers strike a chord among readers. Include the first and last name, company name and location of the advocate.

Wall-to-wall text doesn’t work. You need white space to make elements stand out and make the flyer easy to read.

Highlight titles and subtitles in bold, but avoid using ALL CAPS because they’re more difficult to read.

“Make it simple with two typefaces, and align items to a grid,” says Saunders. For printing margins, she suggests ½” margins on all sides, or adding 1/8” for bleeds on items that print off the edge of the page.

“Have someone else proofread your work. Check your contact information. Call the phone numbers in your flyer and test all URLs.”

Choose bright-coloured or unique paper, and print with black ink. Use grey to provide shading and contrast.