Company Brochure on the Internet?

Brochures vs. Billboards
Would you put your brochure on a billboard? Or vice versa? Of course, not. Each medium serves very different purposes in marketing and advertising your business. Billboards try to capture a person's attention as customers are zooming by. A billboard message needs to be clear, to the point and bold. A brochure on the other hand serves a different purpose. It functions a 'leave behind' or a reminder to your customer the services you provide. It can relate the company's background, the products and most importantly, a way to contact your company.

What's so different?
The Internet is a completely different medium of communication, unlike anything we have known. Jim Sterne, from 'World Wide Web Marketing', explains the difference:

?A brochure has a cover. A brochure has an opening statement. It has a progressive flow from front to back. Experiencing a brochure is a very predictable thing. But a visit to a Web site is anything but predictable.?

Why is it so different? Well, you have no control over how your audience reaches your site. They can find you from a myriad of ways; a search engine, another Web site or a visitor could send them a specific page of your Web site, totally by-passing your 'Home Page'. A good designer should always be aware of this aspect of the Web and as part of a 'Best Practice' method of approach in designing Web sites, we recognize that:

'World Wide Web pages differ from books and other documents in one crucial respect: hypertext links allow users to access a single Web page with no preamble.'

Patrick J. Lynch and Sarah Horton, Web Style Guide

Patrick J. Lynch and Sarah Horton, Web Style Guide

What do you do, re-invent the wheel?
Absolutely not. It is perfectly acceptable to extract copy from your existing brochure and use it on your Web site. As a matter fact, you can take the opportunity to explain in detail your products, services or company history.

Keep in mind
It would be good to keep in mind two things. First, since your site isn't a brochure or a blockbuster movie, there is no need for a 'splash' or 'cover page' to your company Web site. So, Trash the Flash. Second, because we can't predict the how a customer navigates through your site, every page should be well branded and easily navigated.

Marc Atwood - 9 Designs
matwood@9designs.com

www.9designs.com