Tourism Brochures: 5 Mistakes to Avoid

When you think of tourism, you think of brochures. Right? When you go to a tourists’ center or a visitors’ center in a new town, the first thing you’ll see is a big rack of brochures. People don’t want to spend time in a tourists’ center – they want to get out and about and look at a brochure as they’re on their way to the tourist destination.

You must plan your tourism brochures to focus on one place, feature or region – trying to cram 12 sites into one brochure won’t allow sufficient space for the destination details and benefits. Don’t lose money by short-changing your tourism brochures. Be aware of the mistakes you need to avoid to create good brochures:

Mistake 1: Making your brochure your only sales tactic. A brochure should be part of your marketing plan; it shouldn’t be your entire marketing plan. You still need a Web site as well as other sales materials, like sales letters, postcards and flyers. Get your marketing materials to your prospects while they are still at home, mulling over where to go on vacation. Your brochure coupled with your sales letter and a visit to your Web site is much more convincing than just your brochure alone.

Mistake 2: Not using headlines. People skim brochures. Only a small percentage of people actually read all of the words in a brochure. People look to the headlines to guide them to the

competition. Give people a reason to stay with you over “the other guy.” Do you include a breakfast info they want. If the headlines don’t have the wanted info (or if there are no headlines at all), the person will throw away the brochure. Give the reader clear, enticing headlines to point them in the direction they need to go.

Mistake 3: Only listing a few of your destination’s attractions. If you don’t include a complete list, the reader will assume you don’t have that attraction. If your site includes a pool and an entrance into a lake, include both. Family members may have different preferences – a couple people prefer the pool, others prefer the lake. Don’t take it for granted that people will only want one or the other. Don’t clutter your brochure with attractions, but do include as many as you can. Using short, clear descriptions formatted in a bulleted list is an easy way to include a lot of info without overwhelming the reader.

Mistake 4: Not telling people how you differ from your competitors. You need a unique selling proposition (USP) that sets you apart from your buffet that no one else does? Do you have free transportation to a destination that others charge for? Be sure to let readers know. If your customer service has earned awards that none of your competitors have won, play that up in all of your marketing materials. That’s a great USP right there!

Mistake 5: Using text only. You have to use photos in a tourism brochure. There’s just no way around it. People want to see where they’re going. They want to envision themselves at the destination. You know the old cliché about what a picture is worth; clichés are clichés because they are true. Don’t make this important mistake. This could be crucial to your sales, so always include a photo.