Sunday 26 August 2012

10 POINTS TO CONSIDER WHILE DESIGNING A BROCHURE


ILLUSTRATED WITH EXAMPLES
(Examples are taken from copyright materials on internet; therefore it may be fine to view these examples but may not be appropriate to copy or to use them. Analysis of these examples are views of the author and may not necessarily be in line with views of the owners of the examples)  
Considerations on Brochure Design are specific to the purpose of the brochure. However, here is an attempt to put up some important points one may in general like to consider while planning to design a brochure.


1.    Clear and unambiguous depiction of the Theme


A good brochure should convey the theme in the clear and unambiguous way. Following examples illustrate the point:-

Examples:-        
 
 
The above brochure of Phillips Taylor Brown (http://www.ptb.co.uk/) seems to demonstrate the theme of the IT Support Services company as something meaning to be : "Seamless Synchronization with Client (Technologies) to yield Enhanced Performance following the Industry Standard Best Practices"
 
       Theme appears to be something like: 'Committed for the sake of Nature'
 
        Theme appears to be:close to 'Save Precious Water'

2.    Emphasis on Visuals

 
In many good brochures, much of the message is conveyed by visuals, only little written text is used to precisely put the key points and to display critical information needed by target audience.
 
 
Example:-
 

3.    Catchy Tag Lines


In general brochures contain catchy tag lines to give the message in short and effective way. In the following art related brochure, a few tag lines suggest about - what exactly the art is going to make the target audience feel like?
Example:-

i. http://www.behance.net/gallery/Saint-Louis-Ballet-Company-aABallet-Is-Here/756265

Tag Lines:
Ballet is here, see where we can take you..... 

Ballet is passion.... Summer Season
Ballet is Adventure, Novelty, Prestige, Invention, Passion.....

Above Tag Lines, seems to convey - "Taking Ballet Dance lovers to a different world, where they will explore new horizons in dancing and have a fulfilling experience"

4.    Display of promoters, associated groups, accredited certificates

 
Presence of ‘Logos of Associated Groups’ are prominently displayed in good brochures to highlight the groups supporting the cause . Display of certifications adds to credibility and quality. This can be seen in the following examples....
Examples:
    (Select 'Full Screen' options)
 

5.    Showcase of Excellence / Show Unique Attributes

 
Generally Brochures Showcase the Excellence through highlighting key points expected to be appreciated by target audience like -> Unique Attributes / Wider Reach / Progressive Excellence / Achievements / Progress / Growth / Evolution / How things got shaped, what lies ahead…..
Examples:
 
 

6.    Professional Photography


Good use of photography can play a critical role in brochure design. At times professionally taken Pictures (and at times Use of Black and White Pictures or a Meaningful Painting) can create a big impact…
Examples:
Good Use of Black and White Photography, Painting and meaningful Picture of ancient devine sculpture in Yoga related Brochure:-
i. http://www.dakinigraphics.com/port_coll_yoga.htmii

Good use of photography:
ii. http://queenslandballet.com.au/assets/files/Attend/QB_Season_2012_Brochure.pdf              

7.    Brochure with Pocket


Brochure with Pockets are considered to be much popular with the audience / Pockets also facilitate providing a related CD/DVD / Feedback form…. 
Example:
i. http://www.stevenjoniak.com/hsbc-del-sorbo-group-brochure/hsbc-brochure2/

8.    Brochure Folding Styles


Brochure Folding Styles should also be considered among other attributes of Brochure Design
Example:
i. http://www.essence.co.in/brochure_1.html

9.    Cover Page and Background Images


A self explanatory Cover Page and an attractive Background Images can make a big difference.
Examples:

Background:-
i. http://ringvemedia.com/
ii. http://www.123rf.com/stock-photo/brochure_background.html

Cover Page:-
i. http://bruceblackburn.com/development/epfl_standards/images/brochurecovers.png

10.    Internet Presence in Contact Details


Expectations for internet presence are high from net savvy audience. It may be good to have complete contact details explicitly showing presence on the internet, which may include:-
i)              E-mail
ii)             Web-Site
iii)            Social Networking sites like - Pinterest / Twitter / Facebook / LinkedIn
iv)            Blog


(ALL THE WEB-SITES MENTIONED IN THE POSTING WERE LAST ACCESSED ON 26 AUG 2012)

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Monday 20 August 2012

HOW ABOUT A UNIVERSITY OF FINE ARTS IN RAIPUR?

Sharing the Business Plan for 'University of Fine Arts in India' (proposed location - Raipur, Chhattisgarh). This is purely an academic work in the area of social entrepreneurship, which was submitted in the year 2010 as an assignment for course 'ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND GENDER' (ME2808 Entrepreneurship and Gender 7.5 credits) conducted by KTH, Stockholm. If you like the idea, please feel free to share it on your website or blog. Please do not put the business plan on any other server or provide a direct PDF download.

THE IDEA:

The business plan is to start a “University of Fine Arts” in the city of Raipur, India. This non-profit earning initiative is aimed at facilitating formal education in the area of Fine Arts in the Chhattisgarh region of India. Establishment of the university will help the cause of promoting awareness for different forms of human expression among residents of Chhattisgarh. It will also encourage a much focused study on way of lives of different tribes residing in remote areas of Chhattisgarh.

Art is a medium to express human emotions. Different forms of artistic expressions play key role in bringing sensitive social issues in public domain in true spirit of communicating the reality. Therefore, they present problems from perspectives, which are quite different from those being propagated through other accessible media (like electronic and print media) by influential agencies (may even include propaganda by different governments) for vested interests.

India is an ancient civilization trying hard to synchronize with the advanced countries in the on-going rapid changes sweeping across the globe. It is encountering many problems in different spheres. Democracy in India can be called a “Functional Anarchy” (as termed by John Kenneth Galbraith long back) to express the extent of irregularities in its governance and public administration. Identity politics, corruption, inequality and nepotism are not allowing  representative social leadership to evolve. Indian society is highly fragmented in terms of social status and heavily divided on caste lines. In remote areas, many tribal communities are endangered to extinction and so are their traditional art forms. Crimes against women are consistently rising in India. India has a very poor record in gender equality (in 2009 it has been ranked poorly at 114th position). India is also lagging in other indices of human development. On the other hand, Naxal movement (an extremist movement in favor of communist school of thoughts) is fast catching up in different parts of the country, especially in the state of Chhattisgarh. Thus, a need for an honest and effective medium to express problems from different perspectives appears evident. Working towards developing an infrastructure for promoting art form as expressions of public voice could be one of the best possible ways to harmonize different sections of society with governance. It will help in maintaining critical equilibrium among different forces by accommodating the un-heard off voice, public voice, government voice and the voice of international community. This will be instrumental in making the democracy function in sensible way thus contributing to an inclusive and sustainable growth.

On the other hand, lead by the encouraging progress in economic front, developments in last couple of decades have brought about unprecedented changes in social order in India. Despite deeply rooted traditional values, the vibrant population of this culturally diverse country has by and large reacted positively to the changes. A multi-dimensional transitioning process has been underway, which will eventually result in an evolution. However, there has not been any significant change in the field of formal education. To meet with the demands of emerging knowledge based industries, formal education is generally supplemented by external trainings mostly offered through training institutes. Highly regulated education system needs reforms to be able to come up with institutions matching world standards. Moreover, there is a need for creating infrastructure to support education in those areas of academic excellence which may not be directly useful to be absorbed by existing industrial set up but which have deep association with society and with development of mankind.

Current educational environment is conducive for establishment of world class University for faculties of Fine Arts. There are many reasons to support this. First is educational reforms are round the corner. Secondly, there are not many schools of Fine Arts in India. Thirdly, there are clear evidences supporting an inclination of youth towards diverse areas of studies including Fine Arts. Fourthly, with rising standard of living of the middle class, most parents are now in a position to financially support students for higher studies. Finally, on-going rapid development is opening numerous avenues in all the fields both at home and abroad. Thus, there is good possibility for many avenues of livelihood getting opened for scholars of Fine Arts.


The Business Plan can be accessed at:-
BUSINESS PLAN - UNIVERSITY OF FINE ARTS IN INDIA


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