The Flyer Was Lovely. Shame Nobody Had Finished the Offer.

Before the flyer, the offer needs a price, an audience and a buying path that actually works.

“Can you make us a flyer?”

Of course. What’s going on it?

The price is still being discussed. There are two possible start times. Someone has suggested a discount, although nobody is entirely sure who qualifies. The booking link will follow.

The flyer, however, is urgent.

So we begin designing around decisions nobody has made. The gaps become emails. The emails become revisions. By version seven, three people have strong opinions about burgundy.

I have strong opinions about a gin and tonic.

A few questions before we choose a font

Who is this for? What are they getting? What does it cost? How do they buy it?

These seem like straightforward questions until you ask them in a meeting where everyone thought they were approving a poster.

Suddenly, there’s quite a lot to discuss.

The advertised price doesn’t include everything in the photograph. The person taking bookings is away that week. The QR code goes to the homepage, where visitors can enjoy a short archaeological expedition to find the event.

Meanwhile, someone asks whether we could make the logo bigger.

I’ve spent enough years in marketing to know that asking these questions early saves a great deal of work later. It gives the customer a clearer decision and gives the team a fighting chance of delivering what we’ve promised.

It also reduces the number of emails marked “FINAL,” which is a modest but worthwhile contribution to civilization.

Lovely photographs. Quite a lot of homework.

Take a fictional business selling holiday dessert packages.

The photographs are gorgeous. The social post says, “Now taking holiday orders!” Customers are invited to message for details.

And message they do.

What’s included? How many does it serve? What does it cost? Can I collect on Christmas Eve? Do you deliver? Is a deposit required?

The owner spends the evening answering the same questions individually. Some people order. Others go quiet halfway through, possibly because buying pudding has become a small administrative role.

Now imagine the same post with the package contents, serving size, price, order deadline, pickup arrangements and one clear way to order.

The customer can make a decision. The owner can get back to making desserts.

There may even be time to sit down.

Five things to settle before opening Canva

I’d put these on a short brief before anyone starts designing.

• 1. Who is this for? Be specific enough to guide the message. A family ordering dessert for Christmas dinner has different questions from an office manager buying gifts for twenty clients. “Everyone” is an ambitious audience for a business with a $12 advertising budget and half a Tuesday.
• 2. What exactly are they getting? Explain the offer in ordinary language. Quantities, inclusions, eligibility and any limits that could affect the decision. If the photograph shows the deluxe package and the price is for the basic one, we’re storing up a conversation nobody will enjoy.
• 3. What does it cost? Give the price where you can. If the work needs a quote, explain what determines it and how to get one. Customers can understand variable pricing. They shouldn’t need to establish diplomatic relations to obtain it.
• 4. What should they do next? Choose the main action: order, book, register, call or request a quote. Then try it on your phone. Follow the link. Complete the form. Check the confirmation. Preferably before paying to send several hundred other people through it.
• 5. Who is answering? Decide who receives the inquiry, when they’ll respond and who covers when they’re unavailable. “Someone checks the inbox” is a sentence that deserves further investigation.

The useful work is often before the visible work

A finished flyer is easy to point to. So is a new website or a scheduled email.

The conversation that uncovered the pricing problem is less photogenic. So is checking that an order reaches the right person, or establishing who can approve a refund.

But those details shape what happens when someone responds.

They also make the creative work better. Once the offer is clear, you can spend your time making it appealing instead of squeezing another qualification into six-point type.

You can launch with more confidence, explain the offer consistently and learn something useful from the response.

That’s a decent return on asking a few mildly inconvenient questions.

Before your next promotion, ask someone unfamiliar with it to walk through the buying process. Give them the information you plan to publish and see where they hesitate.

Fix those gaps while the campaign is still a draft.

The flyer can wait until the offer makes sense.

It will still be lovely. It might even sell something.