Brochures vs. Capability Statements: The Who, What, When, Where, Why, and How
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Brochures and business capability statements are essential to a small business sales and marketing strategy. But what are the differences, and when is it best to use each? Let’s explore the who, what, when, where, why, and how of standard sales and marketing collateral.
Effective marketing and sales collateral is critical for supporting product or service sales.
Brochures vs. Capability Statements: Start With the Similarities
Both capability statements and brochures distribute information about your company for sales or marketing purposes. As such, sales professionals will use collateral to distribute product or service information to potential customers, share business information with prospective partners, and promote the business at conferences, engagements, and networking events.
Sales collateral, including brochures and capability statements, should have consistent branding, convey focused messaging, and align to accessibility standards.
Consistent Branding: Standard brand fonts, colors, logos, and visual elements ensure readers quickly recognize the company’s unique look.
Focused Messaging: Brochure copy should align with the company’s values and mission, furthering the brand’s narrative and supplementing other sales and marketing collateral.
Accessibility Standards: The brochure should adhere to accessibility standards for typography, color contrast, alt text (for digital copies), logical layouts, and well-written copy. For more information about creating accessible content, check out our resources here: Once Upon an RFP’s Accessibility Resource Guide.
Versatile Brochures for Sales and Marketing
Who Uses Brochures?
Sales and marketing professionals from all industries use brochures to promote a company’s products or services and target prospective buyers. Additionally, businesses, nonprofits, and public sector organizations use brochures to inform their audience about products, services, events, or opportunities.
Who Is the Audience?
Brochures cater to a broad audience and aim to engage potential clients.
What Is a Brochure?
Brochures are longer documents with high readability and branded visual elements to go with written sales and marketing content. As such, some essential components of a marketing brochure include:
When Do Businesses Use Brochures?
Sales and marketing professionals use brochures as collateral for networking events, trade shows, direct campaigns, product launches, promotion opportunities, and sales meetings.
Where Do Businesses Use Brochures?
Businesses can use brochures both digitally and in person. Digitally, a company might post a brochure on its website, send it to new email subscribers, attach it to client inquiries, or distribute a QR code that links directly to the brochure.
Otherwise, sales and marketing professionals use brochures for in-person purposes such as snail mail campaigns, printed copies for events, or collateral included with purchases.
Why Should a Business Have a Brochure?
Marketing brochures communicate and promote a company’s products, services, campaigns, programs, or events. Likewise, they intend to inform, engage, and persuade prospective buyers through brand awareness, acting as a tool to support sales efforts.
How Do Brochures Fit Into Marketing and Sales Strategy?
Brochures generate interest with compelling design and engaging content conveying features and benefits. Consequently, brochures usually contain only the highest-level selling points plus business contact information.
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The Power of a Capability Statement
Who Uses Capability Statements?
Small, medium, and large organizations use capability statements, including government contractors, nonprofits, service providers, and consultants. Furthermore, sales and marketing professionals from these businesses use capability statements to share information about the company.
Who Is the Audience?
Sales and marketing professionals share capability statements with prospective buyers, potential clients, government agencies, certifying entities, and grant or funding organizations.
What Is a Capability Statement?
Capability statements are typically shorter documents consisting of one to two pages. However, though capability statements are shorter documents, they are more text-heavy than brochures.
While brochures focus on marketing the company’s features and benefits, a capability statement conveys the company’s qualifications, information, expertise, and experience. Additionally, a capability statement should include NAICS and NIGP codes for businesses that serve government contracts.
Other content might include:
When Do Businesses Use Capability Statements?
Sales and marketing professionals use capability statements while bidding on contracts, attending networking events, conducting cold outreach, and crafting proposal responses.
Where Do Businesses Use Capability Statements?
Businesses distribute capability statements digitally and in person. Sales professionals might include a digital capability statement in an email introduction, a client follow-up, as a supplement to website content, or as a submission on a government procurement portal. Additionally, sales and marketing professionals might hand out printed capability statements at in-person events such as trade shows, industry days, networking events, and meetings.
Why Should a Business Have a Capability Statement?
Capability statements showcase a company’s strengths, offerings, credibility, and information. A well-crafted capability statement should display a wealth of information, including products and services, business entity information, and a concise business history. In just one or two pages, readers should understand the company’s features, what benefits those features offer, and what makes that company more appealing.
How Do Capability Statements Fit into Marketing and Sales Strategy?
Effective capability statements clearly state all company competencies and offerings instead of just the highlights. As such, capability statements tend to have fewer graphic design elements, focusing on conveying information instead of capturing attention.
Key Takeaways
In conclusion, brochures and capability statements are vital for marketing and sales professionals to communicate value. However, they cater to different audiences and serve various purposes. While marketing brochures engage a broad audience and convey information through branded messaging and visually appealing layouts, capability statements are concise, professional documents highlighting a company’s offerings, qualifications, history, and business entity information. Understanding these distinctions will help businesses tailor their marketing strategies effectively to meet their sales and marketing objectives.
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Emma Hegel-Kissinger CF APMP | Senior Proposal Consultant, Contributing Author
Emma merges compliance and creativity to develop dynamic, responsive content, transforming clients’ visions, messaging, and sales processes. Since 2020, she has supported Once Upon an RFP’s clients as a Proposal Writer and Manager for public (B2G) and private (B2B) sector procurement opportunities. Emma holds a Poynter Certificate in Editing from ACES: The Society for Editing and is APMP Foundation certified. She is passionate about crafting compelling, accessible, and inclusive copy for clients from all industries.
As a proud woman-owned and certified disability-owned business, Once Upon an RFP is committed to fostering a culture of inclusivity, acceptance, and support in a diverse world.