Why doesn’t brochureware resonate

I’ve often wondered about the role PDF brochureware plays in the buying cycle. Its often a highly stylised document showing the products a company sells which can be a good guide but all to often it lacks the context, detail and engagement that pushes me to purchase rather than to continue my process of discovery leading to comparisons between that brand and others than I’ve also found. What stands one company apart from another when I’m reviewing these static product sheets?

With a keen eye on conversion I did some research of brochureware vs other forms of marketing. My findings about why brochureware are less effective than other mediums are below. 

No Personalisation: Companies are constantly searching for ways to build personalisation into their touchpoints with customers. Brochureware by their very nature are typically generic and do not provide a personalised experience for the reader, making it difficult for the reader to connect with the brand or product and making it impossible for you to show that you understand your customer and their needs.

Limited Ability to Showcase Products: PDF brochures are limited in their ability to showcase products and services in a compelling way, and often rely on text and images to convey information, which can be less effective than video or other dynamic forms of marketing. The ability to bring supporting information in at the right time to explain complex information really builds understanding.

Lack of Engagement: PDF brochures are typically static and do not provide a dynamic or interactive experience, making it difficult for potential customers to engage with the content. People retain 95% of the information they receive in a video in comparison to only 10% of the information they receive via text. When you need to stand out from your competitor and be front of mind PDF brochureware isn’t supporting this marketing need.

Limited Interactivity: PDF brochures do not provide the ability for potential customers to interact with the content, making it difficult for them to fully understand and engage with the products or services being offered. The customer only sees a static image rather than a video of how the product reacts/works/looks in a particular setting.

Difficulty Measuring Success: This is something I was particularly interested in because I always focus on measuring the success of campaigns and focusing budget on those areas that work. My research in this area showed that PDF brochures do not provide the ability to track the success of the marketing campaign, making it difficult to measure the effectiveness of the marketing efforts. You can track downloads and sometimes track who has downloaded the PDF and link this back to sales but too often its more of a lagging indictor and worse out of date PDFs are used which then forces the sales person to have to update the customer on whats currently available and try to realign expectations on availability and price.

In general, PDF brochures are less effective because they lack the engagement, interaction, and personalisation that potential customers are looking for in marketing materials.