How to Convert Your Physical Brochure into a Digital Format

Don’t get stuck in the past.

If you want to learn how to convert your physical brochure into a digital format, we’re the design team for you.

Paper brochures don’t align with what a lot of consumers are looking for in businesses: they’re not sustainable, nor are they overly practical.

So how can you be more forward-thinking? Let’s find out.

Transitioning from Physical to Digital

Why make the switch?

The answer is remarkably straightforward.

Eco-friendly: Eliminate the need for paper, printing and transportation and contribute to a more sustainable planet. Align with consumer values and up your brand’s street cred.
Cost-Effective: Going digital slashes expenses associated with consumables and gets rid of shipping and distribution costs. Your budget can be redirected to more strategic marketing efforts.
Easy Sharing: With a few clicks, you can instantly share your brochure with a global audience. Email, social media, websites, and document-sharing channels allow a wider reach.
Interactivity: Embedded hyperlinks and multimedia enhance the effectiveness of your marketing materials and keep readers engaged, reducing your brochure’s bounce rate.
Real-World Inspiration: By taking inspiration from other businesses’ success stories, yours can start a journey towards a more efficient and eco-conscious marketing strategy.

Getting Started with Digitisation

The Tools

Choosing the best software or tools is your first step to successfully convert your physical brochure into digital.

Software Selection:

The choice of software is critical.

Opt for options like Adobe Acrobat, Microsoft Word, or specialised brochure software like Lucidpress.

Adobe Acrobat provides a versatile platform for creating and editing PDFs.
Microsoft Word is an excellent choice for text-heavy brochures.

On the other hand, dedicated brochure software offers templates and design features tailored for brochure creation.

Carefully consider your specific needs when making this choice, ensuring it aligns with your objectives.

Compatibility: Ensure the selected software is compatible with your hardware and operating system. Check for any system requirements and compatibility issues, as they can affect the quality of your digitisation process.
Training and Familiarisation: Invest time in becoming proficient with the chosen software. Many platforms offer tutorials, guides, and online courses to help you maximise their features. Training is invaluable in ensuring a smooth transition from physical to digital.

Prepare Your Physical Brochures

Before you convert your physical brochure into digital, make sure you do all the necessary prep work.

Inspect for Damage: Look for any blemishes, creases, or stains that might affect the scanning process. If you find any, consider whether they can be corrected or if a replacement is needed.
Clean and Repair: Remove as many surface-level imperfections as best as you can. Gently clean away stains or marks and make sure the content remains unharmed.
Sorting and Cataloging: Make sure you have a clear understanding of the order and placement of pages and content. It helps in keeping track of your materials during and after the digitisation process.

Set Clear Objectives

Audience and Goals: Who are you trying to reach, and what message are you conveying? Establish clear goals for the digital format—whether it’s to inform, persuade, or inspire your audience.
Functionality and Features: Will it be a simple representation of the physical version, or do you envision additional interactivity, multimedia, and navigation elements? Identifying your desired features will guide the design and digitisation process.
Distribution Strategy: Outline how you intend to distribute the digital brochure. Which platforms will you use for sharing, and what channels will connect you with your target audience? A well-defined distribution strategy ensures your digital brochure reaches the right audience.

The Digitisation Process

Scanning and Capturing Content

The first step involves capturing the content from your physical brochures.

High-Quality Scanner: High-res scanners are essential for preserving the details in images and text. It’s a pivotal step in maintaining the overall quality of your brochure.
Image Resolution: A higher resolution results in sharper and more detailed images, making them clearer and more engaging. Image quality should be a focus.
Text Clarity: While scanning, make sure the text remains crisp and readable. Pay attention to text size, font consistency, and any potential blurriness that could affect readability.

Quality Assurance

The digitisation process isn’t just about scanning; it’s about preserving and improving the quality of your content.

Enhancing Scanned Images: It’s common for scanned images to require some post-processing. Image enhancement techniques can help correct issues like colour imbalances, brightness, and contrast.
Straightening Text: Make sure text remains aligned; any misalignment should be corrected to maintain a professional and well-organised appearance.
Correcting Imperfections: Even the most well-preserved brochures may have minor imperfections. These could include dust particles, small stains, or slight imperfections.

Converting to Digital Format

With your scanned content in optimal condition, the next step is to convert it into a digital format.

The preferred format for digital brochures is PDF, known for its universal compatibility and user-friendly features:

PDF Universality: PDF (Portable Document Format) is an industry-standard format for digital documents. It ensures that your digital brochure can be accessed and viewed on various devices, operating systems, and software applications. This universal compatibility is essential for reaching a broad audience.
Interactive Elements: While preserving the original content, consider adding interactive elements like hyperlinks, buttons, and multimedia components to enhance the user experience. These features empower your audience to engage with your content, click on links to learn more, or view multimedia elements.

Design and Interactivity

Enhance with Multimedia

One of the strengths of digital brochures lies in their capacity for multimedia elements.

Videos: Videos can convey your message more effectively than text or images alone. Whether it’s a product demonstration or a behind-the-scenes tour, videos add depth and authenticity to your digital brochure.
Audio Clips: Including audio clips, such as narrations, interviews, or background music, can enhance the overall experience when you can convert your physical brochure into digital.
Image Galleries: An image gallery allows you to showcase products, services, or your business’s story in a compelling way. Users can scroll through a collection of images to explore what you offer or experience your brand visually.

Interactive Features

It’s a key way to keep your audience engaged and navigating your brochure.

Hyperlinks: These links can direct readers to relevant web pages, further information, or specific sections within the brochure. Hyperlinks encourage exploration and enable readers to access more in-depth content with a simple click.
Buttons: These can serve various purposes, such as “Learn More,” “Contact Us,” or “Get Started.” They streamline the navigation process and encourage specific actions, helping your audience connect with your brand or product.

Design for Digital

Designing a digital brochure requires a distinct approach compared to traditional printed materials.

Here are some essential design considerations:

Font and Typography: Prioritise readability and consider using web-safe fonts that maintain their appearance across different devices and platforms. Consistency in font choices and text formatting ensures a cohesive and professional look.
Colour Scheme: Opt for a colour scheme that aligns with your brand’s visual identity and is visually appealing in a digital format. Consistency in colour usage fosters a strong brand presence.
Layout and Organisation: Avoid clutter and aim for a logical flow. Ensure that content is well-structured, with headings, subheadings, and clear sections. Use visual cues to guide the reader through the brochure.

Optimising for Digital Viewing

The first step in optimising your digital brochure for digital viewing is configuring the PDF settings.

This step is pivotal for ensuring that your brochure appears as intended on screens and when printed:

Page Size: Select an appropriate page size that suits digital screens. Common sizes include A4 or letter size. Keep in mind that digital devices come in various dimensions, so aim for a standard size that offers a balanced viewing experience.
Resolution: Adjust the resolution of your PDF to enhance image and text clarity on screens. A resolution of 300 DPI (dots per inch) is suitable for print, but for digital viewing, a lower resolution (e.g., 72 DPI) ensures images load quickly without compromising quality.
Orientation: Determine the orientation of your brochure pages. While portrait orientation is conventional for reading, consider landscape for content that benefits from a wider display.

File Compression

Compressing your PDF file is crucial to enhance its digital performance:

File Size Reduction: File compression reduces the size of your PDF, making it faster to load, transmit, and share across digital platforms. Smaller files are user-friendly and reduce waiting times, ensuring a smoother user experience.
Balancing Quality: While compressing, strike a balance between file size and image/text quality. Modern compression methods allow you to reduce file size without significant loss of quality.

Compatibility

Ensuring compatibility across various devices and platforms is essential for broad accessibility:

Cross-Device Compatibility: Test your digital brochure on different devices, such as desktop computers, laptops, tablets, and smartphones. Ensure that the layout and content adapt smoothly to varying screen sizes and resolutions.
Operating Systems: Confirm that your digital brochure functions well on different operating systems, such as Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android. Compatibility with these systems broadens your reach and ensures that your content is accessible to a diverse audience.
Web Browsers: Consider how your brochure appears in different web browsers. Compatibility with these browsers guarantees that your content loads correctly and maintains its visual appeal.

Distributing and Sharing Digital Brochures

SEO Optimisation

Enhance the discoverability of your digital brochure by optimising it for search engines:

Keywords: Identify and incorporate relevant keywords related to your content. These keywords should align with what your target audience is searching for. Strategic keyword placement in headings, subheadings, and body text can improve your brochure’s search ranking.
Meta Descriptions: Craft compelling meta descriptions that provide a concise overview of your digital brochure. These descriptions appear in search engine results and influence click-through rates. A well-structured meta description can entice users to explore your content.
Alt Text for Images: If your digital brochure includes images, optimise them with descriptive alt text. Alt text not only enhances accessibility but also contributes to image search rankings.

Measure Impact

Continuously monitoring and assessing the performance of your digital brochures is essential for ongoing improvement:

Analytics Tools: Utilise web analytics tools, such as Google Analytics, to track the engagement and reach of your digital brochures. Monitor metrics like page views, click-through rates, and user demographics to gain insights into your audience’s behaviour.
Conversion Tracking: Implement conversion tracking to determine whether your digital brochure effectively leads users to take desired actions, such as filling out contact forms, making inquiries, or subscribing to your services.
Feedback and Surveys: Collect feedback from your audience through surveys or direct inquiries. Learn from their experiences with your digital brochure and use their insights to make enhancements.

Final Thoughts

If you want to move towards a more sustainable business, or you need to cut down on costs somewhere, convert your physical brochure into digital ones.

Not only does it save you extra worry in the future, but it also allows you to update them with corrected stats or facts.

Take a look into it and see what you think.

Or you could start over and get a design team to create a new start for you.