In the age of the digital world, creating something like an annual report sounds like it should move to digital as much as everything else. But there’s a reason why printing companies are still in existence. Business marketing campaigns are still printing direct mail brochures that increase business as much or more than digital marketing does. Does it really matter then if you create a professionally designed annual report from a graphic designer?
You might be surprised at the advantages in presenting your annual report through the printed word.
Telling a Story Through Your Annual Report
The best approach to creating a professionally printed annual report is by doing it in book form. Creating a full color booklet that’s given out to shareholders, trustees and employees can give a detailed picture of what you did right for the year. It also can give some answers as to what went wrong so everybody will know about it and can work toward never letting it happen again.
If you think you can’t tell a story with an annual report, consider the different angles for using both text and graphics in attractive ways.
Memorable Covers
The cover of your annual report book can be a real work of art if you have a real vision behind your company. If you’ve ever seen professionally printed annual reports from famous corporations, many of them incorporated colorful pictures on the cover that represented the company brand. Whatever your brand might be, consider utilizing your logo and other associated images in creative ways. Making it stand out will compel everyone to open it immediately and peruse details of things usually considered dull.
An annual report with a memorably artful cover may also be stored as keepsakes for decades. Especially if your company becomes famous, those annual reports may someday end up on eBay.
Colorful Graphs, Tables and Charts
Making financial statements look compelling to readers will be the true success behind your printed annual report booklet. After all, the bulk of the content will be showing statistics in how your products sold, what demographics bought them and how much actual net profit your company made. Creating brilliantly colored graphs, tables and charts that look impressive will impress everyone involved with the company.
The same can be done away from the book form and into making larger printed charts for display at an annual report meeting. These can be just as effective when blown up on a large monitor as they are in book form. Your only advantage with the book form is that those associated with your company can take their time admiring the art work involved.
Using Photography on the Inside of the Book
If you didn’t use a photograph on the cover of the book and only graphics, consider using full color photography on the inside. A graphic design team can help incorporate appropriate photography that your company takes, including portraits of company members and any shots of the corporate headquarters.
Sometimes adding photographs only offhandedly related to your company can add artistic integrity. Whether it’s a scenic shot with your company’s general aesthetic in mind, you’ll create a psychological response of positivity with an artful design.
General Response
When you create that overall feeling of well-being over the company, it also fosters better performance by employees. Making numbers and statistics look attractive in a business can truly work that way and motivate everyone involved to keep things at a supreme level. Putting an artistic spin on the annual report also shows shareholders that the company has a real sense of quality and will likely keep that frame of mind every year.
References:
http://www.tigerpress.com/annual-report-printing.asp
