How can you be sure that your annual reports get attention for all the right reasons? This type of document is a powerful promotional tool that helps you celebrate your successes, attract new customers and appease stakeholders. As such, it is imperative that your reports are produced to the highest quality possible. A rushed, poorly printed or badly designed report can end up undoing all the hard work you have completed over the course of the financial year. A professionally produced report, on the other hand, allows you to show your customers and stakeholders what you have achieved in a way that encourages future business.

 

To help you ensure that your annual reports hit the mark, we have put together a few tips to keep in mind. These tips will help you plan, design and print the very best reports for your business.

 

How to Create Enticing Annual Reports

 

Some things to consider when planning annual reports for your company include the following:

 

·         Choose fonts carefully. Fonts can make all the difference to how easily your reports are read. While some fonts are suitable for corporate documents, others should never be used in an important document such as a stakeholder report. Use clear open fonts rather than fancy scripts that may not be as easy to ready when your reports are printed. Remember that the final printed document may look different to the document you are working on from your computer. To get an idea of how to use fonts correctly, consider the tips on the importance of using the right font.

 

·         Make sure it is highly visual. Choose your images and colours carefully, too. Visuals are essential with this type of document. You will be able to include tables, graphs, and infographics to support your data, but make sure that you don’t try to cram in every single possible visual. Instead, aim for a balance between text, headers, and imagery. This will make your report interesting to read, with a structure that can be easily absorbed without the eye glazing over from blocks of solid text.

 

·         Streamline your narrative. On that note, it is vital to have a clearly outlined narrative. What is your primary goal for your report? Are up updating shareholders at an end of year meeting? Do you plan to use this report to pitch new clients? What are the main points you want to focus on in the report? There is no point to having an abundance of data if it has no direct correlation to your goals.

 

·         Invest in professional design. The last thing you want stakeholders to think is that you could not be bothered to create a quality report. While you may have plenty of ideas on how you want your report to look, make sure that you do not attempt to do everything yourself. There are a number of risks involved in designing your own reports. Unless you have an in-house design team that has ample experience and expertise in corporate material and design, you may end up losing stakeholders if your report looks unprofessional or amateur.

 

·         Print reports professionally. That also means investing in professional printing as well. You could have the best report design in the world, only to lose respect from a poor quality print result. Choose a trusted printer who is able to print company reports in Durban using the best possible paper, ink, and process. This will ensure that your report is polished, flawless and ready to do its job.

 

Ready to find out more about printed corporate materials? We offer design and printing services to suit your needs and budget. Contact Minuteman Press Pinetown for a quote on annual company reports in Durban.