Difference between a brochure and magazine

 

It may initially seem obvious what sets a brochure apart from a magazine, but from a design point of view, the line can be very fine.

1. Price [same]

For a design company, there’s not a huge difference in client fees at the early stages of design on either a brochure or magazine. This involves choosing fonts, colors, and images to suit.

Money is of course a major consideration for many companies. However, real value for money comes from creating a product that gives you good results.

2. Timing [different]

A magazine is an editorial product which by nature is something that’s produced on a regular basis and at some point is superseded by a new edition. Whereas a brochure is usually a single product that is timeless and has a long shelf life.

3. Brand [same]

A brochure may fall under the ‘brand guidelines’ of a company and therefore require some enforced rigidity in its design approach – though this can be said of some magazines too.

Often the most impressive design solutions evolve from when a designer is given free reign to try something new, so it’s important not to let the brand give too many constraints.

4. Tone of voice [different]

This will often depend on whether the publication is strongly corporate vs more people-focused.

A successful magazine at its heart should be people-focused. It doesn’t matter which industry you’re in, it should always be a case of ‘people first’ when considering both the written and visual approach.

5. White space [same]

This doesn’t literally mean ‘white’ space – it means the careful consideration of empty space to add impact to a design.

This is often most prevalent in brochure design, as brochures tend to use white space to draw the eye and focus on one theme