Have you ever received leaflets, brochures, notebooks, or even calendars with a brand’s name on it? Those are part of what we call as marketing collateral, and the examples above are among some of the most popular collaterals. But what is it exactly, and why is marketing collateral important?
In short, marketing collateral is media and materials used for the purpose of sales and marketing activities. According to Harvard Business Review, it was originally created by marketing side in a firm “to help the sales force attract customers and close sales”. Collaterals can help sales in their job by supporting sales pitch.
Some of the types that can help support sales include presentation slides, proposals, as well as fact sheets about products or even video explainer.
Besides sales, marketing collateral can also help marketing team in their branding efforts. Physical form of collaterals is probably one of the most common ones. However, it has also evolved in to digital forms. Business has been utilizing this form heavily not to only sell their products but also buidl the brand.
For example, brochure usually contains basic information about a business and what it offers. Image and graph are also usually present in brochure to further represent the brand. Case study, white paper, and portfolio are also among the most-employed collaterals for branding. Both forms can offer insight into how the business do their business, as well as their leadership.
In addition, digital forms of marketing collateral can also be utilized. Blog posts can gain awareness and traffic to website, or if you intend on giving out educational material, some businesses have now opted to release e-book because it can showcase “the company’s expertise in the industry or field. Newsletter and automated emails can also be an option and can suit both sales and marketing efforts.