The layout of a brochure is critical for receiving the results you desire. A brochure printing piece has to be readable to maintain the attention of your audience, which is why an effective layout could be argued to be the most important part of designing and printing brochures. Here are some steps that you can follow for making an effective layout for your brochures.

 ·       Use full justification - Fully justified text makes your text line up evenly at the end of each line, but this can create a problem of irregular gaps in lines. Use tracking and hyphens to avoid this excess white space.

·       No or small indents - With full justification, there is no need to indent the first line of every paragraph. If you just can't bring yourself to do away with indentation, then keep it to one or two spaces at the most.

·       Wrap text around images - Make sure that the text wraps evenly around any images you place on the page. Use the "tight" setting in the Format Picture menu box.

·       Column alignment - If using columns in your brochure printing, then make sure the space between your columns is approximately the same as the margins along the edge of the panel.

·       Consistency - Use the same text formatting and alignment throughout your brochure to increase readability.

 ·       Contrast - Use size, color, a drop shadow, or font style to help the headlines and subheadings stand out from the body text.

·       Drop caps - Although single column text is generally not desired because it reduces readability, when you absolutely need to include single-column text then incorporate drop caps. Drop caps lead the reader to the next block of text.

·       Sans serif fonts - If you would like to use a sans serif font in your brochure printing, reserve this type of font for headlines only, since it is difficult to read at smaller sizes and in long blocks of text.

 ·       Use graphic lines - Divide each spread of your brochure into quarters, or more if you want to be more precise. Notice if each section contains the same "weight" or amount of visuals.

·       Sections - If a section of the divided page layout contains more elements than another, simply rearrange the layout so that each section contains approximately the same amount of visuals, whether text or images.

·       Alignment - Also check the alignment of your brochure printing elements for visual appeal horizontally as well as vertically. Make sure that columns are evenly spaced within the vertical halves. Balance the amount of visual elements on the top of the page and bottom of the page.

 ·       Legend - Informational graphics, such as bar graphs or statistical charts, give readers a visual explaining your text. Make sure that the graphic is clear by placing a legend explaining the bars of the graphs, for instance.

·       Captions - When appropriate, place captions at the bottom of graphics explaining the purpose of the visual.

·       Text graphic - Place additional information, such as tips or interesting facts, in a box to separate it from your body text in the brochure. Avoid too many boxes, though, as this can distract readers from other pertinent information.

·       3D Effects - Even informational graphics can be used to create depth in your brochure printing piece. Overlap elements of the image with the headline, for instance.

·       Icons - Use icons to alert readers to extra or important information, such as extra facts or extra benefits associated with your offer. For instance, a red arrow can point to any lines containing information you want to be sure your readers see.