Emilia Gette serves as a marketing associate at Workast, specializing in crafting innovative strategies to engage with the audience. With a focus on creativity and attention to detail, she contributes to driving impactful results across various marketing channels.
In the up-and-coming life of a startup, branding often takes a back seat to more urgent, sustaining tasks like product development and funding. But as new players, startups lack the brand trust of their established competitors and miss out on many of the same benefits. That’s because building a reputation from scratch requires consistent, clear communication and time, both of which are in short supply during the early stages.
Branded folders are a relatively inexpensive way to solve this problem. Within the sales and advertising arena, finding a way to speak volumes—and do so efficiently—in a small space is always a challenge. A branded folder organizes and visually displays marketing materials in a way that promotes your brand name. You essentially have a small space capable of displaying massive amounts of information.
A branded folder is more than just stock and ink—it’s what makes you unique from the other 4.7 million U.S. startups trying to make a name for themselves. The first and most obvious benefit of a branded folder is document carrying, but you’d be selling its features a bit short if that was your sole usage.
Custom folders have evolved to be multi-purposeful branding tools across all touchpoints—whether it’s your printed materials, website, social media, or trade show collateral—assuring your startup is easily recognizable from all vantage points. This consistency builds trust, and trust makes it easier for an audience or investor to remember and choose your brand.
In printing, just as in any industry, most tools of the trade lend themselves to digitalization. Embedded URLs, QR codes, social media handles and hashtags—these are all features that, when placed on a folder, encourage recipients to find, follow, and interact with the digital touchpoints of your brand. Whether strategically positioned on the front cover for easy visibility or on the back cover as a subtle call-to-action for those who’ve finished reading the contents, digital branding tools are simple to incorporate into any startup’s branded folder concept.
When designing, it helps to imagine your branded folder and website as one. In more ways than not, a folder behaves similarly to your average website. According to Vladimir Gendelman, founder of the commercial printing startup CompanyFolders.com, your presentation folder’s front cover is similar to a homepage in that both are the first point of reference for users.
Continuing with the metaphor, your contact information—whether it’s your startup’s physical address or phone number—relates to a site’s ‘contact us’ page; several stepped inserts navigate users in much the same way as the top navigation bar does; and case studies can mirror an online testimonials section, important social proof for all startups selling products.
Gendelman added that, just as a website organizes information to communicate your value proposition clearly, branded folders do the same in physical form. “By providing materials like product sheets, FAQs, and case studies, you empower clients to understand your services, align with your mission, and see the benefits of working with you—all in a format that feels tangible and personalized.”
There’s a throughline that connects most investors and stakeholders—mainly, they’re all looking for proof of concept (of you as business owners and of your company). Crafting a pitch package is one of the best ways to present everything you have to offer.
Included in your pitch package might be:
An executive summary: Typically the first document an investor or stakeholder encounters when opening a branded folder, it offers a concise overview of your startup, covering key details like your mission, projections, and immediate goals—consider it a snapshot of your business.
Market research and analysis: After reading the executive summary, you’re research provides hard data and insights to back up the claims you made, including finances, funding needs, and expected ROI.
Client testimonials or case studies: Equally important to your brand image, testimonials are social proof that your business offerings provide what they promise.
What makes the pitch package method especially compelling is that it caters to investors who appreciate detail and thoroughness. It reassures them that if the team can handle the details of a pitch so meticulously, they are likely to be just as thorough in managing the complexities of the business.
Whether you’re selling graphic design or granola bars, you should always be prepared to make the sale. If everything you need to make the sale is neatly organized in a presentation folder, you’re already most of the way there.
Often, the best folders include service sheets or rate cards—summaries that highlight key services, pricing options, or packages to give a quick overview of what you offer—and promotional flyers and special offers featuring limited-time discounts, event invitations, or exclusive deals to incentivize prospects to take action. Incorporating these in your folder addresses questions early on and shortens the sales cycle.
Additionally, including a physical touchpoint to your sales material may trigger a sense of reciprocity, which suggests that when someone receives something of value, they feel compelled to give something in return. You're giving prospects something tangible and valuable by providing them with a high-quality branded folder filled with useful content. This gesture can activate a subconscious desire to reciprocate, whether by continuing the conversation, giving your product a closer look, or even making a purchase.
At industry-specific trade shows—whether it’s technology, healthcare, or manufacturing—attendees are often decision-makers looking for innovative solutions. Efficiently meeting their needs requires a bit more tact than just handing out a branded folder with your logo (again, as a startup, you can’t simply rely on a brand name to sell your ideas, but you can sell an amazing presentation).
Starting with what’s inside your folder, business cards are a must-have for startups looking to connect to the public. Without your name and phone number, potential clients will likely not go through the effort of digging up your contact info, so including a pocket-size reminder serves just that purpose.
Adding a single brochure, or multiple, will put the focus on the individual projects or services you offer. Catalogs can include information on several products and services when toting multiple product brochures in a folder doesn’t make practical sense. Even sporting a little swag—like custom-printed stickers—within your folder’s design will help generate fun and excitement with your brand.
More than just a document carrier, what you really want in your branded folder is a business partner—one that makes the daily workflow easier while championing your brand in the process. You may only get one chance to impress a stakeholder or potential client, and a good business partner will go a long way in treating your startup like a definite article: as in, not a startup, but the startup to invest in.
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