Annual report or annual pain?

Here are five keys for keeping your annual report project on track and on budget, based on our experiences with Cross, American Power Conversion, and Washington Trust.

 1. Get the CEO directly involved in the process.

Not always possible, but a huge plus if you can pull it off. Let’s face it, it’s the CEO’s book. It helps tremendously to interview him or her at outset for overall messaging points as well as to probe for likes and dislikes.

2. Use a digital recorder during interviews.

Essential. Annual reports usually require interviews with key executives within an organization. Use a recorder so you can play and replay your interview to make sure you get both the specifics and the gist.

3. Work with actual copy versus Greek.

While cover and page design concepts can precede your copy draft, it’s a good idea to nail down your report’s content

before you get into specific page designs. This will save time, money, and headaches by eliminating any unrealistic design recommendations.

4. Print 10K Word documents to PDFs and avoid Quark or InDesign.

The 10K portion of an annual report can dwarf the marketing section. Avoid reformatting it in a layout program, not to mention countless hours re-proofing, by exporting your approved Word document to PDF. The exported file will retain your formatting and be offset-printer friendly.

5. Line up fresh eyes for proofreading.

Your annual will need to be proofread multiple times. At every stage, it’s a good idea to have someone review it who has not seen it before

Take a look at our annual report portfolio.