Choose a brochure design agency in the UAE by asking six questions before you compare quotes: who writes the copy, how many concepts you will see, who owns the files, whether they can handle Arabic, whether the files will be print-ready, and what happens after the first draft. The answers tell you more than a portfolio does.
Write your own brief before you contact anyone
Most disappointing brochure projects go wrong before the agency is even chosen. The client sends a one-line request, three agencies each imagine a different job, and the quotes that come back cannot be compared. Spend half an hour on a one-page brief and send the same page to everyone.
It only needs to cover:
- What the brochure is for and who will read it
- Roughly how many pages or panels, and the size if you know it
- Languages: English only, Arabic only, or both
- What you already have: text, photographs, logo files, brand guidelines
- What you do not have and need help with
- Whether it will be printed, sent as a PDF, or both
- The date you need it in your hands
If you are not sure about sizes and folds, our guide to brochure sizes and folds for printing in Dubai will help you fill in that line.
Six questions to ask every agency
1. Who writes the copy?
Some agencies design only and expect final text from you. Others include a copywriter. Neither is wrong, but you need to know which you are getting. If writing is included, ask whether the writer will interview someone at your company or simply tidy up what you send. Ask who checks spelling and grammar at the end, too.
2. How many concepts will we see?
A concept is a distinct design direction, usually shown as a cover and one or two inside spreads. Some studios present two or three and let you choose. Others present one considered direction and refine it. What matters is that you know the number in advance and understand what happens to the ones you reject.
3. Who owns the files at the end?
This is the question clients most often forget, and it causes the most trouble a year later. Ask plainly: when the project is paid for, do we receive the editable source files, the fonts or font licences needed to open them, and the right to change the design ourselves or through another supplier? Ask about image licences as well. If the agency bought stock photographs for your brochure, find out whose name the licence is in and whether it covers reprints. Get the answers in writing as part of the quote.
4. Can you work in Arabic?
An Arabic brochure is its own layout, and treating it as the English one with the text swapped produces a poor result. The page order reverses, the layout mirrors, and the typeface has to be chosen to sit well beside the English one. Ask who translates, who typesets, and whether a native Arabic reader proofs the final PDF. Our article on bilingual Arabic and English design explains what to look for.
5. Will the files be print-ready?
A design that looks fine on screen can still be rejected by a printing press. Print-ready means the file has the correct colour mode, bleed, crop marks, image resolution and embedded fonts, and is set up for the fold you have chosen. Ask whether the agency will speak directly to your printer to confirm the specification. Ask also whether they print. Some do, some arrange it through a partner, and some, like us, supply files only. All three are workable if you know who is responsible when the printed colour comes out wrong.
6. What happens after the first draft?
The first draft is the start of the real work. Find out how many rounds of revisions are included and what counts as a round. Is a new paragraph of text a revision or a change of brief? What happens if your managing director sees the nearly finished brochure and wants a different direction? Ask how you are expected to send comments, and how quickly each revised version comes back.
Look at their work the right way
A portfolio is useful, but only if you question it. Attractive covers are easy to find. What you want to see is the inside of a brochure: how a page with a lot of text was handled, how a table of specifications was set, how photographs of ordinary quality were made to look decent.
Ask for two or three complete PDFs, and try to get one from a business like yours and one from a completely different field. Then ask what the client supplied and what the agency created. If a brochure is only part of what you need, check that the same team can produce the related pieces, such as a product catalogue, so your documents match.
Warning signs
None of these proves an agency is bad. Two or three together should make you slow down.
- A quote sent without a single question. If they did not ask about pages, languages or content, they are guessing at the work.
- Vague answers about source files. “We will see at the end” usually means no.
- A portfolio of covers only. Or work shown as mock-ups that you cannot open as a real PDF.
- Arabic handled by “a friend”. Or by an online translation tool.
- Unlimited revisions. It sounds generous. In practice it often means no defined process, and projects that drag.
- Promises about results. A designer can make your brochure clear and good-looking. Nobody can promise the sales it will bring.
How to compare quotes fairly
Two quotes for “a brochure” can differ widely and both be reasonable, because they describe different amounts of work. Before you look at the totals, lay the quotes side by side and check that each one answers the same points.
- Is the page or panel count the same in each?
- Is copywriting included, or design only?
- How many concepts and how many revision rounds?
- Is Arabic included, and does that cover translation or only layout?
- Are stock images, illustrations or icons included, and who holds the licences?
- Are editable source files handed over?
- Is printing included, and if so on what paper and in what quantity?
- What is the delivery time, and from which starting point is it counted?
Where a quote is silent on a point, ask. Do not assume. Once the scope is level, the totals start to mean something, and you can weigh the difference against how much you trust each team to deliver. We have written separately about what drives design cost in Dubai if you want to understand why quotes vary.
Also compare how each agency behaved while quoting. Did they reply when they said they would, and did they ask sensible questions?
Where we fit, briefly
Since you may be assessing us with this same checklist, here are our own answers. Company Profile Design Agency is part of HelloPixels, working since 2012 with a team of 85 across offices in Dubai, Sharjah and Abu Dhabi. We design in Arabic and English, supply print-ready files and do not print. A first draft arrives within 48 hours of a complete brief, and quotes are given in AED once we have that brief. You can read about our brochure design service in Dubai or send us your one-page brief and put the six questions to us.
Frequently asked questions
Does the agency need to be based in the same emirate as us?
Not for the design itself. Briefs, drafts and comments move by email and video call, and most projects never need a visit. A local agency helps if you want someone to attend a photo shoot or check a printed proof at the press. What matters more is that they answer during your working hours and know UAE printers.
Should we ask agencies for a free sample design before choosing?
We would advise against it. Unpaid samples are made quickly, without a proper brief, and show you how an agency works when it is guessing. A better test is to look at finished brochures they have made for others, speak to the person who would run your project, and if you are still unsure, commission one small paid piece first.
What should we have ready before the first call?
Your one-page brief, your logo in a vector format, any brand guidelines, the text you have so far and a few brochures you like or dislike, with a sentence on why. Know who inside your company gives final approval. Projects slow down most when that person appears for the first time at the last stage.