Company Profile and Brochure Design in Lebanon: Arabic-English Layouts, Files and What to Ask For

When a supplier, contractor or manufacturer in Lebanon wants to be taken seriously by a buyer they have not met, the document that travels is usually the company profile. It gets forwarded by email or WhatsApp to a procurement contact, a Gulf distributor or a bank, and it is read, or not read, without you in the room. That makes it one of the few pieces of design where a weak result costs you a meeting you never knew you lost.

This guide is for the owner or manager commissioning one: which kind of document you actually need, how a real Arabic-English layout works, what you must prepare before a designer starts, the files you should own at the end, and how to keep it up to date. It is about the document, not the logo; if you are still missing a brand identity, start with our guide to brand identity cost in Lebanon.

First decide which document you need

These are different jobs, and a designer will quote them differently.

A PDF company profile. A few pages, built to be sent by email or WhatsApp and read on a phone or a laptop. Most Lebanese companies need this one first.

A printed brochure. For meetings, exhibitions and visits. It needs print-ready files and a printer's requirements built in from the start.

A product catalog. Many items, each with a photo, a code and specifications. This is closer to a data-layout job than a design job, and a designer who is good at brand pages is not automatically good at it.

A one-page summary. Sometimes all you need is a single sheet that fits in a WhatsApp message. Do not pay for twenty pages when one will do.

Say which one you want, and how it will be used, in the brief. If what you need is an investor presentation rather than a corporate profile, see how to hire a pitch deck designer.

Bilingual layout is not a translation pasted next to the original

Many Lebanese companies want Arabic and English, and sometimes French, in one document. The way this is laid out changes the price and the result.

Two versions or one combined file. The simplest approach is a separate Arabic version and a separate English version, each laid out properly in its own direction. Combined files with facing pages or stacked text are harder to do well and usually cost more.

Arabic reads right to left, and the layout must follow. A proper Arabic page is not the English page mirrored by software. Reading order, alignment, the position of images and the flow of columns all need to be thought through for Arabic. Where a document opens like a book, the Arabic version turns pages from the other side.

Mixed lines need care. Arabic sentences often contain English brand names, product codes, phone numbers and figures. These can end up in the wrong order or with misplaced punctuation if the designer is not experienced with right-to-left text. Ask to see a sample page with your real content, not a template.

Fonts must support both scripts properly, and the licence must cover how you will use them.

Write each language natively. A profile translated word for word from English can sound stiff in Arabic, and the reverse is true too. If the text does not exist yet, it is often better to write the Arabic and English separately. When you have an existing text to translate, see how to hire an Arabic-English translator. Whoever proofreads the Arabic should be a native reader, not the designer.

Prepare the content before the designer starts

A designer arranges your material; they do not know your company. Late content is the main reason these projects run over. Before work starts, gather:

• The company facts: what you do, since when, where, how many people, which sectors you serve.
• Credentials you actually hold, such as certifications and memberships, with the documents to back them up. Do not list something you cannot show.
• A client or project list, but only with permission from the clients concerned.
• Photos you have the right to use, and a plan for shooting missing ones. Poor photos cannot be rescued by layout.
• Contact details in the form you want them to appear, in each language.
• The text itself, finished, in each language you want. If you need help with the words, our website copywriter page shows what professional copy typically costs on Furrsati.

A designer who has to invent placeholder text and then re-flow the layout when the real words arrive will charge for it, or the layout will suffer.

File size, print requirements and delivery

A PDF that will be sent by WhatsApp or email should be light enough to send. Ask for two versions: a compressed one for sending, and a high-quality one for print. A profile too heavy to attach will often not get opened.

A printed piece has technical requirements such as margins that allow for trimming, and the colour setup the printer expects. Get the specifications from your printer before the designer starts, not after the files are finished, and get a printer's quote at the same time so paper and quantity are decided together.

Own the files at the end

At handover you should hold:

• The editable source files (the design program's working files, not just PDFs).
• Both language versions, and any combined version.
• The fonts and images used, with their licences, or a list of what was used and where it came from.
• The colour values and the fonts named, so anyone can continue the design.

Without the source files, changing a phone number or adding a new project means paying to rebuild the document. Our guides on who owns delivered work and reviewing a logo or brand delivery go through what to ask for, and the menu design guide covers the same file-ownership logic for another kind of printed document.

Plan for updating it

A profile goes out of date: a new project, a new certificate, a changed address. Ask the designer to build it in sections so that a page can be replaced without redoing everything, and agree in advance how updates will be priced. That question is easier to settle before the project than after.

What it costs

Furrsati does not list a single price for company profiles, because scope varies so much: number of pages, number of languages, whether photography and writing are included, and whether a catalog is involved. To give you a sense of the designer's range, a mini brand identity is listed at roughly $300 to $800 on the brand identity designer page. Ask each designer to price per page and per language, and to say what is not included. See graphic design prices in Lebanon for the wider picture, and how to hire a graphic designer for how to choose.

Hiring and paying safely

Use the job brief guide for a graphic designer, and put in it the document type, the languages, the page count, how it will be used, who supplies the content, and the file list you expect at handover. Ask for a sample page in each language early.

Furrsati removes the risk on payment. You post your project, compare proposals from verified freelancers, fund a milestone, and release payment only once you've approved the work, with milestone funds held by Stripe until you release them. The service fee comes off the freelancer's side, so only standard card processing is added to your bill, and wallet-funded milestones carry none. Freelancers verify their identity before they can withdraw; as a client you need no verification. Payouts reach the freelancer inside Lebanon by OMT, Whish, bank transfer or USDT.

Your next step

Decide which document you need, gather the facts, credentials, photos and finished text in each language, and get your printer's requirements if it will be printed. Then hire a brand identity designer on Furrsati, and bring in an Arabic-English translator if you need the text translated.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between a company profile, a brochure and a catalog?

A company profile is a short document about the business, usually sent as a PDF. A brochure is a printed piece for meetings and exhibitions. A catalog lists many products with photos and specifications. They are different jobs and are priced and briefed differently, so say which one you need.

How does a bilingual Arabic-English company profile work?

The simplest approach is a separate Arabic version and a separate English version, each laid out in its own reading direction. A proper Arabic page is not the English layout mirrored: reading order, alignment and image placement all need to be planned, and mixed lines with English names and numbers need care.

Should I translate my profile or write each language separately?

Where the text does not yet exist, writing each language natively usually gives a more natural result. If you already have a finished text in one language, a careful translation works, but have a native reader proofread the Arabic before it is laid out.

What files should I get from the designer?

The editable source files, every language version, the fonts and images with their licences (or a list of what was used), and the colour values. Without the source files, small updates mean paying to rebuild the document.

How much does a company profile cost in Lebanon?

There is no single figure because the scope varies with pages, languages, photography and writing. Ask each designer to price per page and per language and to list what is not included. A mini brand identity is listed at roughly $300 to $800 on Furrsati, which gives a sense of a designer's range.