A company profile PDF checklist should help you approve the file a prospect will actually open, not just a beautiful spread on the designer's monitor. A document can look polished in a presentation and still be awkward to read, difficult to navigate or unnecessarily cumbersome to share on a phone.
For Kenyan businesses sending profiles through email, websites or messaging apps, digital delivery deserves its own acceptance check. This guide focuses on testing the finished PDF. It complements our digital versus printed company profile guide, rather than replacing a content brief or a print-production specification.
Agree what the digital version needs to do
Start with the reader's task. A procurement contact may want to identify services and forward the document. A potential partner may want to inspect relevant projects and reach the right person. List those tasks before approving decorative details, then check whether the exported file supports them.
Tell the designer where the document will be distributed. An email attachment, a website download and a printed booklet can require different export decisions. Ask for clearly named deliverables when separate versions are needed. Do not assume the highest-resolution print file is automatically the most practical version for everyday digital sharing.
Record any actual upload restrictions or recipient requirements supplied by the destination. Avoid inventing a universal file-size limit. The acceptance question is whether this file works through the channels your business uses while retaining the information and visual quality those readers need.
Test the file on a real phone
Open the delivered PDF on a phone in the way a recipient is likely to receive it. Start at the cover, move to the services and find the contact details. Note where repeated zooming, sideways movement or unclear page transitions make the task uncomfortable.
Pay particular attention to dense tables, small captions and pages designed as two-page spreads. A layout that depends on viewing two pages together may need a different digital arrangement. Ask the designer to demonstrate an alternative rather than solve the problem by deleting essential information without approval.
Check more than one page type. A cover, text-heavy services page, project gallery and final contact page may behave differently. Keep a short issue list with page references and the action that was difficult. “The project labels are unreadable at a useful viewing size” is a more actionable comment than “make it mobile friendly.”
Keep text usable beyond its appearance
Try selecting and searching for a distinctive service name in the PDF. If ordinary body copy behaves like a single picture, ask whether a more useful export can preserve the text. This check does not prove full accessibility, but it can reveal a document whose content has been flattened unnecessarily.
Ask how headings, paragraphs and reading order have been represented. Adobe's reading-order guidance explains checking and repairing PDF structure and recommends addressing accessibility in the source document where possible. Visual position alone does not establish a sensible sequence for assistive technology.
For a profile with columns, sidebars or project captions, request a check of the intended reading sequence. Agree any accessibility requirements in the scope and ask how they will be evaluated. Do not treat successful text selection or a single automated result as a blanket certificate that every reader can use the document.
Inspect links as working navigation
Tap the website, email and other intended links in the delivered file. Verify the destination, not only the visible wording. A correctly spelled website label can still point to an old address if the link underneath was copied from an earlier design.
For a long document, ask whether a linked contents page or bookmarks would help readers reach the sections they need. Keep labels consistent with the section headings. Navigation should make the document easier to use without requiring the reader to learn an elaborate interactive system.
Check that links remain understandable in the intended context. If the document is also printed, a button labelled only “click here” may be less useful than a descriptive label with an appropriate visible destination nearby. Agree how digital and printed versions will handle that difference rather than forcing one export to serve every purpose poorly.
Compare file size and visual quality together
Ask for a digital export appropriate to sharing, then inspect it before approving it. Adobe's compression and optimisation guidance describes reducing PDF size and adjusting optimisation settings. The practical buyer decision is whether the resulting document still presents the material clearly.
Inspect logos, project photography, fine diagrams and small type after any optimisation. A smaller attachment is not an improvement if important details become indistinct. Conversely, preserving oversized images that add no useful visible detail can make everyday distribution less convenient than it needs to be.
Keep the previous export until the revised version passes review. Give the files names that identify their purpose, such as digital-sharing and print-production, together with a clear version. Do not ask staff to guess which of several files called final should be sent to a prospect.
Check evidence, captions and contact details
Review every project name, photograph caption and service statement against material the business has approved. If a visual is a concept or an illustrative mockup, label it accordingly. A realistic rendering should not accidentally become a claim that a physical installation or manufactured item already exists.
Confirm permission to use the included images and client material through the people responsible for those assets. The designer should know which files are approved for public distribution. Keep unresolved images out of the release version until their status is clear rather than relying on a future correction.
Check telephone numbers, email addresses, website links and office details character by character. Have the business contact owner confirm them, especially where an old profile was used as the starting point. A strong visual presentation cannot compensate for directing interested readers to an inactive mailbox or former staff member.
Create a short acceptance test sheet
Use a record with the page or feature, expected behaviour, observed result, required correction and approval status. Include phone reading, text search, link destinations, image quality and distribution through the intended channel. Keep the sheet focused on observable outcomes rather than subjective preferences alone.
An illustrative test might read: “From the contents page, open the projects section, identify the named project and return to the contents.” Another might be: “Open the contact page on a phone and reach the confirmed business website.” These examples can be adapted to the navigation the document actually provides.
Allocate final content approval to someone who can verify the business facts. Design approval and factual approval may involve different people. Resolve conflicting feedback before requesting the release export so the designer has one agreed correction list rather than several incompatible instructions.
Control the version after approval
Store the accepted source and exported files according to the project agreement. Give staff a clear location for the current sharing version. If a website hosts the PDF, check that the download link serves the intended file rather than an earlier export with a similar name.
When services or contacts change, update the source and repeat the affected checks. Replacing a telephone number should include checking the clickable destination. Replacing a project image should include reviewing its caption and digital quality. Small updates can introduce functional errors even when the overall layout stays the same.
Ask your company profile designer to include these delivery checks in the proposed scope. A useful brief names the readers, distribution channels, required formats and approval responsibilities. That gives both sides a concrete definition of a finished digital document.
Frequently asked questions
Must a company profile PDF be very small?
Choose a size appropriate to your real distribution channels and any stated recipient limits. Review readability after optimisation. There is no single attachment size that proves a document is suitable for every business or every type of content.
Does selectable text prove that the PDF is accessible?
No. It is one useful check. Document structure, reading order, meaningful descriptions and other requirements need separate review. Discuss the intended accessibility standard and testing approach with the designer when that is part of the project.
Can the same PDF be used for printing and WhatsApp?
Sometimes, but separate exports may better serve those uses. Ask for clear file names and confirm which version staff should share. Keep the print supplier's requirements separate from the digital reading checks.
What should we include in a redesign request?
Send the current PDF, approved text, relevant images and examples of the reading problems to Mocky's company profile team. Explain who receives it and how they access it, so the proposed work addresses the actual document experience.
