As flyers here are meant predominantly low cost promotional prints produced in relatively large print volumes and distributed to the general public of smaller or larger areas. Their role is mainly to get widely known the products or services they present, to stand them out from the competition, and to motivate the person concerned to come in contact with you. They differ from brochures that are mostly more detailed informational documents and are given to those who have already expressed interest in the service or product to which they refer.
The design is the most basic stage of your flyer creation. To be successful, your promotion should "reach" the target audience in the most efficient way. Talking with you about the subject of your work as well as targeting a particular audience will lead to the appropriate texts, colors and imaging material to produce the best result.
As for the cost of such an investment, think well. There are low and lower offers for "ordinary" flyers, in "ordinary" quantities. That might be nice, but don’t restrict your horizons to what looks as low-cost unless you already have the design, it has already "worked" for you well, falls into such an offer, and you just want to reprint it. If you are going to create a new design, contact a graphic designer first. His/her suggestions could surprise you positively even on production cost level!
Flyers remain a very good "communication tool" and perhaps the best especially for local businesses.