What is good design? Well, design, or graphic design is the process of combining artistic elements such as images, type, illustrations, etc. to convey a message. Good design brings all of that together in a pleasing way. Sure you can fire up MS Word and slap a few things together for a flyer or brochure, but having someone trained and skilled in this profession will allow you to get your information out in an attractive way which should help your sales or reach what ever goals that project had set out for.
Now I’m not knocking Word or some of those programs, but when designing something or building something you need the right tools. You wouldn’t build an engine for you car with a hammer, chewing gum, and some metal piping. We’re not all MacGyver. You also want to take your project to someone who has the knowledge and training in that field to help you get your message out. Opening a Business? Starting a Non-Profit or offering classes in something? Just like you would expect people to come to you for your profession, you should take your design work to someone of that profession.
Having a good design is beneficial to your message and can make the difference between a successful advertising campaign and failed one.
If you do insist on doing things yourself, here are some pointers for your design.
- Font: Choose the right font or fonts for the project and try not to have too many on one piece. You should try to use ones that compliment each other visually. Typefaces/fonts are used in certain ways to convey feelings. Modern day horror films tend to use slender fonts with hard edges, while something targeted for children tend to be more rounded and thicker. No matter what people tell you, “Papyrus” and “Comic Sans” fonts should be avoided at all costs. They are overused and most of the time, misused.
- Images: Photos and clip art can speak a thousand words, just make sure you’re saying the right thing with them. Just because you might like kittens, doesn’t mean they should be on a brochure about fine dining or hunting.
- Colors and Effects: It’s nice to have a colorful presentation, but you don’t need to use the entire rainbow. When you use too much, your message becomes lost in the large color palette. Same with effects with type or layers. Just because you can do it, doesn’t mean you should.
Well I hope this little blog post was helpful. Join me next time for some more helpful tips.
