Marketing design is a seldom breached topic. As a designer, though, it is one aspect of design that we must thoroughly embrace.
Most designs are not art for the sake of art. Instead, we focus on the art of design for marketing's sake. Color and placement, white space and filled--all have a bearing on how a design must be accomplished.
All that said, how can you as a business owner, remove yourself and your preferences from your marketing design in order to get your message across to your audience? The first thing you must do is to accept the fact that you are not necessarily your audience. Like you, they too have likes and needs, things that attract them and things that repulse them. It could very well be that your choices vs. theirs are somewhat similar as well as totally opposed to each other. Now that you have divested yourself of that gargantuan weight, let's look at who you are trying to attract.
You must identify your target audience so that you can design your marketing pieces around their likes, needs and desires. Yes, this is as relevant to your design as what you say - or don't say.
Color analysts and designers will confirm that everyone loves blue and it is a color bought by consumers more than any other color. Red is an attention getter and is the reason for its use, as such, in advertising. Then you have the age groups - the younger the less complex color range you should use. Men vs. women? Yes, there are subtle color differences there as well.
As mentioned above, what you say - or don't say is a relevant aspect in design. Divest yourself of the long detailed text. Harness the power of simplicity. Weed out the unnecessary. Your aim is to provide only enough information to entice them to contact you. Thus, your end result will be clean and spaced not too tight and jumbled. Remember, as I always say, white space is your friend.
There are many more design theories that a professional uses when laying out your marketing pieces. Nevertheless, these few ideas alone will help you get started.
© Copyright 2012 Ginger Marks
Ginger Marks is the founder of the DocUmeant Family of Companies, We Make YOU Look GOOD! For more information, visit http://www.documeantdesigns.com/. Her 2011 annual edition of Holiday Marketing Guide, Your business-marketing calendar of ideas is now available at http://www.HolidayMarketingGuide.com.
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