ADVERTISING DESIGN

Effective advertising is a powerful weapon in your marketing arsenal. Adverts in magazines, on billboards, in train stations, or on bus-stops are tried and tested methods of engaging your target audience and spreading the word about your brand. Put simply, advertising works. But it needs to be done well. There’s nothing worse than a massive billboard that makes your eyes bleed while you’re trying to drive. This is where Stonefern come in, we know how to make unique and eye-catching advertising designs that draw in customers and look fantastic.

PLAYING TO THE AUDIENCE

Always sell to the customers and never to yourself. You’re trying to engage a specific audience, so your design needs to be tailored to them. First, you need to know who your target is. If you’re a food manufacturer, for example, is your target audience those with a high-end palate, or are you trying to engage those who just want to grab a quick snack. One is not better than the other, but they are entirely different. It is crucial to know who your audience is, so you can best focus your advertising to them. At Stonefern, we can help you identify that audience and tailor-design advertising that best attracts those people in a way that looks great and is highly effective.

WHAT DO YOU WANT?

A good brief is crucial. You’re going to get out just as much as you put in. Make sure you know what you want to see, make it clear, and the more detail you provide, the better. What message are you trying to convey in your advertising? What action are you trying to call your audience to?

What ethos and image do you want your advertising to reflect? All these questions, and more, need to be answered in your brief. While leaving a designer to have free rein might result in something awesome, it might not be exactly what you’re looking for. Give your designer a hand, and give them something to work off!

GO BIG OR GO HOME

One of the biggest decisions you’re going to have to make is the scale of your advertising. Larger adverts draw the eye and can generate more leads. They allow you to include all the important information without appearing cluttered. You also need to decide on another definition of scale: is this going to be part of a larger advertising campaign, or is it going to be a standalone advert? This influences the way in which the advertising is designed. It needs to be consistent across all platforms and mediums, and deciding on your intended scale early, makes it easier to work this into the design.

CATCHING THE EYE

An advert is nothing if it is not eye-catching. Imagery is a powerful way to grab a potential customer’s attention. Make sure the imagery is relevant but powerful, appropriate but striking. Choosing an image with high-contrast areas allows for text to easily be placed over the top. Without it, the text will get lost, and all the public will see is a pretty picture. Be prepared to edit your content to suit a really strong image. After all, no one will read your ad if it hasn't caught their eye in the first place.

SOURCING YOUR MATERIAL

Stock images are the most straightforward starting point when trying to find effective imagery. Sometimes, however, the basic stock photos might not get your message across the way you want. Composites are your answer. Blending different stock imagery from different sources can create some really striking imagery. This is where a good designer can really help you out. From experience, they can scour thousands of images quickly, and can instinctively tell what will work to make a great composite image for your ad.

The content of your advert’s text is also vital. It can be off-tone, clunky and boring. Outsourcing your copy to a professional copywriter might be your best course of action. By experience and practice, they can craft text that is effective and engaging, while keeping in touch with your brand ethos and voicing your brand message.

STAYING ON-BRAND

If we’ve said it once, we’ve said it a thousand times: consistency is key. Does your advertising design meet your brand guidelines and design standards, does it fit with your brand message and image? There are few things more damaging to a brand’s image than for their advertising to be inconsistent and incoherent. Human minds are pretty straightforward when it comes to connection-building: if the colours match, if the fonts are the same, if the message and pictures are consistent across the board, they’ll instantly form a connection in their mind. This can be a massive asset to you, but it can also be your downfall. It all depends on your design and consistency. You want your potential customers to instantly recognise one of your adverts, and by sticking to your design standards and brand guidelines, you can achieve this.

At Stonefern, we can walk you through the process of creating unique, engaging and eye-catching advertising that draws in customers and builds brand recognition. We can help you come up with your design standards and brand guidelines, and can make sure your advertising matches them perfectly.