Design Tips for Non Designers

I have been busy at work all morning, and it's been a good design day so far. I like a morning that starts with a quick illustration and some photoshop work. I'm in a good creative frame of mind, and I thought that while I sit here waiting for an appointment, I might share a few tips with the non-designers out there who have decided to tackle their own design projects.

Too often we see these "would-be-designers" fall into the same traps, and we sit and laugh about how they should have hired a professional. While this may be true...many won't, or can't afford to. So as a public service I offer up the:

Top Ten Tips to Avoid Being Mocked by a Designer:

1. The Island is not a beautiful shape.
Never include this shape as part of your logo. No one cares about the shape of the province, it will not entice people to buy your product or service. No one says "Oh my look dear, that business has a logo that looks like a giant chicken finger we need to do business with them!".

2. Comic Sans is fine for comics...
...well you know what, no it's not even good for that. Don't use this font. EVER. It looks like it was hand drawn by a child. Do you want potential customers to think a child handles your marketing? I guess the one exception to the rule here is, if you are a Clown College, this could be your corporate font.

3. Clipart is evil.
Sure you got 1,000,000 pieces of clipart for $4.99 at Walmart in the bargain bin, but trust me you got less than you paid for. Clipart is useful for charity fund-raising coupon booklets and that is all. I understand that sometimes you feel you need an illustration and you aren't able to draw. If you can't afford to have a professional do the drawing, give some serious thought to how badly you need it. Some of the greatest designs of all time have been text only.

4. Script fonts are supposed to simulate handwriting.
With that in mind, please note to never use a script font in all capital letters. Would you write in all capital letters? You might print in all caps, but "writing" in caps looks ridiculous and it is difficult to read. Don't do this.

5. All menus should be easy to read.
You want customers to order something don't you? Why not make it easier for them by making a menu that is easy to read. Make your type large enough, don't use a dark background unless you are going to use a white type face, and don't put pictures behind the text unless it leaves the text clearly visible.

6. Your logo does not have to be a literal representation of your name.
For instance if your company is Western Septic Services, you don't need to have a picture of a cowboy sitting on a toilet in your logo. Although, that would be funny and might actually work...bad example, but I think my point is made.

7. Stock photographers are better than you!
Local professional photographers may be better still, at least to provide photos that will work for your project. If you are going to use photos, don't use your own unless you are a trained professional. The saying "a picture is worth a 1000 words" is very true. Therefore a bad image equals 1000 bad words! Do you want to spout 1000 bad words at a potential customer all at once?

8. Your favourite colour may not be mine.
Just because you like Shady Lane Green, does not mean it is a good colour to represent your steak house. Colour theory is complicated and is a very important element in your design. If you aren't sure what colour works for your business, use black. Black is always safe. There is nothing wrong with a nice black and white design. The design should stand on it's own and the colour should be like icing on the cake.

9. PMS, it's not what you think....
If you are going to ignore my last tip and use colour, make sure you select colours that are from the Pantone Colour Matching System. This way you can be sure that your colour will always be your colour no matter where you get your design printed. If you use the PMS colour model for your design, your company colours should be consistent. You can find the pantone colour swatches online very easily.

10. Be consistent.
If you get through the first nine rules, this one will be the most important. Once you have your design, and font, and colour all ready to go. Use it. Every time you create something to market your business try to have it look somewhat similar to the last thing you did. It's called building brand recognition. If you use a different type face and different logo every time you send something out, how will anyone ever recognize you. Imagine your logo as the face of your business. People will get familiar with that face and will recognize it very quickly, if they see it often.

There are many more tips I could offer, but hey this isn't design school! I like having a job so I can't give away all my secrets. Actually now that I think about it, the best tip I could give would be:

HIRE A DESIGNER! We like to eat.