| 5 Steps to Great Banner Design |
| Invention Development Advice - Marketing | |||
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With the advent of digital banner printing, what you can do with vinyl banners has greatly expanded. No longer are you locked into text only phrases like "For Sale" or "Grand Opening." Now, anything you can imagine, you can put on a vinyl banner.
With the advent of digital banner printing, what you can do with vinyl banners has greatly expanded. No longer are you locked into text only phrases like "For Sale" or "Grand Opening." Now, anything you can imagine, you can put on a outdoor banner. There are five elements that go into creating a great vinyl banner. 1.Material 2.Size 3.Fonts 4.Contrasting color 5.Images Part 1 -- Material There are 3 categories of banner material; lightweight, standard and heavyweight. Lightweight material is normally around 10 oz. in weight and are preferred for indoor use. This type of banner is great for parties and one-time events. A lightweight banner will not last outdoors for any length of time. The best option for outdoor use is the 13 ounce banner. This is also a great option for long term indoor use as well. The standard weight is great is you are doing annual sales and want to reuse a banner over many years. If properly stored, it will last a long time. Heavyweight banner is any material at 17 oz or above. It is optimal for harsh weather or when extreme strength is needed. For example, if you need to hang a banner across a street, then you would want this type of banner material. Part 2 -- Material Size Larger is not always the best option when sizing a banner. You need to keep the size in scale with where you are installing it. Everyone has seen a really small banner mounted on the side of a large wall. That banner is not readable except if you are standing right in front of it. The opposite is just as bad. You want your banner to stand out from the background, not blend into it. A general rule of thumb is that you need 1" of letter height for each 10' of viewing distance. So if your banner will be viewed from 50' away and you want 3 lines of text, you need 15" just for the lettering not to mention "white space" separating the lines. I use a general rule that you should have the same amount of separation as you have print. In this example, that means a minimum of 30" for a basic banner. Part 3 -- Letters The letter style you choose can make or break your design. The style should be readable and in line with your image. Never use an all script font with capital letters as it cannot be read at any distance. If you need all caps, try to find one that is classified as sans serif. They are very clean stylistically and easy to read. Be as creative as you want with your letter styles, just make sure your creativity doesn't interfere with the purpose of the banner. Part 4 -- Contrasting color There are two type of color contrast that we need to look at. The first is font contrast and the second is the contrast between the colors used on the banner and the color of the location the banner will be installed. black on yellow white on yellow yellow on black black on white These are really good color combinations to use for your fonts/background colors. You want your words to pop off the page and draw the attention of the reader. Using the right combinations of colors can do just that. The second, and often overlooked, area of concern is the contrast between the background color of your banner and that of the surface you will be mounting it. What is the point of having a banner that is "brick red" and then mount it against a red brick wall? The banner will completely disappear on the wall. The same goes for a "white" banner on a white wall. Again, no pop. The same contrasts that work for letters work for backgrounds as well. Part 5 -- Images Digital graphics are where modern banner design earns its money. No longer do you have to limit yourself to lines of simple text, not when you can design them with full color digital images. Banner printers have so many resources open to them for images that there is no reason not to have a visually stunning banner. ***Important*** If you plan on using your own images, be sure they are taken with enough resolution to blow up to the size you want to use. In conclusion Now that you have some basic understanding of what goes into a great banner design, your should be able to tell your banner printing supplier exactly what you want. More information: Looking for banners online. Check out your sign shop source. Be sure to check out our options for vinyl banners and our wide selection of banner displays.
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