Welcome to Plaid Dog Design. we are a graphic design and print company in Birmingham in the Midlands.

We offer a massive range of services so whether you need a simple banner for a site or are looking to give your company a completely new image including the design of your site, and all promotional material such as flyers and business cards or a product catalouge we can provide the service you need.

 

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Design: 8 Rules for a successful flyer

Designing a flyer is always a risky even for a seasoned designer or a DA. This requires know-how and above all a good dose of inspiration. Here are 8 golden rules to create a flyer quality, both from a graphical perspective that marketing ... and print it without fear!

1st rule: determining the target of the flyer
Upstream, do not overlook the work of designing the flyer and thought necessary. No need to go headlong in one direction, better give itself time to ask some questions to determine the outline of the flyer: 

• What is the target of flyer?
• What message do we want to convey?
• What type of event this flyer is intended for?
• What will you to use the prospectus, where he will be distributed?

The graphics, colors and content of the flyer should be consistent with the answers to these questions so that once printed the leaflet can be effective and fulfill its role as communication medium.

2nd rule: use a visual appeal to grab the attentionHuit rules for designing a flyer
The main visual of the flyer (photography, drawing, illustration, typographic element, logo ...) will catch the eye of the person who receives it first. The first grip is therefore essential to capture the attention of your target. If one were to apply a method of selling type AIDA (Hook, Interest, Desire, Action) to a flyer, the central visual role is to grab the attention. It must distinguish itself from what is usually done. All means to achieve it are welcome: 

• Use of flashy colors or contrast of a monochrome image.
• Highlighting artwork and complex excavated or otherwise of a visual element sober and minimalist.
• Use a block typography.
• Highlighting an image funny or surprising.Etc.

Beyond the visual, the grip may also pass through the felt the touch of the flyer. In this case, a particular weight (eg 350g), a paper original (a flyer to a square or round) or a distinctive feature as a selective coating to give added value to the prospectus distributed. This contributes to grab the attention of your prospect.

• Color Mode: to provide the document to print your flyer should be in CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black)
• Resolution: The flyer must be worked at 300 dpi (pixels per inch)
• Layout: Do not forget the technical margin of 2mm and 2mm bleed. Do not text or logo in this area, the risk of being cut by the cutter.
• If in doubt you can use the templates provided by your printer for printing of flyers.

3rd rule: successful graphic design and typography
It is important to perform a search on the graphic to your subject: what are the color codes in the industry, the competition is doing, take what position in this competitive world, there-including a visual level? The visual world from this research will be consistent with your corporate image and the codes of your industry. If there is already an established graphic design (logo, graphic world, color coding and typographical) and that it is not likely to evolve, it will of course put your creation in respect of this charter. Similarly, in typography, do the research necessary to stick to your universe and you stand out from the competition. Better a sober typeface easy to read on a medium com as a flyer which may be consulted only a few seconds, promote better readability and clarity of the message. Finally, try to distinguish a good title of a text by the typography used on the flyer. 

4th rule: choose good hooks to its prospectus
Just as the visual, the text of your flyer should be catchy and captivating. For this, it must be limited to two or three short sentences and easy to remember. The grip must not repeat the visual but enrich it. This is a true work of the copywriter! The idea is simple: you throw on a sheet and write down all the phrases that come to mind, if you have people around you, do a brainstorming (collection of ideas). It should be known to choose his words and adapt his language to the target. Attention to remain succinct and powerful in the formulation of a teaser. The grip is specifically used for paper media such as flyers, posters 4X3, bus shelter posters, booklets, brochures ... She must have a solution related to the purpose of your campaign. 

5th rule: prioritize information is on your flyer
It must be highlighted as a priority the most essential information: All your information can not be level and we'll have to prioritize. Often on a flyer essential information are limited: a logo, a visual event (hook + descriptive text), contact information, partners. Indeed, not necessarily 10x15 cm (size flyer classic) or has an A4 size, your prospectus offers a limited space. Organize and prioritize the information in pencil on a sheet of paper avoids wasting time in building random graphs. Get to the point being synthetic! And, no, partner logo would be better if it was bigger;) 

6th rule: respect the technical specifications of the printer
The graphics software used for designing fluent flyers are: - Photoshop - Illustrator - InDesign - QuarkXPress. Their use dene not exempt you meet the technical specifications of your printer, on the contrary! Printers to establish technical specifications and make recommendations for the printing of your flyers is optimal. To print your flyer in the best conditions, we note in particular:

7th rule: the size, weight and finish when printed flyer
Format The format of the flyer is important. If you want to differentiate themselves from ordinary flyers, there are original print formats: 
 

• Square Format 15x15 or 20x20
• Size 10x30 stretched
• Large A4
• For a more classic flyer, you must opt for basic formats:
• Postcard size 10x15
• Size 10x20
• Format 20x15 or A5

The weight At first glance, the touch, the flyer needs to generate interest. A heavier weight for a flyer (350g) will allow to be treated as a document more work, more quality. Everything depends on the image that you want to connect ... Paper type Similarly, there is a choice between 3 types of paper from the family of lying:

• The brilliant color developer
• The mast, more sober and discreet
• The half mast, the silky look, if our heart is torn

Printer little advice:
Better to use glossy for the towing or the filing of flyers, and book matte and semi matte more specific events (invitations, exhibitions ...). More information here on choosing the paper to print a flyer. Finishes Many finishes can be obtained from your local print shop in complémenty printing your flyer: - The nail polish cost: nail machine (very light protection), acrylic (much more visible), UV (very close to the filming aspect, slightly cheaper than this one) or selective coating (in addition filming, giving it a chic and brings out elements of the flyer). - The coating is the finish most common because it offers good value for money if your printer is equipped with screen printing. A thin layer of plastic film is deposited on the prospectus. It protects the print and gives it a more upscale. - Original Cuts (rounded corners, traditional geometric shape: heart, diamond, oval ...). A printer can make a flyer to the desired shape, the logo for example. Printing a matrix shape while allowing a custom original cut. - The embossing can highlight the flyer (attention nevertheless does not print on the back of the flyer in this case because the back would follow inverse deformations). - Hot foil stamping, a process which must be perfectly controlled by your printer (few printers are equipped), which involves depositing a layer of silver or gold on elements of your creation. These techniques are expensive and generally not against applied current communication media, such as the prospectus. 

8th rule: legal & law: law enforcement
Legal notices required to print a flyer Do not forget this aspect in the design of the document. The compulsory most important are: - "Do not litter the streets." - Printed by Printer's name. " This term is sometimes added automatically by the printer in case you forget. - Imprint on certain types of products such as "Alcohol abuse is dangerous for health" for alcohol products. Insert itself in these terms allows the flyer to integrate them in the eye. The rights to the image for printing flyers It is of course necessary to have the rights to images or photographs used, and the right to use logos and special fonts. Your file flyer is finally ready to be printed? (If you are unsure (e), find here the file types accepted by printers) Once your document is ready, double check everything: the format that you will give your printer, bleeds, quality images, fonts, spelling mistakes (do you read!), If the file is flattened, etc.. It's good you can click on "File Transfer" from your printer online. In case of remaining doubts, always ask a TAO (corrected proof) ... It's good for printing!

steve