I would like to show you an example of the book cover design process by revealing a series of cover comps (ideas) we did for one of our client’s books. Nature’s Wisdom in the Workplace: Managing Energy in Today’s Health Care Organizations was published by Synergy Press, and authored by Sharon Cox, Jo Manion and Diane Miller. The Design Brief First we spoke with the client to get a list of information regarding the target market and book specifications. The design brief outlines the parameters for the style, colors, imagery and typography our designer needed to incorporate into the book cover design process: 6″ x…
Shown below are a few covers our team recently designed for our clients. We strive to create unique eye-catching book covers with attention-grabbing graphics and compelling titles and subtitles. To reach the right target market we need to understand what intrigues and interests those folks. By using carefully chosen keywords and appropriate fonts in the title, selecting symbolic colors and imagery, and using the right style of photos and/or graphics we can create the most effective message for each specific target market. As a result, each book cover appeals to the right audience. The following 2 books are for managers, leaders and directors…
Have you ever wondered how to make your flyer, poster, ad, or postcard convert more prospects into customers? Do you want to know the secrets to grabbing more attention with compelling marketing materials? It all comes down grabbing attention, creating the right perceptions and using the proper messaging. Recently my design team created direct mail postcards and posters for a biannual Potters’ Guild Pottery Sale that drew in more attendees than ever before. The attractive design and powerful, precise message may have made the difference in the higher number of attendees. Here’s how we did it. Attractively Showcase the Products We…
Choose Appropriate Fonts for Your Self-Published Book Interior A quick look on your software reveals myriad choices of fonts and you can always find more! But like shopping in a candy store, you have to make judicious selections. It is important to select appropriate fonts to communicate your message to your readers, particularly when dealing with titles and headlines. Why? Because specific fonts can evoke a certain attitude and feeling that reinforces your intended message. Fonts for Headlines Choose a bold font with the right personality for your book interior. After all, fonts (like people) have personalities, and different designs…
Your book’s more than a collection of words on pages. It’s your baby. But will other people find it as beautiful as you do? That depends. How do you dress it? In other words, what do your pages look like? Layout makes all the difference. You can have the most riveting, meaningful, Nobel prize-worthy masterpiece in the bookstore, but it will be very lonely on those shelves if no one wants to buy it. Here’s how John Q. Citizen shops for a book. He saunters into his favorite bookshop with nothing in particular in mind to purchase. He picks up…
The way a book interior is designed has a part in whether the book will sell or not. A customer will not read—or buy—a book that is designed in a way that is difficult to read. If the type in your book is too small, or the spaces between the lines are too narrow, many prospective customers will move on to another book. Your goal with book design is to create an interior that is inviting, pleasing, and easy to read. This involves good use of fonts, word spacing, leading, line length, and alignment. Here are some techniques that professional…
It’s almost 5 o’clock on Friday afternoon. Do you know where your newest marketing pieces are? If you’re a small business owner, they may be buried on your desk because you’ve got so many other important details to handle. Or they’re still sitting on your assistant’s desk where she’s staring at them hopelessly. She’s an admin assistant, for heaven’s sake, not a designer, and she knows what she’s produced so far is not very memorable or effective. All of us would like to think our product is so good, our services so unique, they’ll simply sell themselves. Not so! Strong…