Vinyl Banners - Design Tips for Large Vinyl Banners
by Rick Hendershot, Linknet Publishing
Network originally published in Trade Show Buzz
Vinyl banner design is about as easy as it gets for the
non-professional graphic designer. Generally speaking, a vinyl
banner is easy to design. Anybody with a little bit of graphic
design experience can design a banner. And even if you have no
experience, your supplier can point you in the right direction,
or even design your banner for a small charge.
Here are some things to watch for when designing a vinyl
banner...
1. Use software that handles CMYK full color output. There are
at least three kinds of software you can use:
- Image editors like Photoshop, PhotoPaint, or PhotoImpact
- Page Layout programs like Quarkxpress, Pagemaker, or InDesign
- Illustration programs like Illustrator or CorelDraw
Generally speaking, programs that are designed for consumers or
general office applications are not recommended: e.g., Word,
Wordperfect, Publisher, Excel, etc. If you have a specific
inquiry, don't hesitate to ask your vinyl banners supplier. A
good source of information is your contact person at
America-Banners.com. You can ask a design or production related
question by using the contact form on any page on the site.
2. Keep your vinyl banner design simple and striking.
The best designs contain two or three basic elements. Usually
these will be a photograph, a large headline, and an
"identifier" such as your company name, logo, or phone number.
3. Use bright colors. The most striking vinyl banners have lots
of bright colors.
4. Design your vinyl banner so it is readable for your target
audience. If it is going on a building or beside a road on a
fence, or on an outfield fence at a baseball or soccer field,
MAKE SURE YOUR MOST IMPORTANT MESSAGE IS LARGE ENOUGH TO BE
READ.
5. Make sure your images have sufficient resolution. For some
advice on image resolution, see the Vinyl Banners FAQ.
6. Make sure your vinyl banner fits the area where you're going
to mount it. Don't guess at the size. Most people who are not
familiar with signage will UNDERESTIMATE the required size.
7. Consider alternative methods of mounting your vinyl banner.
Grommets are the "default" method of mounting a banner on a wall
or fence. But often "pole pockets" are simpler and more
efficient.
For more information go to America-Banners.com or
TradeShow-Display
-Experts.com.