Control those fonts!

Let’s face it. When money’s tight, you may find it necessary to rely on your own graphic design skills to communicate with your customers. Whether you are creating fliers for your business or listing items online to sell, there are a few guidelines to maximize the visual impact of your message.

Nix Those Fancy Fonts
Tempted to use Comic Sans or a cursive font to add flare and draw attention to your piece? Don’t fall victim to this typographical trap! Overuse of fancy fonts can make your piece look like the work of an amateur. Sure these types of fonts are fun but when everyone uses them, they get pretty old, and get old fast. It also can be hard on the eyes of your readers. Besides, you want the viewer to pay attention to the most important part of your piece - the message!

Stick to normal serif and sans-serif fonts for headlines and body copy. If you absolutely must use a fancy font, use it sparingly throughout the piece. Reserve it for special information that should stand out.

Beware of Too Many Chefs...
Control the desire to use a variety of fonts. Using too many different fonts in one piece breaks the visual cohesion. The viewer may be unsure what information is most important as the fonts compete against one another for attention.

Your safe bet is to limit fonts to two or three. Note that using bold or italic in a particular font is not included in this limitation. In fact, using bold or italic can help to create a visual hierarchy of information. Just be sure not to bold every sentence or the emphasis will get lost.

Serif or Sans Serif?
As you probably can guess, readability is very important. If you are posting a blog online, sans serif fonts are easiest on the reader’s eye. But, for text you’re printing out, serif fonts are best to read. Of course, this rule isn’t set in stone. But, it’s important to be mindful of it when you have a lot of text in your piece.

Take the CAPS lock off!
RESIST THE URGE TO MAKE EVERY WORD ALL CAPITALS. It may be effective for headlines, but use proper capitalization for paragraphs of text. An entire paragraph of all caps can be difficult to read, especially for readers who are skimming the text. Also, AvOiD sTrAnGe AnD fUnKy CaPiTaLiZaTiOn To DrAw In ReAdErS. You may appear more like a 15-year-old girl on MySpace than a professional company.

Think of these tips not as definitive rules but mere guidelines to assist you in producing professional, easy-to-read messages geared towards reaching your customers.

Need help with graphic design but wary of the high cost of hiring a professional? ProMoter Inc. specializes in finding cost effective marketing solutions for clients, while delivery quality results. Contact ProMoter Inc. at 502-562-1969 or email us at promoter@promoterinc.com.

The Great Gender Debate

Recently I read an article that should make small businesses who have ventured into the world of online advertising start to think if they have correctly positioned their marketing dollars. The article reported on the differing Internet habits of men and women. It pointed to various studies that have found gender, more than race, ethnicity or economic status, is the major driving force behind our browsing styles. However, the article was quick to point out that Internet Protocol addresses (IP addresses) do not “come in shades of pink and blue.” Therefore, businesses advertising online have come to depend on gender generalizations when placing advertisements. But, these generalizations aren't always on target.

"Smart companies use behavioral targeting to try to reach their desired target demo online, but even then, they can't tell who exactly is behind the IP addresses they are following," says Lisa Phillips, an eMarketer senior analyst and author of the report "Men Online” in an article for Fortune magazine.

So how can you determine which sites attract your consumer base – specifically when you target a gender? Do the research! Meet with your account representatives and ask for detailed demographic information for their site. Create a simple survey for customers to complete concerning their media habits – what sites do they frequent most? Which sites are most influential in their purchasing decisions? If you keep it short and simple, most customers won’t mind taking the time to fill it out.

Advertising is still the best way to stay top-of-mind with your customers in this down economy. Just be sure you aren’t throwing your dollars away on sites that do not attract your audience.

Check out the complete article for more interesting gender-based marketing findings. http://money.cnn.com/2009/05/20/technology/kattan_gender.fortune/index.htm?postversion=2009052011

Need assistance creating an effective advertising campaign that incorporates online marketing? Contact ProMoter Inc. at 502-562-1969 or email us at promoter@promoterinc.com.