Everybody relates to the ten commandments. So, for the next two months we’ll be talking about savvy marketing communications in terms of ten “commandments” or “rules” or “ideas” about effective and productive ways to get your message across to your marketplace, whatever that may be.

We’ll start with five commandments this month, and then we’ll finish with five more in September. Oh, by the way, unlike the “thou shalt not” style of some sets of commandments we’ve seen, ours are positive, affirming, and they give you plenty of room to be creative. Ready?

Savvy marketers see the design of their communications as strategic tools intended to attain specific goals, not as a series of subjective “likes” and “dislikes. From a design standpoint, they avoid unnecessary decoration. Every mark, every line, every word on the page serves a purpose: to deliver the message in just the right way to the intended audience. It all begins with a plan that’s based on careful analysis of the audience, the competition, and the company’s message to its customers and prospects.

Savvy marketers never get lost in the crowd. They know that their audiences are exposed to hundreds (if not thousands) of competing messages every day. So, working with their professional designers, they choose colors, typefaces and layouts that project a consistent, distinctive, easily recognized image, one that sets their messages apart and conveys their values accurately and completely. The designs of a savvy marketer project a consistent design concept and “brand” image throughout all of their marketing materials; this is true for print, video and online communications – everything!

Savvy marketers know that the people who read their materials are in a hurry and that anything that interferes with easy reading sabotages the delivery of the message.

They make reading easy by paying close attention to type faces, type sizes, line spacing (little things, yes, but BIG in terms of impact!). They make absolutely certain that every word in the copy is spelled correctly, that punctuation makes sense and helps the reader to understand –they even look at hyphens to make sure they don’t get in the way of the message. They carefully avoid design traps like setting entire words in uppercase letters or by overusing white text reversed out of gray or black backgrounds. And color is never allowed to interfere with easy reading.

Savvy marketers know when to whisper and when to shout! They use design as a tool to help readers separate the important ideas (the benefits) from the supporting facts (the features) of their selling proposition. They use the emphasis that only good design can achieve to assure that the hierarchy of the message is instantly grasped and understood by the reader/viewer.

Savvy marketers design for simplicity. They realize that readers can lose interest if there’s too much text, if the words don’t hit the nail right on the head, or if the design and the copy fail to work together synergistically (oh, oh, there’s one of those big words we need to be careful of!).

They break their message into easily readable and easily understood “chunks” by using design elements like bulleted lists, subheads, sidebars, diagrams, charts – anything that leads the reader through the message and leaves nothing to chance in terms of the reader’s “getting it.”

Simplicity also involves restraint. They know that “less is more” when it comes to good design and high-impact copy. They choose every element carefully (see Commandment 2). And finally, savvy marketers realize that one outstanding photograph or illustration communicates more than three average graphic elements.

OK, that’s enough for now. As you can see so far, savvy marketing design isn’t a big mystery – but it also isn’t a cure-all. Come back next month for the “final five” and you’ll see exactly what we mean.

Every month this year, look for a new issue of the GDArtworks eNewsletter – more tips, new tricks and provocative ideas to improve and expand your industry presence!

Click here to contact GDA today!

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