Even with the advent of social media, print still isn’t dead. There’s something real and raw about tangible publicity materials, especially ones found in schools. It makes upcoming school events more attractive and gets students excited on the big day.
But if you want students and teachers to notice your flyers and stop for a moment to read the information, you have to put some marketing and design skills to good use. Thankfully, designing a flyer requires a few simple steps. This guide should help you create striking publicity materials for any event at school:
Have A Focal Point
Great posters and flyers always have a subject. It’s called the focal point, and this element is what you want people to see first. It doesn’t necessarily need to be a person’s face. It can be any brightly-colored image that’s high definition, so it immediately catches the eye. However, you can’t simply pick random photos or figures. The focal point must fit the content of your flyers.
That’s why you need to understand the message you want to impart. If the posters are about a homecoming party, something symbolizing a dance will make sense. You don’t need to draw anything yourself either. You can find many downloadable stock photos online, like free back to school images or GIF files of illustrated characters, if you want to make versions for social media.
Having at least one focal point will ensure someone will notice your publication materials posted around the campus. Pair the image with proper fonts and a concise message, so your announcement will get students talking for good reasons.
Limit Your Font Choices
Since there are countless fonts available on most devices and to download online, it can be tempting to use several of them. You should avoid doing this as much as possible. Using multiple fonts in a poster or flyer will make your graphic messy, unprofessional, and confusing for many readers.
When choosing fonts for visual announcements, the general rule is to pick at most two legible options. Then, adjust the words to readable sizes without making them take up too much space on paper. The fonts should flatter your images, not overpower them. They should also reflect the emotion of your message and the event. Also, be careful in choosing font colors. Make sure they complement the overall palette of your flyer and stay visible even if the reader is a few steps away from it.
Put A Call-To-Action
Professionally-made event posters get people moving because there’s always at least one call to action (CTA) message on them. The CTA is to make readers react and do something, hence the name. Most CTA messages implore people to perform another action related to the event, like visiting an official website or calling a particular phone number for more information.
That’s why you must know your target audience before making event flyers. In this case, your target audience is the student body. Students tend to think twice about being told what to do. So, if you want people to attend the school’s career fair and networking event, make a compelling CTA to attract as many attendees as possible.
Include Just Enough Information
Not everyone enjoys reading too much information on a single subject. Hence, flyers have limited space to impart messages to people who look at them. Apply the ‘less is more’ practice when copywriting for school events. Students don’t always have the time to check the bulletin boards for announcements. So, it’d help if you keep the content simple.
Include the basics such as the kind of event, date, time, and location in bullet points. Put in a short description and a catchy headline for good measure. If you have a lot to say, you can add a QR code leading to a website link with the additional information. QR codes help reduce the amount of text on your flyers, and students may sometimes want to read the info on their phones instead of on paper.
Before you print the copies to post all over the campus, ensure that you proofread the text and edit as needed. Ask someone who hasn’t seen the flyer design to check the info for more accurate readings. They should tell you if your message is understandable and free of grammatical errors.
Print Using High-Quality Materials
School posters and flyers aren’t intended to stay on bulletin boards forever, but it still pays to use high-quality printing paper. Most students might not mind plain-looking announcements printed on cheap colored sheets. So, if you want to get their attention, invest in printing.
Glossy paper is an excellent option for posters and flyers. The sheen on its finish reflects light, which attracts people to look in its direction. It also looks more professional than regular craft paper and gives the impression that the event you’re announcing is a huge deal.
Many photo printing services offer different types of paper you can choose from for your flyers. They may even provide a discount depending on how many copies you want. You could also buy your preferred paper type and print the flyers at home. Just don’t forget to do a test run to ensure the design fits the size of the paper perfectly and the colors are accurate.
Conclusion
Using flyers is one way to get students’ attention for upcoming school events. It’s a slightly old-fashioned method, but the fact that it still exists today means it’s still effective. All you have to do is apply these tips and some modern graphic design trends without overdoing them. You’ll eventually have some attractive announcements posted on campus and waiting for students to see them.