How to Create a Print Advertisement

Well-designed print advertising catches readers' attention.

The world of advertising has become tremendously complex, but at its root is has a simple premise: to communicate a message, product or service to share with or sell to other people. People are exposed to hundreds of ads every day, so advertisers go to great lengths to use innovative and unusual ideas to get their attention. The print advertisement for your message, product or service is only as good as its ability to get viewers' attention.

Difficulty:

Easy

Instructions

1. Start with a blank canvas using a piece of paper or a graphics program on your computer. Create it at the size you intend to have it printed, as ads can look very different at different sizes.

2. Tailor your advertisement to the product you are selling. For example, insert a photograph of a car for a car advertisement. The image should be simple and straightforward, relating directly to the overall message of the print advertisement, but also be eye-catching enough to portray your message in a non-verbal way.

3. Add a headline for the ad that is brief and memorable. Most print advertisements attempt to lodge themselves in potential customers' minds by being witty and unpredictable. For example, a car ad headline will never say "buy this car." Instead, it will appeal to the intangible motivations that impel people to buy cars, such as an urge for freedom, the desire to impress others or a wish to own the very best of something.

4. Make a close visual connection between the headline and the copy of your print advertisement. Make the headline and the copy using the same font, then put the copy directly underneath the headline. This makes it more likely that a person who reads the headline will go on to read the text.

5. Include a logo that represents your company or organization. Place it at the bottom center of the ad. If it is a color ad, print the logo in a color that will stand out from the rest of the ad. If readers remember your organization, this is more valuable to you in the long run than if they remember only the particular product in the ad.

Tips & Warnings

• Design your print advertisement to appeal to one of the four basic motivators in the human mind: sex, greed, fear or duty.

References

• Marketing Renaissance; How to Create a Successful Print Advertisement; Susan Allocco
• Hackvan: How to Create Your Own Print Ad
• 60 Second Marketer; Does Sex Sell? 7 Golden Rules of Print Advertising That May Surprise You; Charles Boyar