banner design · banners · graphic design · marketing · sign design ·

How to Design a Banner for Your Business

Much like any sign, when you design a banner, there are multiple factors that must be considered in order to ensure that you’re designing with purpose and intent. More often than not, a banner lives or dies based on whether it was created with a clear strategy in mind long before it ever goes to print. As sign experts, we can impart a bit of knowledge to help you learn how to design a banner for your business with three important considerations in mind.

What is Your Message?

Of course, you can’t find the right way to share your message via a new banner unless you know what that message is. Banners can be a fantastic solution for getting any number of messages out, but some of the most common include:

Generating Sales and Increasing Awareness: Some companies choose to use banners to drive interest in their goods or services. A big banner that simply and legibly showcases exactly what your business is offering can be an effective way of simply getting new customers through the door, or, at very least, making new potential customers aware of what your business is offering.

Announcing a Special Event: Looking to get out word on a major sale, holiday event or grand opening? A banner could be a simple solution for your brand by displaying not just what the event is, but the dates it will occur and possibly even a taste of the sale or event highlights.

Instructional: More for trade shows or similar events, banners can also be an effective way of graphically displaying instructions or explanations of a product. Need a breakdown of how a product is put together? How ingredients are grown and sourced? How your service is better than the competition? An instructional sign may be the right choice for your company.

Once you establish your message, you can get into nailing down the specifics of design. Design is a world of possibility with near infinite options, which can lead to paralysis without a plan. Focus on the following to avoid this “paralysis by possibility.”

Fonts: The lettering you chose can completely alter the way in which your message is read. Take time to ensure that your font fits the feeling you’re trying to convey with your banner. Also, consider keeping within the same font family as your brand standards. This will make your brand appear cohesive and professional.

Layout: Be conscious of overcrowding your banner. Though bigger banners give more room to work with, even the biggest banners can look too “busy” if there is too much text and/or images crammed onto the piece. Keep your design clean and to the point.

Colors: Just like fonts, colors can paint your message in a new light. You must also be aware of how readable your messaging is if you decide to use different banner/font color combinations. Though brighter colors can help your banner stand out, it should also not be so aggressively “loud” as to be ignored by potential customers. Again, consider sticking to your brand’s colors in order to keep a cohesive look for all branding.

Visuals: Including photos or illustrations in your banner? Make sure they are high quality or that image will be more of a detriment than an asset. Some images that appear fine on a computer monitor will look stretched out and pixilated when blown up for print. Ensure your images are high quality and adequately sized before you try to throw them onto your next banner.

If you think you need a hand in nailing down the right design elements for your company’s banner, the good news is, we have extensive experience in answering the question, “How do you design a banner?” The HTH Inc. team is ready to work with you to figure out the best way to share your business’s message in the simple but effective form of a banner, considering fonts, layout, colors, visuals and what will best serve your objective.