Don’t leave your message naked!
There’s a reason books and magazines aren’t stapled printouts from Microsoft Word. When your final product looks like a manuscript — set in 12-pt. Calibri or Times New Roman — readers can question the value of your product.Why? It’s simple: first impressions. You can’t let your piece walk out the door naked. You need it dressed for success. The candidate with the suit and firm handshake gets the job.
Design is your piece’s outfit — the first thing your readers notice. A fresh-off-the-laser-printer look is good for a child’s Lost Dog poster. Not so much for a stockholder’s report.
As a designer, my strengths revolve around elevating the reader’s experience: the formatting, layout, color, and typography. You need a vehicle that delivers your message. And whether it’s verve or vogue, you need something with visual personality.
That doesn’t mean going crazy with colors, underlines, or bolding. It means tailoring the document to evoke the feelings you want in your reader.
Why is the visual aspect so crucial? For one thing, the way your piece looks will be your reader’s first clue to your credibility. Respect the power of that mental processing; those emotional and visceral reactions have kept humans alive for millions of years. But know this: the visuals of your message will either establish your credibility or obliterate it.
Second, your document’s appearance affects its final result. A piece with a beautiful design is a pleasure for readers to connect with. One with a design that’s not so carefully considered will often have an effect that’s just the opposite. To keep your readers reading or persuade them to leap to action, you need the right design.
I can set your message in any number of professional formats:
- Web pages
- Magazines
- Book pages
- Brochures
- White papers
- Annual reports
As an added benefit, you’ll have the attention of an experienced proofreader. Before I consider the layout of your piece, I will read your words carefully and perform my own double-checking. Grammar, spelling, stylistic consistency — all are vital to your piece’s authority. That’s because, as a layout designer, I consider it my job to attend to the smallest details.
For a closer look, visit my samples page.