Step 4: Increase Impact

Once you've completed a rough draft, it's important to edit it to maximize its impact.

Reduce copy

Too much copy makes any design less readable. The best designs can be read quickly and convey the message concisely. It's more important to clearly communicate one or two points than to try to tell the customer everything and clutter a design. Graphic elements that don't clearly help your design hurt your design. Remove them.

Increase size of remaining elements

Once superfluous copy has been removed, make the remaining elements larger, thus increasing their impact.

Limit colors

More than two or three colors will get in the way of the goal to produce an effective message. Use colors sparingly to emphasize elements. Check color combinations for readability. Make sure that the contrast between foreground and background colors is maximized.

Simplify fonts

Fancy fonts, serifed fonts, cursive fonts, ultra-thin or ultra-fat fonts, and compressed fonts are difficult to read. Use bold, sans-serif fonts such as Arial, Helvetica, or Futura and only use type styles that are out of the ordinary if it's part of your brand, such as in a logo.