Elements of Engaging Design


by Jennifer Hootman

Quick Summary

In attending the Library Technology Conference 2015 I gleaned many practical takeaways.

In attending the Library Technology Conference 2015 I gleaned many practical takeaways. One session in particular, “Let’s Make This Look Good: Graphic Design for Maximum Engagement,” presented by Meggan Press of Paul Smith’s College, addressed work that many of us librarians are now expected to produce:
  • Reports in the form of infographics
  • Engaging posters or flyers to promote events, resources, or classes
  • Promotional images for the website
Moreover, to meet these demands many of us are learning promotion and marketing design tools on the fly. Frost shared 4 fundamentals, 3 shortcuts, and a few extra tips to help us visually communicate more effectively. 4 Fundamentals:
  • Layout – Below are key questions to ask in determining an engaging layout. Keep going back over the layout and tweaking.
    • What does this need to do?
    • What are my constraints?
    • How will I organize the info?
    • What is most important?
    • How do I share this importance?
    • Does the flow make sense?
    • Is it clear?
    • What isn’t needed?
  • Color – Frost recommends using no more than 3 colors at a time. This helps it look cohesive. Below are some tools to help with color selection.
    • Colorzilla – (One of my favorite color tools to use!) This tool is a browser extension and can help you determine the exact colors used on websites, logos, etc. Very helpful when attempting to match colors.
    • DeGraeve.com – Color Palette Generator. This tool will help you create effective color combinations.
    • Design Seeds – This tool, too, will help you design well-balanced color schemes and provide inspiration for color combinations.
  • Images – Below is a list of tools for locating images
  • Fonts – Below is a list of tools for locating and previewing fonts. Be sure not to use too many different fonts for one design.
3 Shortcuts Below is a list of tools that will help you design great visual pieces when you don’t have a lot of time. (Caution: You will have to invest some time to get to know these tools. But once you learn how to use them, they can save you a great deal of time.)
  • Picmonkey – photo editor
  • Canva – (One of my favorite tools to use!) – infographics, posters, flyers, web images
  • Easel.ly – infographics
  • Piktochart – infographics
A Few Extra Tips from Meggan Frost
  • When you come across examples on the web that are visually appealing, save those. Collect visual communication pieces that are inspirational.
  • Use Pinterest to collect inspiring images and designs.
  • Follow and participate in Librarian Design Share. This blog shares visual designs by librarians. The blog may also be helpful in solving design problems.
  • Learn more about design and design tools.
Hopefully these tools and tips will help you on your next promotional and marketing project!

Tags:

Library Technology Conference 2015 Marketing Design April 2015

Written by

Jennifer Hootman