Ponderings in Graphic Design

Today’s post is written by Toni Boudreault, Head of Graphic Design for MyBinding.com.

Each month at MyBinding.com, we produce at least one Promo Flyer and one series of Coupons, both of which feature assorted equipment, supplies and special price reductions. In months like November and December we are faced with creating additional promotions for Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Year End Clearances. These web postings are accompanied by a series of Email blasts to our clients informing them of the savings opportunities being offered. As the Graphic Designer responsible for their production, the real trick is to make all of these as visually engaging as possible, encouraging visitors to stick around and surf our site. Push all those pixels until they’re pretty!

There are so many websites vying for attention that a thoughtless, cookie-cutter approach such as simply plunking some photos on a grid with some color, a gradient here and there, and product specs would be an epic fail. Poorly designed graphics have the potential to actually repel traffic (ever noticed all the awful signage on Beaverton-Hillsdale Highway? Eww!), therefore these projects cannot be thrown together without strongly considering the power of good aesthetics. This is especially important because these postings become our main page, in essence our identity, for days at a time.

I’ve addressed this challenge by applying a distinct theme to each project and utilizing detailed, vector illustrations. For instance, a “prices slashed” slogan brought to mind images of a saber, which led to my building that particular promotion around a pirate theme (Captain Jack, anyone?). I also draw inspiration from the season (July was “hot deals” and melting ice cream bars. Mmmm, chocolate…) and upcoming holidays (Halloween!). This thematic approach affords the opportunity to create a colorful, cohesive backdrop, giving our products a much more appealing scene on which to languish and be presented in the most attractive way. Sexy office equipment? Alluring presentation supplies? Pretty pixels can be pretty powerful.