Graphic Design Flyer in Digital Era: The Ultimate Guide
Table of Contents
What is a Flyer?
If you’ve ever been to a promotional event or just walked around the neighborhood, you have most definitely come across a flyer. They’re the papers stuck on the walls of your area promising solutions to your life problems by just dialing a phone number. But is that all there is to a flyer? Is that what a flyer means?
To answer your questions, no, there is so much more to a flyer than just sticking it up on walls. Flyers are an unfolded, single sheet of papers that are an effective and pocket-friendly medium of communication. They usually contain very specific information and or a message regarding a brand’s launch of a new product/service and or opening of a branch/new business.
They are the go-to marketing tools for industries across sectors to put out little bursts of information quickly and efficiently. Flyers are popularly called handbills, inserts, leaflets, or circulars; they are an accessible mode of marketing because they are cheap to produce and easy to distribute.
Flyers vs Posters
Flyers and posters are terms that are indefinitely used interchangeably. Being two of the most printed materials out there, more often than not, people who use them do not know the difference between the two and assume it to be one and the same.
But it is not so. From their purpose to their sizes, everything is different and unique. To know what works best for your brand/business, it is important to understand the difference between flyers and posters.
To begin with, flyers are single sheets of unfolded paper that are commonly printed on one side to communicate information or message to your audience in a quick, cost-effective, and efficient manner. Many business organizations and marketers use them for promoting events, products, services, and or even a new brand.
Whereas, a poster is a single, unfolded sheet of paper that contains graphic designs, images, copy, and colors – similar to flyers. However, the difference between the two is that posters use durable paper with a glossy finish and are also bigger in size. They are versatile and can be used by almost every industry, such as movie posters, travel posters, educational posters, etc.
Other than their characteristics, what further differentiates both the flyers and posters is their sizes. Even though you can print on any size while designing and printing your flyers, the most common size of the flyer is 8.3” x 11.7” (A4 size paper) or 8.5” x 11”. However, other popular flyer sizes are A5 paper (8.3” x 5.8”), A6 paper (5.8” x 4.1”), and 8.3” x 3.9”.
For the posters, 24” x 26” is the most common amongst music bands but can be very limiting when it comes to marketing and or advertising. Which is why you have other standard sizes, such as 16” x 20”, 18” x 24”, 20” x 30”, 22” x 28”, 27” x 40”, and 36” x 48”.
Now that you know the difference between flyers and posters, you can go ahead and choose the medium that fits your brand and resonates well with your audience. Creating flyer designs that fit perfectly within the paper’s dimensions enhances your design and makes it visually appealing.
Types of Flyers
A good flyer is all about presenting the information or the message in a practical and eye-catching way. And knowing which type of flyer suits you the best, you need to make sure that you know the purpose for creating the flyer.
Listed below are three major types of flyers which you can use to present your information effectively and efficiently, based on the purpose the flyer is serving:
Corporate flyers
These types of flyers are used for promotional purposes. They are commonly used by brands/organizations to promote their business, a product, and or service. These flyers are packed up with content while making sure to maintain a clean and organized appeal.
Using neutral tones for the flyer’s color schemes and a balanced grid to place your elements on the flyer gives your flyer design clarity and makes it aesthetically pleasing to the viewers.
Tip: Include your brand’s logo and call-to-action in the flyer that gives a direction to the audience and makes your brand recognizable.
Flyer ads
Flyer Ads focus more on the information rather than on the design. They are majorly used for spreading awareness regarding sale advertisements and or limited period offers. From displaying a picture(s) of what you’re selling, the prices to product details, and contact details should be highlighted using bold, bright colors that contrast well with your background.
Tip: Concise your information and use easy-to-read, legible fonts for effective communication.
Photo-centric flyers
They are the ideal medium for developing and promoting network-building and using a bright, bold color palette that is eye-catching and attractive to the audience. Use images/photos that are not only relevant to your brand/organization, but also relatable to the audience.
Tip: Use images that can make your audience imagine what your event would be like.
While choosing the right kind of type, select the one that not only fulfills your purpose but also meets all your graphic and content requirements. After selecting the ideal flyer, you’re all set to move to your next step, which is designing!
More often than not, most of the flyers that we see end up crumpled in a bin. And that is because, even after having relevant information, it fails to capture the viewer’s eye. A good flyer design flyer is the key to ensuring that your flyer doesn’t meet the same fate as the other flyers.
13 Tips to create an eye-catching flyer
Living in the digital age, coming across a printed marketing medium, a flyer is rare. Flyers have been used as an efficient marketing and or advertising tool for a long time to promote their product(s), service(s), and even build brand awareness.
In most cases, flyers are not thoroughly searched upon, and so most brands have never unlocked their full potential as a promotional tool. But organizations/businesses and marketers that have done their research right know precisely the potential of a well-designed flyer.
To help you unlock your flyer’s full potential, we have curated a list of 13 tips to create an aesthetically pleasing and eye-catching flyer:
Get creative with photography
Photographs that are relatable are always an excellent choice to go with. Using photographs and images that highlight your content and or communicate as well as evoke the emotion you want your viewers to feel will give your flyer an edge over your competitors.Beautiful and aesthetically appealing imagery will get people looking at your flyer while drawing them in.
Tip: Make sure to use visually impactful and high-quality images/photographs to enhance your flyer design.
Be daring
Turn your flyer into a statement piece. Be daring and make use of humor, be overdramatic, and don’t be afraid to make bold claims. Go loco with creativity to make your flyer designs stand out from the rest.
Tip: Maybe even try using swear words if you find it appropriate.
Play with colors
One thing that attracts any crowd is a gripping color palette. Don’t shy away from using lively, vibrant colors mixed with creative designs. Use bold contrasting colors to your benefit or dark base with a neon accent, or if you’re feeling brave enough, then give red a shot.
Tip: Use colors as reinforcers. For instance, use primary colors to highlight your message for kids or yellows/greens for a health-related brand.
Embrace simplicity
Don’t forget the golden rule of designing; keep it simple. Too many elements on your design will make it look messy and chaotic, use elements that are needed on the design and remove the rest. In fact, designs with a lot of space and minimalistic elements can drive the attention to what actually matters.
Tip: It’s always preferred to stick and focus on one key message throughout the design.
Clichés aren’t all that bad
Sometimes old is gold. Try experimenting with old school designs or blend vintage designs with the latest trends, and you might just create some gold designs. You can even try using vintage design layouts as your base and go loco with it.
Tip: Following the rules might be the best way to go around a design.
Be seasonal
Make your designs timely and relevant by tapping into current events and seasonality. Plan your flyer design layout around the holiday season by using colors, elements, and or typefaces that resonate and evokes the holiday spirit in your audience.
Tip: Be careful to not let the theme of the flyer design overpower the actual message.Tip: Be careful to not let the theme of the flyer design overpower the actual message.
Get around perspectives
Let’s all agree that even though linear works, it’s kind of overused! It’s time you start playing around with angles and include patterns in an unexpected manner. A clever bit of design and or an element of surprise will grab your audience’s attention.
Tip: Try using your flyer headings on a different angle and then play around with various imagery and or fonts to give your flyer an edge.
Get your creative juices flowing
Take your brand personality into consideration and plan your design accordingly. Don’t shy away from being playful and use your creativity to bring your message to life. For instance, using graphics and cartoons on your flyer designs makes your flyer look appealing and approachable.
Tip: Want to make your flyer even more trendy? Go full emoji!
Have fun with sizes
We all know the standard size of the flyer. Don’t let yours be one amongst the many. Think beyond your design and the content. Think about the flyer itself. Evaluate your flyer’s various sizes and ponder what you can do with your flyer that makes it look different from the rest.
Tip: Maybe go smaller for making it easier to handle or go big for a high-quality product.
Get cozy with the dark side
Using bright colors are definitely a sure shot win for most flyer designs. But don’t forget about the dark tones. Using dark colors can also attract your viewer’s attention, and pairing it up with contrasting colors for typefaces and other elements, will lift up your design to another level.
Tip: Black is one the effective colors that would highlight and enhance almost any luxury product or brand.
Be clear
The main purpose of a flyer is to communicate a message. Use your flyer design to answer the question, what is in it for them? Highlight and reinforce your message via images, elements, and text that is easy to understand and relate with.
Tip: Be specific and to the point as to what message you want to convey and use your design elements to strengthen it further.
Don’t make them guess
Similar to the message, don’t make your customer guess what you do. Tell them what you do. Give your primary product the center stage, and use other flyer design elements to highlight or emphasize the product.
Tip: Use your product/brand imagery and text relating to the product/brand in your flyer design to be specific and clear about what your brand and or a product is all about.
Embrace shapes
Take up the challenge to come up with a flyer design with a different shape. Think outside the box and see if you can come up with a flyer design that can be later reused. For example, you can use your creativity and knowledge of shapes to create a flyer that is in the shape of a postcard or a door hanger.
Tip: Use interactive flyer design that impels the audience to repurpose it instead of throwing it away.
Now that you know these creative flyer design tips to create engaging flyers, there is no excuse not to use them. You can mix and merge these tips in a way that suits your brand and or your product well. And don’t forget to consider the audience while coming up with impressive flyer design.
Coming up with an engaging, unique flyer design is just half the battle won. To escalate your design plan, you need to assess your flyer material options before you put them out there for the world to see.
4 Types of flyer materials to strengthen your design
To step up your flyer game, it’s time to evaluate the different kinds of paper materials that goes perfectly well with your design and reflect your brand personality. Choosing the right material is important as it will either transform your flyer into the way you imagined it to be or will turn it into a bootleg version of your idea.
And that is why we have curated a list of 4 types of flyer materials that you need to look out for. These 4 materials are widely used by various brands around the world to grab the attention of audiences and make a lasting impression:
Synthetic Paper
Yupo blue paper is the most commonly used synthetic paper that is made from polypropylene. It combines and has all the benefits of plastic film and natural paper that creates flyers that are resistant to UV light, chemicals, stains, and even water.
What makes it a popular choice for flyers that are handed outside is its properties to withstand harsh weather conditions and demanding printing needs. Even though it is made out of synthetic material, it gives out an ideal matte finish with a smooth and soft surface that can be used for any flyer design.
Paperweight options:
- 158gsm
- 234gsm
- 276gsm
Cardboard Material
This white paper cardboard is made from bleached chemical pulp with a coated finish, which makes it almost as thick as the paper we get for greeting cards. What stands out about this sulfate board is that it is white in color, which makes it an ideal fit for all kinds of printing.
Even though this material is largely used for packaging, they make an interesting flyer material as their thicker and studier properties give it a more professional and luxurious feel compared to the other flyers. And its thickness doesn’t seem to be a hindrance when it comes to cutting, stamping, creasing, and or embossing.
Metallic Paper
Are you looking to give your flyer an unworldly look and feel? Go with Metallic paper. Using this particular paper material will provide that bonus shine to your flyer design that is sure to grab your viewer’s attention. They are available in two different types based on their finish – Sirio Metallic and Pearl-Finished.
Sirio Metallic gives off a high metallic shine, whereas Pearl marble finish paper is the material that gives a soft sparkling shimmer. Both of these materials are available in three different colors – gold, silver, and white.
Paperweight options:
- 290gsm (Pearl finish paper)
- 300gsm (Sirio Metallic paper)
Kraft Paper
What makes this paper different from others is that unlike other papers, this material has neither chemicals nor dyes while processing, giving it a natural brown color. It is an ideal option for environmentally conscious brands, as it is 100% biodegradable.
Even with a rustic look, it manages to give off an impressive, stylish vibe. It is thicker, tear-resistant, and stronger, which makes it the perfect choice for handing them out on the streets.
If you’re planning to go ahead with Kraft paper, keep in mind that the white spaces in your design plan will appear brown, so keep that in mind while designing your flyer. Illustrations and black based designs enhance when printed on Kraft paper.
Paperweight options:
- 283gsm
Every material conveys a message. So make sure to choose a material that not only fits well with your design but also communicates your message effectively. And now that you know everything about designing a flyer, it’s time to get started!
Use your knowledge of flyers and creativity to create a flyer design that will resonate well with your audience and reflect your brand personality to get the desired results.
Importance of flyer in the modern-day
One of the most obvious questions that come to mind when you learn about flyers is whether it’s still relevant in this high-tech era? The simple answer is yes! It is still one of the most widely used advertising tools used by businesses across the globe.
To help you understand the relevance and importance of flyers, we have 5 reasons to showcase their effectiveness:
Easy access to the customers
Flyers allow you to easily get in touch with your potential customers by placing these flyers at certain locations and or handing them out directly.
Cost-effectiveness
This one is a no brainer. All you need to do is create an efficient design and choose the right material that fits your needs and is in your budget. And you’re good to go!
Appealing effect
Flyers are the perfect way to showcase your creativity and attract your audience towards your product and or brand. It acts as a medium to appeal to your customers through your inventiveness and artistry.
Tangible nature of the flyer
The tangibility of the flyer appeals more to your consumers since you’re evoking their senses – vision and touch. The fact that your potential customers can physically hold your flyers is half the battle won. And your final design, content, and material make up for the other half.
Building personal relationships
Flyers provide you with an opportunity to connect with your potential customers outside the social media realm. When you hand the flyer personally to your clients, they will be reminded of your service/product and your personality, which forms the basis of trust and authenticity in them. Get the unlimited flyer designs from All Time Design.
Flyers are an integral part of advertising that has stayed around for a while and will continue to do so since it resonates with all kinds of people and brands around the world. They are one of the most personalized, effective, and efficient marketing tools of all time.
10 Inspiring examples of flyers
One can get inspiration from anywhere they look. Here are 10 inspiring examples of flyers that have aced their flyer design game and appealed to the audience with their creativity.
