Basic design principles

Keep these basic design principles in mind when creating business cards or any of your printed marketing materials.

Alignment- Consider how you want to align all text. Make sure that the placement of text makes sense and the information is easy to find. Decide how much of a margin you want. Everything must be connected. You don’t want any text to seem as if it were thrown in at the last minute.

Contrast- Contrast is important. You want contrast between your fonts and images. Don’t choose fonts that look too similar to each other or people will be confused. Do not choose too many different fonts, either. Your marketing materials should be clean, simple, and easy to read. All fonts and images should be easily distinguished and complement each other.

Proximity- Decide where all information will be placed. Similar ideas should be grouped together. Separate information should be clearly separate.

Repetition- Your marketing materials should be consistent. Be sure to stick with the correct theme, colors, and fonts. You want to convey an image of organization and professionalism.