by Rob Wicker
Real estate agents don’t need to be graphic design experts; however, there are some basic design practices that can help you project a professional image in your advertising. Here are ten tips to help you look more professional:
- Everything has a reason. Just as in your ad copy you delete superfluous words, in make sure that every element in your ad design has a purpose—either the element provides content or it makes the ad more aesthetically pleasing.
- Proportion means that the most important element in the ad is also the largest.
- Balance the elements of the ad. Too many elements in one area result in a lopsided ad.
- Let white space work for you.
- Use a maximum of two fonts per document. I have seen many ads (and especially flyers and brochures) where the agent uses four or five different fonts. This gives the piece an amateurish look.
- Use upper and lower case letters in both your headline and your body copy. UPPER CASE IS HARD TO READ.
- Limit bold words to a dozen. Too much bold is hard to read.
- Limit italicized words to a dozen. See above.
- Reversed copy (white letters on dark background) is also hard to read. You are better off not reversing your ad, even if black is a company color.
- . Most important: Simplicity is best, less is more! This is the most common mistake I see in real estate advertising. Agents want to make sure they get the maximum value from their ads, so they include too much of everything. (See #4 above).
A good practice is to occasionally go to Borders, Barnes & Noble, or another large book store and browse through the magazine section. Don’t just look at the House & Home section. Look at a variety of magazines, the more diverse the better. You’ll get a feel for trends and this may also stimulate your creativity in other areas of your real estate practice.
