Poster Writing Tips: What to Write on Your San Francisco Business Poster

With about 91% of people favoring visual content over written content, you need to step up your game! Posters are an excellent global favorite marketing method. Poster writing is abstract, creative, dynamic, and bold and integrates all kinds of emotions. 

A poster is a strong attention grabber. With a great design and eye-catching logos, headlines, and images, customers are more likely to listen to what you have to say.  

So how do you create the perfect poster design for your brand and customers? Keep reading as we give tips for writing your unique San Francisco business posters.

Start Planning and Sketching  

Even if you plan to make a digital poster, sketching on paper is the best way to figure out ideas and draft your composition. After deciding on the message for your poster, visualize and sketch out the details you want to include and list down what element goes where.

Also, it’s the right time to determine if you’ll incorporate text and choose the best fonts and images. 

Consider the Format and Size

After sketching a rough composition, determine your poster size and format. What kind of poster do you plan to create and what elements are you including? 

It’s best to print out your drafts to test how readable your text and elements are. When you downsize the poster to an online post, all poster elements should still be visible and eye-catching. 

Make Your Poster Design Readable 

A poster intends to translate an idea quickly, so any text must be readable, even from afar. The key to fulfilling this is to make a hierarchy in the wording. Here are a few elements you need to consider when it comes to readability: 

Headline 

The headline is the primary and enormous typography feature of a poster design. The font must be easy to read, but you may get creative with playful text and artistic typefaces. 

The headline doesn’t have to be at the top of your poster. It could be at the side or bottom, or the text may interact with the poster visuals. The headline just has to capture the viewer’s attention on the spot and portray the poster’s message. 

Clear and Concise Details 

Your poster should provide the details of your brand that your audience should know. If the poster is an event, where and when? Who gets involved, and what will people expect to experience or see? 

For the text that delivers the details, the font must be half the size of your poster headline. Provide information in a short, concise, and clear format. Consider using sans-serif as it’s a non-decorative font that’s easily understandable. 

Fine Print

The fine print is generally seen in movie posters to offer more info or credit the people involved. On a business poster, you can include a few important details about your business and services or products. However, depending on the poster’s format and elements, this section isn’t always required. 

Determine the Poster Design Color Scheme 

A color palette is a powerful means for expressing a mood, so pick hues that further transmit your message. For example, a summer music event may feature radiant colors that convey vibrant energy, sunlight, and the outdoors.

A reasonable practical rule is to use three to five colors. Your promotional poster should include a primary, a secondary, and an accent color. 

One way to stop somebody in their path and attract them to check your poster is by recreating it with contrast. Instead of using a monotone palette, try playing with contrasting shades and colors.

You can layer permeated features over a dark setting or dark motifs over a light backdrop. You may also use striking contrast with gradients, use two types of fonts, or make juxtapositions with graphic features. 

Create an Impact With Poster Visuals 

One challenging thing about creating a poster is choosing the visuals. A prevailing image, like a photo or an illustration, has the potential to draw attention and convey a message.

Using one panoramic photo will have a huge impact and make a lasting impression. You can also use a striking illustration, a close-up face, or play around with letterforms to let stunning typography be the main focus. 

Leave Exaggerated Spaces 

Making an outsized space could work well in poster writing. The negative space between letterforms offers more legibility from afar, while tight letter spacing can be a blur.

Leaving space on other design details like illustrations gives more power to draw viewers in. Another way to use white space is to make a white border on the whole design. 

Adopt a Minimalist Poster Design

A sloppy poster design will leave people uninterested and confuse anybody reading it. Take time to back away from your workspace to review what you have put in your design.

Then, remove any unwarranted features and overdesigned elements from your composition. 

Determine Printing Techniques for Your Poster Design

The printing procedure is another opportunity to flex those composition muscles. Many creative printing techniques can boost your design and provide extra character. Also, for a handmade feel, you can try classic printing processes, like lino or screen printing. 

You can also make your poster look opulent and print your poster design with letterpress or risograph printing. A risograph is a mixture of analog and digital methods, and the outcomes can look textured and vibrant.

All the Poster Writing Tips You Need to Know 

Now that we’ve disclosed our poster writing tips, we hope you’re more motivated to start creating design decisions. We encourage you to be innovative and push the limits of the art form, especially for a local poster in San Francisco. 

We’d love to help you create your poster design to stand out, regardless if it’s for events, conference centers, in-store, or local fairs. Aside from poster creation, we can also help with distribution, planning, and copywriting. Go ahead and contact us if you need help with your flyers, postcards, and posters!