Advertising Design Techniques

Advertising is a high-demand industry that supports itself by providing marketing services to nearly every other industry. Almost all companies that develop products or provide services are dependent upon advertising agencies to market their products and provide a steady stream of customers.

Advertising is a diverse field that relies on several different techniques to attract interest and increase awareness for marketed products. Advertisements must be tailored to reach the target audiences that are most likely to take an interest in the product or service offered. The following common advertising design techniques are frequently used by companies to accomplish these goals:

Use of Color

Colors are used in nearly every advertising strategy in order to attract attention. The color schemes used in advertising are based on the idea that contrasting, or complimentary colors, are more likely to attract interest than colors that are similar to each other.

Single Visual Design

This advertising design technique relies on the idea that pictures can relay as much information as graphics and text. Advertisements based on the single visual design tend to include a single, stationary image, and a very limited amount of text. The text is usually limited to seven or less words that are meant to compliment the image. This design relies on simplicity to accomplish what large amounts of written text and graphics cannot.

The Z-Layout Design

This technique is more complicated than the previous designs, and is meant to draw viewers' attention in motions that trace the letter "Z" as follows:

1. The viewer's attention is attracted to the upper-left side of the advertisement by an image or graphic.


2. The viewer then reads the headline, which leads them on the upper-right side of the advertisement.


3. The body consists of a descriptive text that leaves the reader looking at the bottom-left section of the advertisement.


4. The viewer then reads what is usually a call-to-action message that leads to the bottom-right part of the advertisement.