The Art and Science of Magazine Covers
Nothing sells a magazine like its cover. New every issue yet clearly identifying your brand, your cover must catch the eye of your potential reader whether it competes with a handful of other publications on the coffee table or hundreds of magazines on the newsstands. While every cover is unique, some simple tips will help you make yours most effective.
What Works in Cover Design
Creating Your Look
Your magazine cover defines what you are for your potential readers--but it is not the editorial product (not entirely). It is also the sales flyer for your publication. When putting your publications, therefore, consider several simple rules:
1) Catch the eye. In a store environment, most browswers stand six to eight feet back when scanning a newsstand. Your logo, image, and cover lines muse therefore attract attention and tell their story from a distance. How will you do that?
With a strong central image, easily legible cover lines, lots of contrast; use these tools and you are off to a good start.
2) Identify your product. Your logo should be bold, clear, and instantly identifiable. Studies show that an unobstructed logo provides the most instant recognition; a logo placed on a busy background or semi-obscured by the cover image will have a harder time of doing its job.
3) Offer a benefit. This is the job of your cover lines. Think of your cover lines as ad copy. Every one of them is meant to entice the reader to pick up your magazine, thumb through it, buy it, read it. They are selling your product to the reader. How will they do that? By offering something readers want. This means knowledge, information, tips, how-to, and, of course, entertainment.
4) Be exciting. Offer free tips, a special guide, an exclusive insight, new information, bonus material. This offers something urgent and timely, and overcomes a certain degree of buying resistance.
5) Be specific. Don't just offer gardening tips, offer tips on how to grow the biggest, reddest tomatos possible. Rather than offering sewing patterns, offer 21 new patterns for spring fashion.
6) Be energetic. Drop the "ings." Instead of "training your pet," use "train your pet". Instead of "learning windows," promise people they will "learn windows."
7) Showcase the product. If you are publishing a computer magazine, the cover image should be a computer. A child magazine should feature a child as a cover image (as opposed to the family, the parents, and so on). One child is better than a group of children; one athlete, on a sports publication, will usually beat a team.
By sticking with a clean look, a clear and singular image, and a message which is benefit-oriented and perceived at a glance, you will have a cover that will not fail to draw interested readers to your publication.
1) Catch the eye. In a store environment, most browswers stand six to eight feet back when scanning a newsstand. Your logo, image, and cover lines muse therefore attract attention and tell their story from a distance. How will you do that?
With a strong central image, easily legible cover lines, lots of contrast; use these tools and you are off to a good start.
2) Identify your product. Your logo should be bold, clear, and instantly identifiable. Studies show that an unobstructed logo provides the most instant recognition; a logo placed on a busy background or semi-obscured by the cover image will have a harder time of doing its job.
3) Offer a benefit. This is the job of your cover lines. Think of your cover lines as ad copy. Every one of them is meant to entice the reader to pick up your magazine, thumb through it, buy it, read it. They are selling your product to the reader. How will they do that? By offering something readers want. This means knowledge, information, tips, how-to, and, of course, entertainment.
4) Be exciting. Offer free tips, a special guide, an exclusive insight, new information, bonus material. This offers something urgent and timely, and overcomes a certain degree of buying resistance.
5) Be specific. Don't just offer gardening tips, offer tips on how to grow the biggest, reddest tomatos possible. Rather than offering sewing patterns, offer 21 new patterns for spring fashion.
6) Be energetic. Drop the "ings." Instead of "training your pet," use "train your pet". Instead of "learning windows," promise people they will "learn windows."
7) Showcase the product. If you are publishing a computer magazine, the cover image should be a computer. A child magazine should feature a child as a cover image (as opposed to the family, the parents, and so on). One child is better than a group of children; one athlete, on a sports publication, will usually beat a team.
By sticking with a clean look, a clear and singular image, and a message which is benefit-oriented and perceived at a glance, you will have a cover that will not fail to draw interested readers to your publication.
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What has Worked for You?
Reader's talk about their most successful magazine covers
Lensmaster
Brenda Tan wrote
Happy Girl
Posted January 05, 2009
techtutor wrote...
Great design advice which also applies to web page or ebook cover design. One of my favorite things to do when I'm designing a web page is to browse my local magazine store for inspiration. Thanks for the tips.
Posted March 08, 2008
More Publishing Tips
New Orbitz!
by LRuth
Linda Ruth works with magazine publishers large and small to optimize their cover performance. (more)
