Attractive Document Layout and Design in Seven Steps

Have you ever been called upon by your boss to format an important document such as a proposal, annual report or flyer, but didn't feel you had the skills to do it? Have you tried designing a document but when it was finally completed, you couldn't figure out why it didn't look very good?

Relax. Not everyone is a born designer. Thankfully, creating professional-looking documents is easier than you think. If you follow a few simple design rules, you can create attractive, easy-to-read documents and promotional materials that will surely impress your boss.

Here's how to get started:

1. Be objective: Good design is not about your personal preferences. Sure, certain aspects of your personality will show through in anything that you create, but at the end of the day, you're designing your business document with a singular purpose: to communicate an important idea, concept or story. Your goal is to please the audience who is reading your publication, not your grade eleven art teacher.

2. Design, don’t decorate. Good design is about making your document easier to read by visually guiding the readers' eyes to the most important information first. Embellishments such as unnecessary flourishes, bullet points that look like emoticons or serial exclamation marks (!!!!) will distract readers from your main message.

3. Understand your text before you begin. What tone do you need your document to take on? Is the document filled with serious information (i.e.; a critical incident report)? Or, if your document is instructional, how would you layout the information so that it is easy to follow, step by step? When you understand the intended tone and purpose of the text, you'd be surprised at how easy it is to find the right format for your document.

4. Limits fonts to no more that three different styles. Two is even better than three. Use sans serif fonts for headlines and subheadings and serif fonts for body text. An example of a san serif fonts is Arial: it has no 'hooks' on its edges. Serif fonts, such as Times New Roman, have tiny swooshes that reach out from the ends of the letters. Serif fonts make reading longer chucks of text easier on the eyes.

5. Use a simple layout grid. You don’t need a grid made up of hundreds of tiny squares when you begin laying out your design. Instead, divide your page into a 9-square grid, then follow the rule of thirds. By organizing your layout into thirds, rather than halves and quarters, you'll keep yourself from breaking rule number 6.

6. Avoid symmetry at all costs. Symmetrical layout is boring and predictable. Asymmetrical layout based on the golden ratio has been the cornerstone of good design for over 2,400 years. The golden ratio can be found in nature too, the nautilus shell being one of the most well-known naturally made objects linked to the golden ratio.

7. Finally, use color to unify the entire document. Familiarize yourself with the basic principles of how the color wheel works, then choose simple blocks or sections where you can use a few complementary or harmonious colors (hues). Be careful not to use too many colors though; you want to leave enough white space to give your readers' eyes a break from to much visual stimulation.

Sometimes all you need to overcome your doubts about your graphic design abilities are a few simple guidelines to ensure the intent of your message is fully preserved and not overrun by zany bullets, lopsided layout and too many garish colors.

What are your tips for making business documents look good when you don't have a graphic designer on staff?