You only have one chance to make a good first impression, and for many people, marketing materials are the way they find out about your pharmacy. So don’t tank that first impression by having old-fashioned, cluttered graphic designs.
If you didn’t go to art school, creating graphic designs for your pharmacy’s marketing campaigns probably feels pretty intimidating. But there are a lot of free tools that make graphic design accessible, even for the most artistically challenged.
Use these tips to create impressive graphic designs and make the best first impression possible.
Know your online tools
Professional graphic designers tend to use products like Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator, which are both expensive and difficult for novices to learn.
Fortunately, there are plenty of free and low-cost programs to help you create sleek graphic designs without the stress. Canva is one of the most common programs — it’s an online service that lets you create images for Facebook, Instagram, and more, and it has plenty of ready-made templates for you to choose from.
When it comes to photos, you don’t have to shell out for high-cost stock images. Services like Unsplash and Pixabay have large selections of stock photography that you can use for free.
Limit colors
Color can be a great way to catch people’s attention, but if you use too many colors, your design could end up looking garish.
Be selective in your use of color. If you have colors that are specifically associated with your pharmacy branding, incorporate them into your graphic designs. If you don’t have brand colors, that’s okay. Choose one or two colors that align with your message.
If you aren’t sure what colors look good together, check out the website Coolors. Their generator creates palettes of complementary colors so you can create a design that’s colorful without being overwhelming.
Be consistent
The images you create to market your pharmacy should all have the same look and feel. This means using a similar color palette and also keeping your font choices consistent.
Similar to colors, it’s smart to limit the number of fonts you use. If your pharmacy logo is written in a specific font, use it for the design’s primary call to action. If that font is more decorative, you may want to pick a second, simpler font for additional information.
Once you have those two fonts picked out, stick with them. If you are consistent, patients will start to recognize your graphic designs without even seeing your pharmacy’s name.
Simple is better
In graphic design, less is often more. There is a concept known as negative space (sometimes called white space), which is the space in the design that doesn’t have any images or graphics.
Despite the name, negative space isn’t a negative trait. It actually helps viewers figure out where to focus.
Don’t stuff your designs chock-full with images and text. Too much information will muddle your message and could even confuse people.
Sometimes, the simplest designs are the most memorable ones — like Volkswagen’s famous “Think Small” campaign.
Consider alignment
Don’t eyeball where to put text and images in your design. Instead, think seriously about how they all line up with each other. Even if they aren’t measuring your design with a ruler, viewers will be able to tell that something is “off” if elements are misaligned.
If one section of text is aligned to the right of the graphic, don’t align another section of text to the center. Keeping everything exactly lined up may seem like a challenge, but most design programs have automated guidelines that make it easy to keep your graphic aligned and neat.
A Member-Owned Company Serving Independent Pharmacies
PBA Health is dedicated to helping independent pharmacies reach their full potential on the buy-side of their business. Founded and owned by pharmacists, PBA Health serves independent pharmacies with group purchasing services, wholesaler contract negotiations, proprietary purchasing tools, and more.
An HDA member, PBA Health operates its own NABP-accredited secondary wholesaler with more than 6,000 SKUs, including brands, generics, narcotics CII-CV, cold-storage products, and over-the-counter (OTC) products — offering the lowest prices in the secondary market.
