As a legal need, the submission of an annual report to shareholders, investors and trustees is something that can re-inforce the organisations core branding and values.
Choosing the right annual report designers
Many charities and some corporate firms are tied to strictly budgeted guidelines and often use amateur designers or recommended friends to produce these complex reports. It obviously makes sense then to choose an annual report design company that have a proven track history in this field and can show off some impressive design portfolio of past annual reports they have designed to back up their quality.
Don't make a mess of the figures
More often than not an annual report graphic designer will be handed over a bunch of excel documents including balance sheet reports and financial statement reports and be expected to turn a page of numbers into something approaching creative design.
Make full use of white space - the designers default trick
White space, to fill or not to fill that is the question. On balance and especially if you are able to maintain a straight face while convincing a head of accounting that leaving the page design as a minimal exercise in preserving a blank canvas is the way to best portray annual report designs, you should always try to move in the white space design direction. Another good design trick to use on annual financial statements is to have a photoshoot and have the normally camera shy accounting division staged to look like they mean business. It will provide an amusing counter balance to the dry waffle contained in the report wording.
A financial report design should make you want to rub the page with glee not send you to the land of nod.
A. Annual Rapport – Today's Annual Reports Need to be More Than Mere Numbers
Blah, blah, blah. Blah, blah, blah. Exciting initiatives. Blah, blah, blah. Proactive approach. Blah, blah, blah. Poised for the future.
Financial Reports:
Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah = Blah.
Your annual report shouldn't be “blah”.
Your annual report is the single most important document your company produces – and it’s most powerful public relations and marketing tool. A thoughtfully designed annual communicates corporate culture and values, recruits new talent, builds brand recognition, boosts corporate image and offers people a glimpse at the organization behind the numbers.
Dollars and Sense
In studies conducted by the Ernst & Young Center for Business Innovation diverse investors consistently placed a premium on non-financial criteria. Attributes such as branding, strategy execution, management credibility, innovation, ability to attract and retain talented people, and R&D ranked high among those polled.
Maximize the Message
Your annual report will leave a lasting impression. Navigating production obstacles and emerging with a compelling annual requires finesse.
1. Communicate excellence through design. The quality of concept, layout, printing and bindery, paper, graphics, photography, illustration and copywriting are all reflections of your organization.
2. Eschew pedantry and esoteric vocational patois. Straightforward, engaging copy will get the message across and create momentum that carries readers from page to page.
3. Flaunt your assets. Non-financial performance information lets them know if you’re poised for growth and capable of weathering financial storms. Emphasizing advantages such as comprehensive branding, or skilled management and labor retention rates reassures investors you have what it takes to keep moving forward.
4. Go digital. Making your annual report available via the company web site is cost- effective and eco-friendly. A digital version of your report is an excellent supplement to the printed book, but not a replacement – printed reports are still a must.
B. Graphic Design Tips for Digital Printing
Graphic designing calls for a lot of patience, perseverance, imagination and creativity. May be some useful graphic design tips may help you improve on your designing skills. Spend time experimenting with color, textures and your favorite software - be it Photoshop, Illustrator, Corel. Every tutorial in graphic designing can be a valuable source of inspiration; but avoid picking the too hard or the too easy ones. Most experienced graphic designers recommend watching science fiction and fantasy movies as a potential source for new ideas. Some persons new to graphic designing visit exhibitions to collect calendars, booklets and other promotion materials. It is a good practice to continually browse Google images, Flicker, stock photos sites.
Very often you will find eye-catchy design works either accidentally or by searching using different keywords. It is true that a lot of designers find inspiration in reading and writing blogs and planning posts for graphic design. If you are able to conceive a perfect design first in your head, then it will be easier to implement it in real design work.
Many people are under the impression that it is easy to convert a print brochure to a website and vice versa little realizing the difficulties involved. You have to bear in mind that the print resolution is generally higher than web resolution which is 72dpi. Therefore images are bound to appear much larger in 72dpi screen resolution. Many nice design fonts will not work on your website except if you keep them as images. When using general HTML fonts, you are restricted to only a limited number of fonts. A simple brochure will invariably be not designed to the same scale requirements to suit a website. Keep in mind that converting a print design to a website might require some advanced skills!
There are quite a few other sustainable design tips when it comes to graphic design. The present trend is to avoid superfluous white space.
Choosing the right annual report designers
Many charities and some corporate firms are tied to strictly budgeted guidelines and often use amateur designers or recommended friends to produce these complex reports. It obviously makes sense then to choose an annual report design company that have a proven track history in this field and can show off some impressive design portfolio of past annual reports they have designed to back up their quality.
Don't make a mess of the figures
More often than not an annual report graphic designer will be handed over a bunch of excel documents including balance sheet reports and financial statement reports and be expected to turn a page of numbers into something approaching creative design.
Make full use of white space - the designers default trick
White space, to fill or not to fill that is the question. On balance and especially if you are able to maintain a straight face while convincing a head of accounting that leaving the page design as a minimal exercise in preserving a blank canvas is the way to best portray annual report designs, you should always try to move in the white space design direction. Another good design trick to use on annual financial statements is to have a photoshoot and have the normally camera shy accounting division staged to look like they mean business. It will provide an amusing counter balance to the dry waffle contained in the report wording.
A financial report design should make you want to rub the page with glee not send you to the land of nod.
A. Annual Rapport – Today's Annual Reports Need to be More Than Mere Numbers
Blah, blah, blah. Blah, blah, blah. Exciting initiatives. Blah, blah, blah. Proactive approach. Blah, blah, blah. Poised for the future.
Financial Reports:
Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah = Blah.
Your annual report shouldn't be “blah”.
Your annual report is the single most important document your company produces – and it’s most powerful public relations and marketing tool. A thoughtfully designed annual communicates corporate culture and values, recruits new talent, builds brand recognition, boosts corporate image and offers people a glimpse at the organization behind the numbers.
Dollars and Sense
In studies conducted by the Ernst & Young Center for Business Innovation diverse investors consistently placed a premium on non-financial criteria. Attributes such as branding, strategy execution, management credibility, innovation, ability to attract and retain talented people, and R&D ranked high among those polled.
Maximize the Message
Your annual report will leave a lasting impression. Navigating production obstacles and emerging with a compelling annual requires finesse.
1. Communicate excellence through design. The quality of concept, layout, printing and bindery, paper, graphics, photography, illustration and copywriting are all reflections of your organization.
2. Eschew pedantry and esoteric vocational patois. Straightforward, engaging copy will get the message across and create momentum that carries readers from page to page.
3. Flaunt your assets. Non-financial performance information lets them know if you’re poised for growth and capable of weathering financial storms. Emphasizing advantages such as comprehensive branding, or skilled management and labor retention rates reassures investors you have what it takes to keep moving forward.
4. Go digital. Making your annual report available via the company web site is cost- effective and eco-friendly. A digital version of your report is an excellent supplement to the printed book, but not a replacement – printed reports are still a must.
B. Graphic Design Tips for Digital Printing
Graphic designing calls for a lot of patience, perseverance, imagination and creativity. May be some useful graphic design tips may help you improve on your designing skills. Spend time experimenting with color, textures and your favorite software - be it Photoshop, Illustrator, Corel. Every tutorial in graphic designing can be a valuable source of inspiration; but avoid picking the too hard or the too easy ones. Most experienced graphic designers recommend watching science fiction and fantasy movies as a potential source for new ideas. Some persons new to graphic designing visit exhibitions to collect calendars, booklets and other promotion materials. It is a good practice to continually browse Google images, Flicker, stock photos sites.
Very often you will find eye-catchy design works either accidentally or by searching using different keywords. It is true that a lot of designers find inspiration in reading and writing blogs and planning posts for graphic design. If you are able to conceive a perfect design first in your head, then it will be easier to implement it in real design work.
Many people are under the impression that it is easy to convert a print brochure to a website and vice versa little realizing the difficulties involved. You have to bear in mind that the print resolution is generally higher than web resolution which is 72dpi. Therefore images are bound to appear much larger in 72dpi screen resolution. Many nice design fonts will not work on your website except if you keep them as images. When using general HTML fonts, you are restricted to only a limited number of fonts. A simple brochure will invariably be not designed to the same scale requirements to suit a website. Keep in mind that converting a print design to a website might require some advanced skills!
There are quite a few other sustainable design tips when it comes to graphic design. The present trend is to avoid superfluous white space.
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