communication agency

To increase the legibility of your text, it’s advisable to use lowercase letters, even in titles. Research shows that reading speed decreases by 10% if you use capital letters. Why? Because the human brain recognizes words primarily by their form. The problem with capital letters is that they look very much alike, seeing as they are all somewhat rectangular. That explains why you can read the text to the right a lot easier than the text to the left.

In addition, the use of capital letters is associated with shouting, harassment, or inappropriate comments (for example; just look to social media or the comment section of your local newspaper). Unless this is the effect you want to achieve, steer clear of all caps.

If your message is not readable, it will not be understood. Therefore, choose a quiet layout, with a single font. You can create structure by working with font styles like "regular" for plain text and “bold” for titles and keywords. Keep it in the family!
Form follows function, and not vice versa. Aid your reader with a clear structure and legible text: so that he can focus on your content.

The default architecture of an ad dictates that people first look at top left-hand corner, where the headline will be. You’ll place a visual, or body copy in the middle and in the bottom right-hand corner is where the packshot should be. This also follows the classic AIDA model.

• The headline draws attention (Attention).
• The image generates interest (Interest) and, together with the possible body-copy, generates desire (Desire).
• The packshot clearly tells the consumer how to recognize the product, to then buy it later on (Action).

Seeing as the packshot is placed below, it should close the advertisement, like a coda in a song. That’s why you ought to place it looking inwards, not outwards. As a visual exercise, compare the packshot with the cat’s look on the image above. The cat looks left and guides the reader through the ad. The same applies to the packshot: it holds the reader's attention and concludes the story.

No, this blog post is not about the size of the logo and the eternal battle between agencies and advertisers. Enough ink has been spilled over this matter. At all times, a logo deserves enough space to breathe and to be seen. Therefore, the logo must always stand alone, so it can perform its marketing function well.
Even when a logo is made up of written text it is not experienced as text but as an image. Therefore, it is important that you do not use the logo as text. In the example above, the effectiveness increases by repeating the brand name - and not the logo - in the slogan.

Always be careful with the colors you us for a presentation. The complementary colors - the colors that are directly opposite each other in the color circle - will create a very strong contrast. This can cause the edges of the letters to "vibrate", making the text less legible.
Thus, it’s best to use one bright color and one less vibrant color to complement it. Moreover, this looks a lot more professional. 

A presentation must form one clear whole. This is true of the language you use, but also applies to the images you show. Choose one style and use it in all of the slides. Either pick full-color images or go for black and white, but never combine the two. When displaying products, you can use packshots (products displayed on a white background) or ambient images (products displayed in the context they might be used).
It is important to not interchange them in one and the same presentation, and especially not in the same slide. For example, the microwave in the above example completely lacks coherence. It would have been better to display it in a similar manner as the other products, as a packshot.

A presentation gains dynamic rhythm with the use of visuals. By introducing rotation, you can keep an audience enthused at attentive during a (longer) presentation. This is also confirmed by eye tracking research: a well-chosen, meaningful visual draws attention, more so than bulky text.

So, yes, it’s a great idea to combine images with catchy headliners, like quotes. But that eye-catching effect will be lost if your text gets eaten by your image. If your message is too difficult to decipher, your audience won’t want to bother with it.

Therefore, it’s advised to put lettering on a solid background. This way, you combine the best of two worlds: a visual that draws attention and a clear, legible message. Win win!

With a special font, your title gets the attention it deserves. For the rest of the text, use a readable, "plain" font. Otherwise it will be too busy. Compare it with an outfit: if all clothes shout for attention, the effect is completely lost. In the example, both the title and the body copy are beautiful. The title gets a more aesthetic font and for the body copy we used Gibson, perfect for easy reading of readable text.

Which text block is the most legible? The right-hand block, of course, where the text is left-aligned. The text is set naturally which means you don't have to search where the next rule is while reading.
Justified means that you correct the text on both sides of the paragraph and the left and right margin for each rule is the same. Don't do this: it looks simply horrible. Some rules have too much text, with others there's a lack of white space. Justifying lager chunks of text creates trenches: like white 'snakes' that run through the text that visually distract from your message.
Centered is also difficult to read if there is too much text. This alignment can be used for (sub)titles. It's often used for posters or invitations, for example.

The most important information on your invitation is the what, when and where. It's best to put this information at the top, so that the recipient immediately understands. Then, the rest of the explanation follows. Feel free to make this section a bit more personal, so that the reader feels personally addressed and willing to come to the event.

Don't forget to mention what the reader needs to do to sign up! This can be done via a landing page or an email address. People are busy and often can't respond immediately. Therefore, send a save-the-date and a reminder after the official invitation.

Borden: van groot naar klein

• Zet de borden op twee vingers afstand van de tafelrand. Begin eventueel met een mooi onderbord. Stapel daarna de borden van groot naar klein.
• Het bordje voor brood zet u linksboven, samen met het botermesje.
• Als u geen soep serveert, kunt u de servet op het bord leggen. Is er wel soep? Dan legt u het servet links van de vorken.

Het bestek: van voorgerecht naar hoofdgerecht

• Het bestek ligt mooi evenwijdig met het bord.
• Werk van buiten naar binnen. Dus: eerst voorgerecht, dan soep, dan hoofdgerecht. De uitzondering: het dessertbestek. Dat ligt boven het bord.
• Vorken gaan links, messen en lepels rechts. Het botermesje ligt wel gewoon op het broodbordje.
• Leg de snijzijde van het mes altijd naar het bord toe.

Glazen: klein voor wit, groot voor rood

• Plaats de glazen rechts boven het bord, in een schuine lijn naar beneden.
• Het glas dat u eerst gebruikt, staat uiterst rechts. Meestal is dat een kleiner wijnglas voor witte wijn. Als u ook het aperitief aan tafel serveert, dan staat dat het meest rechts. Naast de witte wijn komt een groter glas voor de rode wijn.
• Vergeet ook het waterglas niet: dat staat helemaal links.