5 Basic Principles of Graphic Design Your Small Business Needs To Know

Savvy small business owners understand the importance of the connection between the principles of graphic design and the successful visual identities of their businesses. The old saying is true – you only get one chance to make a great first impression. That makes graphic design critical to small businesses for a number of reasons. Chief among those reasons is graphic design’s ability to tell a story. Other reasons include its ability to help your company set itself apart from your competition, its power to tell a creative, visual story, and its ability to help your company leave a unique mark and make a memorable impression.

Graphic design principles are the concepts that organize and arrange its fundamental elements. These five graphic design principles will help your company convert your target market into loyal customers.

1. Alignment & Balance
   Alignment creates a balanced, orderly look by bringing an eye-appealing hierarchy to design. Alignment keeps objects in line vertically, horizontally, and across every linear plane. Designers use alignment to create order, organization, and visual cooperation and connection. Balance focuses on the human perception of weights and proportions. Design elements don’t necessarily strive for symmetry to create balance and alignment, but they do strive for cohesiveness.
2. Contrast & Emphasis
   Graphic designers use contrast to unite two design elements or colors that might otherwise fight for attention. It makes certain elements of a design stand out. Color contrasts, for example, can create attention-grabbing pops of color, draw attention to messages, and direct the eye to specific images. Think black and white, modern and contemporary, or opposing colors on the color wheel. It’s a clever way to emphasize important design elements.
3. Harmony & Proportion
   When the elements and components of graphic design work in harmony with one another, they create a wholly pleasing piece. Proportion works in conjunction with harmony to establish a pleasant relationship between individual elements in a single design composition. Harmony and balance strike a fantastic relationship between size, color, amount, intensity, and scale. These principles of graphic design also provide unison, symmetry, constancy, and congruence.
4. Movement & Motion
   Graphic design uses movement to create a sense of urgency, to create a blur of perceived motion, or to create a soothing subtlety of movement. Movement in graphic design is also used to direct the eye. An arrow, for example, points the eye to a particular image or verbiage, while a swirl of smoke might be used to create the feeling of running or flying.

5. Negative Space & White Space
   Graphic designers use white space (sometimes called negative space) to strategically create a design that packs a punch without creating visual clutter. Negative space is blank as opposed to positive space which contains other design elements. White space – graphic design elements with no text or imagery – help create balance and give the eye a chance to rest.  It helps establish balance, harmony, symmetry, and overall design appeal.

When you’re ready to put the principles of graphic design to work on creating a visual impact for your small business, head on over to MYDPRINT. Our product suite and design tool can help you create the products you need to brand your business for success. If you need more help – or simply prefer to outsource your graphic design work and concentrate on other areas of running your small business – contact the graphic design team at DPRINT. We have the skill and experience you can rely on to create the visual identity your business needs.

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