7 Things You Didn’t Know About Posters : And Why They’re Essential in Advertising

by Kim Tonkovich; January 05, 2021

I’m sure we all remember a time when we hung posters of our favorite rock bands, sports teams, and even supermodels on the walls in our bedrooms and dorm rooms.  Take a second and think of a couple you had…Makes you smile doesn’t it?  Now you might even want to talk about it right?  According to Empire, the most famous movie poster of all time was for the movie “Jaws”.

Well, still today, posters continue to have the power to invoke that same emotional response, when they’re done cleverly and creatively… 

Today’s posters aren’t just your old 24 x 36 high school posters! Those are still fun though.  Read to the end to find out some posters some of our staff had in high school and college!  But for now, let’s take a look at 7 things you might not know about the possibilities with posters, and why they’re essential in your advertising…

POSTER DESIGN POSSIBILITIES

Posters are a more long-lasting way to reach a broad audience than other types of hand-out marketing collateral.  And a creative, eye-catching graphic design with potent content can make an enduring impression.

Start with sketching out your ideas, while keeping in mind that your brand and image are at stake.  Also remember when exploring your design that the imagery may be what grabs consumers’ attention, but it’s the content that drives them to action.  So be sure, even if it’s only one line of text, that your message doesn’t get buried in graphics and clearly conveys the information you want people to remember.  There should be a balance, and that’s no easy task.  Give your ideas and sketches to a professional graphic artist, who may present you with several designs, and may do multiple revisions before you’re confident that you’ve hit a home run.  Be patient because the process is worth the time and investment to arrive at a stellar product.

The possibilities for your poster designs are vast.  Stunning posters can be created in custom sizes, with different materials, cut into various shapes, in different finishes and laminations, and be mounted in many different ways.  Let’s explore some of your options…

  • TYPES OF POSTERS

With the right equipment, posters can be printed in exceptional near-photographic image quality.  Of course there are your standard posters that can be printed on countless types of papers with various finishes, laminations and varnishes.  Paper posters, depending on the size, can be printed in high volume with brilliant color on an offset press.  And Source3Media also has a state-of-the-art Océ Arizona UV Flatbed printer that is capable of producing insane quality images on just about any kind of material.  This high-tech high-definition wide format printer can print custom images in sizes up to 46” x 94” on vinyl, PVC, acrylic, glass, metal, packaging, wallpaper, directly onto doors (as long as it’s a flat surface), and even onto magnetic sheets.  It can even print in 3-D!  If you can imagine it, we can print it.  I don’t know what else to say about it other than it’s pretty flipping cool.

  • POSTER SHAPES & CUTOUTS

And you might not know this, but your posters and signs can be precision cut into custom shapes.  If you want to get really creative, shapes can be cut from different types of materials and layered to create 3-Dimensional signs.

  • TYPES OF POSTER FRAMING & MOUNTING

One of the beauties of posters is that if you create a timeless design, and they’re properly framed, they can last just about forever.  There are standard stands that can be used for traditional poster sizes.  But they can also be custom framed, enclosed in acrylic or glass, and more.  And they can be mounted in so many different ways that they can be hung and displayed almost anywhere.

Outdoor Business Poster Display

WHY POSTERS ARE ESSENTIAL IN ADVERTISING

  • SIZE & VISIBILITY

Because of the wide range of material, size and shape options, a creatively designed poster displayed in the right place can have a huge impact on your company’s visibility and brand awareness.  If you’re considering standard posters (perhaps you have multiple locations where you want a poster for a particular product display or to advertise a promotion), then some sizes that would fit most standard frames and displays are :

  • 8-1/2” x 11” letter size
  • 11” x 17” ledger size
  • 12” x 18” mini-poster size
  • 16” x 20” portrait size
  • 18” x 24” medium poster size
  • 24” x 36” large poster size
  • 27” x 39” and 27” x 40” movie poster size
  • 40” x 60” and 46” x 67” bus shelter/stop and subway poster size

Types of Business Posters

Placement options are vast and can range from hanging on your office walls, to mounting in outdoor high foot traffic areas, in shopping centers, and of course in your retail shops.

  • EMOTIONAL RESPONSE

We talked a little bit about how some posters can elicit such a strong emotional response that you still remember them ten, twenty, even forty years later.  Posters can have an extremely powerful impact on people when cleverly designed.  Your design however needs to influence customers to feel a certain way about a specific person, product, event, or your brand.  So it’s extremely helpful to work with a professional designer that can suggest creative content and graphics that might provoke the response you’re looking for.

  • CALL TO ACTION

Your posters can be used to direct customers to perform a specific action.  You might want them to book an appointment, call your office, participate in a limited time offer, promote a social media hashtag, or even just display a giant QR Code that says “Guess what this does?” and when scanned leads them to something cool on the web that you want to share.  So you can use the space to solicit a particular customer response in an unimaginable number of ways.

  • LONGEVITY

As long as you leave your posters hanging, people will continue to see them.  So in advertising, this long-term exposure can possibly benefit your business in some cases more than an email ad that customers will see only momentarily and only once.  Just be careful not to forget about them and leave them up so long that they lose their impact.  It’s important to refresh your look and your brand every so often.

READY TO GET PRINTING?

Source3Media’s professional graphic designers are ready to help you get started!  And once you’ve approved your design, our award-winning printing experts can print them on the offset press or on our high-tech UV flatbed on countless types of materials, custom cut them, custom finish and laminate them, and we can even get them framed and mounted.  Give us a call or send us a message!

7 Things You Didn't Know About Posters

BACK TO THOSE WERE THE DAYS...

I had a ton of fun talking with my co-workers about what posters they had on their walls in high school and college.  It was so great because when I asked, every single one of their faces lit up and they smiled so big just thinking about it.  They all gave me permission to share with you.  Here are a few some of us had :

~ Jeff is our rock star lead press operator.  He had posters of Led Zeppelin, Farrah Fawcett in the red bathing suit, and Pink Floyd

~ Heather works with our customers to make sure all of your projects are carried out seamlessly and “service” is her middle name.  Heather had a poster of Elvis Presley.  Her husband had a Mötley Crüe poster that hangs on their son’s bedroom wall today.

~ Pat, one of the two owners, had posters of Led Zeppelin and a motorcycle.

~ Rob is the creative one of our bunch and does stellar graphic design.  He had posters of Nine Inch Nails, Nirvana, and Jane’s Addiction.

~ Chip is our quiet and humble press feeder.  But don’t let that fool you, he’s also in a rock band!  Chip had posters of the Partridge Family (he wanted to live with them), Suzanne Sommers, and Evil Knievel.  He wanted to be Evil Knievel when he grew up.

~ Eric works in bindery.  He’s a really smart guy, but don’t ask him a question unless you want an honest answer.  We love that about him!  Eric had a poster of Farrah Fawcett wearing the white oxford and one of the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders.

~ And well, I had a poster of Larry Bird from the Celtics (I played his same position in high school basketball), one of UCLA (where I had planned to go to pre-med but plans changed), and one of Prince Purple Rain

Share with us on FaceBook some of the posters you had!  We’d love to hear about it!

Just imagine what beautiful and memorable posters we could make together for YOUR business!


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Source3Media provides creative services including brand development, graphic design, photography, videography, computer generated imagery (CGI), website development, and more.
Source3Media also provides award-winning color matching and custom printing services of your signs, posters, banners, pocket folders, brochures, flyers, manuals, forms, catalogs, disposable menus, and more.

Do you have a project coming up? We’d love to help. Tell us more or request a quote today.

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References

  • What Are the Benefits of Using Posters as Part of Your Advertising Mix?; by CEO Today; July 02, 2019
  • The Advantages of Posters; by M. T. Wroblewski; Chron; November 05, 2018
  • The 50 Best Movie Posters Ever; John Nugent & James Dyer; EmpireOnline.com; July 04, 2018

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