Learn The Basics Of Creating A Cover Image For Your Event
This guide will help you create an event card with all the points you need to keep in mind like logo placement, font selection, content placement and more.
If you open an event page on Paytm Insider, the image/creative that you'll see at the top is the event card. It's a poster of your event that should ideally have the following:
You’ll find the event card on the Category and Event Pages on the Paytm Insider platform.
The date, time, event, location, and ticket price is displayed on the event page from the backend. You can avoid adding these details on the event card.
Desktop:
Mobile:
We know you love your logo (we love ours too! :) ). But it needs to be just about the right size and in the right space. Here are a few ways where you can place your logo:
You can place it in the centre like this.
Or you can keep it in either of the corners like this.
Avoid placing the logo in top right corner.
Note: Avoid placing the logo in the top right corner because each event gets an event tag that is displayed on the top right corner of the creative.
Here are some specifications that will come in handy. After all, it’s the little things that matter.
1. File Size: The image should not exceed 250 kb
2.File types that you can upload: PNG or JPEG image
3.File types to make edits: PSD (Photoshop) file with separate layers or Ai
(Illustrator) packaged file
The minimum font size is 12 pts because anything lower than that is pretty difficult to read on a mobile.
Pro Tip #1 - Make sure you check the type of font before selecting its size.
What's in a font? A lot. Fonts convey the mood, tone, and attitude of the event. Their styles and features bring in the personality which is key in defining how people perceive the event.
1. San Serif Thin
Identifies well with beauty, yoga, meditation and education.
2. San Serif Bold
Identifies well with quotes, headings, information, signages, subtext etc.
3. Cursive / Handwritten
Identifies well with food, beauty, décor, celebration, invitations, greetings.
4. Casual
Identifies well with kids, quotes, games.
5. Slab Serif
Identifies well with university, education bold statements, sports.
6. Serif
Identifies well with literature, writing, theatre, information, university/education, universal.
Note: Serif fonts are universal because they are widely used for body text as they are easier to read than sans serif fonts. The serif individual letters are distinctive and easily recognisable.
1. It’s best to avoid two or more fonts as it can
a. lead the creative to look messy, or it may hide/sideline important information
b. make the image look less appealing
2. Coming to body copy, ideally keep it simple so that
a. it's easy to read
b. one can read it even on mobile
c. it's not too harsh on the eyes on colourful backgrounds
Pro Tip #2 - A basic sans serif font for digital and serif/sans serif for print work the best for creatives.
If we've learnt anything from a memorable dinner party, it's that pairing is important. Every creative is made for a specific context. Stand up comedy is fun, casual, while a workshop for mental health will be informative, slightly formal, and serious.
You can take a look at the font pairings below. It'll give you an idea about how you can match the tone of the image with the text on it.
For a casual approach, pairing sans serif with slab serif fonts helps the text to stand out on images.
While, using bold and light sans serif fonts on blurred backgrounds give the text more readability and focus.
On the other hand, if you want to give emphasis to the text, increase the size of the font and add a highlight behind the sub-headline.
Here's an example that'll help make things simple. Notice how we've paired the regular sans serif with the italics? This is done to better match the context of the creative.
Now that we've talked about what goes on the creative, let's talk about what doesn't. Here's a list that'll ensure your event card conveys the key message to your audience:
As you can see, multi-colour fonts and bold coloured strokes on the copy can lead to readability issues.
Avoid using stylized fonts or overlapping text because
1. it's tough to read,
2. it makes the creative look outdated and unappealing
Stylized fonts in different colours and small sizes make the creative look overwhelming. Plus, the emphasis from important information may be lost.
Next step is setting the mood of your experience, and colours help you do that. Each colour has it's own usage and purpose. These examples will explain more:
Colours that are loud and flashy yet minimal are used to draw attention and spark creativity.
But if you're looking to depict energy, growth, and an optimistic attitude - go with light and fresh colours like we've used here.
Taking the example of the Arijit concert. Grand and exclusive were two things we had in mind, so we went with orange as it showed excitement, youthfulness, and success.
Another example where white depicts hope and simplicity and black stands for elegance and power.
When there is a wide array of options for images to be put on display, avoid using images with:
Smoking
Abuse or cruelty
Drinking alcohol
Nudity
Here are a couple of scenarios to highlight different key elements that you can try while making your event card:
A. When the artist image is the highlight of the event card
It's important to create a balance when there is event name with multiple artist images. In this image red colour highlights the artists and creates a clear difference between event name and artists.
Another example where the artist images cover the maximum space followed by the event name, while the logos remain small.
B. When the event name is the highlight of the event card
The logo remains small while the elements are spaced around the event name.
But if you have another equally important piece of information, you can highlight them both in the creative as we’ve done here.
To ensure focus on key elements like the order of information, better visibility due to spacing, and good contrast we’ve compiled examples of creatives based on three main use cases mentioned below:
A. When you have to show people
The examples below are for the same event but cover both, showing a single artist in one event card, and also multiple artists.
B. Text with or without graphic
C. Types of backgrounds
Image based
Pattern based
Solid colour