Building a Great Flyer

Building a Great Flyer(Brochure) to Promote your Club

Building a great Flyer is easier than you think.

The quickest way to get a flyer to promote your event is to get someone else to do it… Maybe

Seriously it is not that hard and here are a few tips to help.

1. Decide what program to use. Microsoft PowerPoint is a choice for many as it is like using word and is on most computers.
I use PPT as it is on my computer and I am familiar with the Microsoft products.
2.  Work out what you want to say. Not too little, not too much. Stick to the core message.
3. Choose what type of image is suitable and best represents your message.
4. What type of background image, or shading. Remember the text will need to stand out in the colour you use. So the background can not be messy.

In simple terms Power point is like…

PowerPoint can be thought of as a table with sliding cards, where each card represents a slide in the presentation. Imagine the table as the canvas where you arrange and organize your content. Each card, or slide, can be transparent or have a background, and you can place text, images, and other elements on it.

• Cards (Slides): Each card is like a slide in PowerPoint. You can add, remove, and rearrange these cards to tell your story. Just like you can slide a card on a table, you can move slides around in PowerPoint to change the order of your presentation.

• Transparency and Backgrounds: Some cards can be transparent, allowing you to see through to the table or other cards beneath. In PowerPoint, this is akin to using a transparent background or overlaying slides with different levels of opacity. This can be useful for creating visual effects or layering information.

• Content on Cards: On each card, you can place text, images, charts, and other media. In PowerPoint, these elements are added to placeholders on the slide. You can format the text, adjust the size, and change the color to make it stand out or blend in with the background.

• Ordering the Cards: The order of the cards on the table is crucial for telling your story effectively. In PowerPoint, you can easily rearrange the order of slides by dragging and dropping them in the slide pane. This allows you to organize your presentation logically and ensure a smooth flow of information.

• Saving and Sharing: Once you have arranged your cards on the table, you can save the layout for future reference or share it with others. In PowerPoint, you save your presentation to a file, both PDF and JPG which can be shared with colleagues or used for a presentation. One key understanding is that, the cards may be partially off the table so when you save the file, part of the card is in the final image.

How was this festival of flight flyer built?

Andrew Sill was kind enough to build this flyer for the Echuca club.
Firstly the colour shaded image with the blister pattern was made or found. A great way to make a back ground image is to use a free AI program like freepik.com. You can sign up for free. A free license includes generating about 5 images each day.
Or you can fill a rectangle with a colour and use the gradient feature.

Then the hero image was selected and the background of that image is removed. There are many free background removing websites online. You simply drag the file, and then you download the clean image. I have used www.pixelcut.ai/background-remover with success.

Then the logos are added. These are transparent files, as there is no white square around them. Use the background remover if there is.

Then the text is added. The fonts are chosen, and any word art applied to draw attention.

Then save the file as PDF and or JPG as required.

If using power point (ppt), here it is in action

The white portrait box is set after the page/slide is set to portrait A4. This is the white vertical rectangle behind the cloud images.
I have added the cloudy sky AI background image, the VMAA logo and the headline text. This text will be modified text using word art in PPT.

It is important to note that I can make the background image bigger and move it over the white box. It doesn’t need to be the same size, as any part of the image outside the white box is not used in the final image.

If you are finding the image file sizes are to big so the final pdf file is too big, you can use an online resizer like https://www.simpleimageresizer.com. Otherwise simply using the snip function allows you to grab an image an save it at a smaller image size and the quality is often good enough.

Power Point Stage 2

Here the background colour gradient or in this case the cloud image is resized and moved over the A4 canvas rectangle.

The plane with its background removed is positioned and rotated to look like it is heading up out of the clouds.

The logos are added.

Text is added and posotioned. text fonts and art can be tweaked at this stage.

The large section of text to the right of the flyer was created by AI. Some of it was used, the rest can be utilised on the website if needed.

But I do not have access to power point, OK so try Canva.com.

Canva.com Stage 1

Here I have replicated the process used with PPT but using the online program at canva.com.

Use the upload button to add the hero image, logos and other images as required.

Use the text tool to add text and position accordingly.

Canva.com Stage 2

Again the background image is placed, and the logos, other images and text is poitioned.

Take your time to tweak the flyer to get it right.

Important Tips

Be good to your mother….

Seriously, if you haven’t listened to the seminar, there are some great points to consider and use in your flyer.
Here is the link to the seminar
Online Seminar – Creating and Promoting a Great Flying Event | VMAA

Here are a few points for your consideration.

• A catchy clean hero image
• Clean layout that is not busy
• Only enough wording to convey the key points
• Website or link or QR Code
• A catchy Slogan.

This sample flyer, which still needs fine tuning, was done in about 30 minutes with the help of AI.

Whats next

Its time to give it a go.

If you are too busy, ask someone else to help.

Here is an example of what a 12 year old can do with Power Point.

Help can come from unexpected sources.