If you or your business or organization is organizing/producing/hosting events of any type, you need a good poster as part of your marketing strategy. Because I’m assuming you want to drive attendance to your event. So, how do you create a flyer that works? I’ve produced over 100 events in Austin over the last 15 years- for my own productions and as part of two festival production teams, and I also worked in booking and promo at an event venue for four years, so I know a thing or two about events. I have seen a lot of great flyers, and a lot of bad ones. I’ve made my fair share of both.
I was already planning on writing this event poster guide because I saw so many event posters that didn’t have enough of the necessary information on them. And then AI took over event posters and the problem got worse, but in different ways. Now the AI enshitification of event posters needs to be addressed as well, so here we go!
Your Audience Hates Your AI Posters
AI is everywhere now, and it is supposed to make our lives easier, but does it really? And at what cost? The People have spoken- so many people are turned off by businesses that use AI in their marketing, especially if that marketing is for a creative event. Online backlash has not been subtle. Instagram comments are full of people calling on businesses to hire artists to create their event posters, or, at the very least, go back to basic Canva event poster designs. Some people refuse to attend an event if they see an AI poster for it.
What makes these AI event posters so bad? Aside from concerns about the environment, class, and theft from artists, the designs are just bad. They are unnecessarily crowded, hard to read, and have a signature style that all looks the same. Don’t you want to stand out? And for good reasons?
If you really don’t have the budget to hire a poster designer, you can still make a decent poster in free or inexpensive programs like Canva, that are relatively easy to use and won’t take forever.
What Information Should Go On An Event Poster?
There’s a lot of unnecessary junk on AI posters. But I’ve also seen so many posters without enough of the right information on them. So what do you actually need? Here’s a checklist:
Full event date-
This should be a no brainer. I like to add the day of the week as well as the numerical date. Even the year. Double check to make sure this is all correct.
Event Location-Venue, Address, AND CITY-
Make it so easy for your audience to find your event. Clearly state the name of the venue. The street address can minimize any confusion. And for the love of puppies, please include the city. Remember, social media reaches audiences all over the world, so be very specific about where your event is taking place.
Door time AND Start time-
These are two different things and both have a purpose. Doors open before the event festivities begin so there is time to get tickets scanned, or found at will call, and to get your attendees IDed. That takes time. If you only put the show time, you’ll have a line out the door waiting to get in and missing your first or even second act.
Event Title-
Something that grabs your audience’s attention so they know exactly what your event is about.
Performers / Bands / Artists / Happenings-
What do you mean my favorite band was performing at your event and I missed it because you didn’t promote them? Had I known, I would have bought a ticket. This is the why- Why we should come to your event.
Attention-grabbing image, or eye-pleasing background-
Pick something on theme, something to set the vibe. It doesn’t even have to be fancy. It could be anything from a pack of zombies to a soft floral pattern. Easily found in Canva stock.
Cohesive Color Palette-
Just make sure the colors look good together. The text should be in colors that complement the background image, but also stands out on it. Look up the color wheel if you need help.
Ticket link or website for more details-
If you need to sell tickets to your event, you need a ticket link on your flyer. And that link should have ALL the info and descriptions your attendees need.
Ticket Price-
Be up front about your event pricing. If it’s free to attend, make sure that is there as well.
Age requirements-
Is your event kid-friendly? 21+? Make it clear.
Just arrange all this text in a way that looks good, and is easy to read. Sometimes all of this info doesn’t fit on a single flyer, especially for a multi-day event or festival, and you need to pick and choose. If that’s the case, have everything made clear on the ticketing page, and have that url clear on the flyer.
What To Leave Off Your Event Flyer?
Full event descriptions-
You don’t need to write paragraphs. Use the least amount of words you can for all the info above. Descriptions are for your ticketing page.
Symbols next to every point-
AI flyers are rife with these guys. Big nope.
That swipe line graphic under everything-
I used to use it a little, but now that it is on every AI poster, I don’t use it anymore.
Stolen artwork-
I shouldn’t have to explain this. This is a fast way to lose your following.
Too many colors, and too many fonts-
When in doubt, clean design is always better. Pick two.
I hope this helps demystify the poster-making process for you. We need live events to thrive! If you decide you still don’t want to mess with flyer design, but want one done right, feel free to reach out to me for a reasonable design quote.