3 Tips How to Design A Poster for Event Quickly
Tip 1. Don't Complicate Your Poster Design
If you want to create an event poster for your business or for any other purpose, then you must know that there is no right or wrong way to design one.
The golden rule of any effective design is that “simple sells”. You do not necessarily have to go too deep in over-designing if you are working on something as simple as a business event poster, church event poster, school event poster, or invitation flyer meant to be seen by people who already recognize your brand.
What matters in these types of poster design scenarios is the design must be simple and effective in conveying its message to the audience.
Of course. A simple event poster doesn’t just have be plain with text and pictures here and there. It still has to meet the minimum requirements of being neat, intentional and good enough as in the examples below:
Tip 2. Start Your Poster Design From Existing Templates
Nowadays, graphics design tools such as Canva, Adobe Express, Picmaker and many others have hundreds of ready made templates (free and paid) that you can start customizing using a drag and drop builder tool which is simple enough for beginners and good enough for pros.
Once you’re inside the App on mobile or desktop, simply search for the type of template you’d like or pick from the suggestions on display. Then start designing without having to deal with creative mind blocks.
Poster design templates are also best for use if you have to create posters on a recurring basis. You can always reuse the elements of your design if you managed to come up with something creative.
You can find templates for corporate event posters, live event posters, parties and musicals, tourism events, church events, weddings, fundraising campaigns, and so on.
Best Poster Makers With Free Templates ↴
You shouldn’t be worried about not being original when you create an event poster from an existing template. Here’s why:
These templates come from a huge collection of templates making the probability of seeing the same design. Also, any single edit you add to an existing poster template makes it original.
For example, Canva Pro is one of the most popular free poster design tools for creating posters and flyers. At the time of writing this article, they offer over 610,000+ premium and free templates with new designs daily. Making it highly impossible that users can use the same elements for their creative designs. The same can be said for Adobe Express, Pic… and many more others.
Tip 3. Create Your Own Poster Templates Library for ReUse
Once you’ve got a sense of how your event poster styles should look like. It’s advisable to create a set of similar event posters with sizes to fit different social media platforms. This will allow you to save time in future when you have multiple events coming up.
For example, let’s say your business is running an event for the first time and you want to create an Instagram post about it. You can simply use the same template as the one from your Facebook or Twitter and just change the poster size, adjust image positioning, text, and hashtags etc.
Best Event Poster Design Softwares and Apps
Here are the graphics design tools you can use to create professional-looking graphics without having any experience for using professional software such as Photoshop or Illustrator.
The only downside is that most of the advanced features in these tools are paid. But if you are creating posters on a regular basis, it’s worth it.
The good news is, the graphics design softwares recommended in this article can be used for both personal and business use.
Best Free Online Event Poster Design Apps and Software for April 2024
With Canva’s Poster Maker, you can create a great poster in just minutes. The free poster maker has hundreds of ready made templates you can easily customize with a simple drag and drop builder tool. You can choose images and assets from millions of stock photos, pre-built elements, fonts, backgrounds and more. If you’re looking for something entirely unique, you can start from scratch and create something completely new! Available on mobile and desktop.
- Best Pick For:
Canva Pricing Guide:
- Canva Free – Access to Thousands of Free Poster Templates, photos, fonts, and more.
- Canva Pro – Free Trial – $12/month with Unlimited access to all premium templates, stock photos, videos, and graphics.
- Canva Teams – Free Trial – $14.99/month with all Canva Pro features and premium content to be shared with members of your team. Also provides interface features for teamwork.
Canva Free
- Drag-and-drop editor for easy customizations
- 250,000+ free ready-made templates for posters, logos, social media banners, videos, and more.
- Export final designs in different digital formats
- Up to 5GB cloud storage for file uploads
-
Invite others to collaborate in your design
Canva Pro
- Removes all limitations of Canva Free and gives you;
- Access to 100+ million Premium Content including stock photos, videos, audio and graphics assets
- Access to 610,000+ premium and free templates with new designs daily
- Time-saving unlimited design features such as Brand kit Creator, Instant Background Remover, Resizing Templates, and more
- Set custom download quality to final designs
- Download images with Transparent Backgrounds
- Download files in multiple formats, including GIF, PNG, transparent PNG, PDF, SVG, and video
- Add Premium Animations to design elements
- Track and retrieve changes with version history feature
- Assign a template designer to manage all design projects
- Upload custom logos and fonts
- Organize your work easily by creating dedicated folders for specific projects
- Schedule social media content to 8 platforms with the Content Planner Tool
- Create, Edit Premium Videos for any platform with professional audio
- Cloud storage (1TB)
- 24/7 customer support
Canva Teams
- Provides all features of Canva Pro for all team members you collaborate with
Canva Poster Maker Pros
- Canva Pro Version is quite cheap for what you get. Best price for value.
- Very simple to use (Smooth Drag and drop builder tool).
- The instant saving feature is very reliable.
- Canva keeps innovating and adding new much-needed features quickly.
- Saves a lot of time and creative design stress.
- Lifetime free trial. No obligation to upgrade to a premium account.
- Canva provides a lot more than just poster design (logo maker, social media templates, resume maker, banner maker, invitation maker, meme maker, video intro maker, a PDF editor, and a lot more…).
Canva Poster Maker Cons
- The free version has limitations that are not obvious from the start (e.g does not export image files in full design quality, you cannot export to a different poster size, and does not allow you to export designs with transparent backgrounds).
- Online-based software – You cannot use Canva without an active internet connection.
- All design elements belong to Canva – You cannot reuse or resell elements from Canva in a different platform as if they are yours.
With Canva’s Poster Maker, you can create a great poster in just minutes. The free poster maker has hundreds of ready made templates you can easily customize with a simple drag and drop builder tool. You can choose images and assets from millions of stock photos, pre-built elements, fonts, backgrounds and more. If you’re looking for something entirely unique, you can start from scratch and create something completely new! Available on mobile and desktop.
- Best Pick For:
Adobe Express Pricing Guide:
- Adobe Express Free – Free for as long as you want, with no access to premium content and graphics.
- Adobe Express Pro – Free Trial – $9.99/month with Unlimited access to all premium templates, stock photos, videos, and graphics
Canva Free
- Drag-and-drop editor for easy customizations
- 250,000+ free ready-made templates for posters, logos, social media banners, videos, and more.
- Export final designs in different digital formats
- Up to 5GB cloud storage for file uploads
-
Invite others to collaborate in your design
Canva Pro
- Removes all limitations of Canva Free and gives you;
- Access to 100+ million Premium Content including stock photos, videos, audio and graphics assets
- Access to 610,000+ premium and free templates with new designs daily
- Time-saving unlimited design features such as Brand kit Creator, Instant Background Remover, Resizing Templates, and more
- Set custom download quality to final designs
- Download images with Transparent Backgrounds
- Download files in multiple formats, including GIF, PNG, transparent PNG, PDF, SVG, and video
- Add Premium Animations to design elements
- Track and retrieve changes with version history feature
- Assign a template designer to manage all design projects
- Upload custom logos and fonts
- Organize your work easily by creating dedicated folders for specific projects
- Schedule social media content to 8 platforms with the Content Planner Tool
- Create, Edit Premium Videos for any platform with professional audio
- Cloud storage (1TB)
- 24/7 customer support
Canva Teams
- Provides all features of Canva Pro for all team members you collaborate with
Canva Poster Maker Pros
- Canva Pro Version is quite cheap for what you get. Best price for value.
- Very simple to use (Smooth Drag and drop builder tool).
- The instant saving feature is very reliable.
- Canva keeps innovating and adding new much-needed features quickly.
- Saves a lot of time and creative design stress.
- Lifetime free trial. No obligation to upgrade to a premium account.
- Canva provides a lot more than just poster design (logo maker, social media templates, resume maker, banner maker, invitation maker, meme maker, video intro maker, a PDF editor, and a lot more…).
Canva Poster Maker Cons
- The free version has limitations that are not obvious from the start (e.g does not export image files in full design quality, you cannot export to a different poster size, and does not allow you to export designs with transparent backgrounds).
- Online-based software – You cannot use Canva without an active internet connection.
- All design elements belong to Canva – You cannot reuse or resell elements from Canva in a different platform as if they are yours.
Picmaker is an online graphic design tool that allows you to create stunning posters, flyers, and other printable designs in minutes. With thousands of professionally designed templates, you’ll be able to find the perfect layout for your business or event. The Picmaker Poster Maker is not only meant for beginners, but providers more powerful tools for professionals and teams. You can also add your own text, images and advanced modifications to your poster design before sharing it online with family and friends.
- Best Pick For:
PicMaker Pricing Guide:
- Picmaker Free – Access more than 10,000 unique graphic design templates with download limits per month.
- Picmaker Pro Plans – From $9.95/month with Unlimited access to 10,000+ design templates, Over 1 million stock images, 100+ design categories for social media, ads, invites, presentations, premium texts, custom templates request, unlimited storage and more.
Canva Free
- Drag-and-drop editor for easy customizations
- 250,000+ free ready-made templates for posters, logos, social media banners, videos, and more.
- Export final designs in different digital formats
- Up to 5GB cloud storage for file uploads
-
Invite others to collaborate in your design
Canva Pro
- Removes all limitations of Canva Free and gives you;
- Access to 100+ million Premium Content including stock photos, videos, audio and graphics assets
- Access to 610,000+ premium and free templates with new designs daily
- Time-saving unlimited design features such as Brand kit Creator, Instant Background Remover, Resizing Templates, and more
- Set custom download quality to final designs
- Download images with Transparent Backgrounds
- Download files in multiple formats, including GIF, PNG, transparent PNG, PDF, SVG, and video
- Add Premium Animations to design elements
- Track and retrieve changes with version history feature
- Assign a template designer to manage all design projects
- Upload custom logos and fonts
- Organize your work easily by creating dedicated folders for specific projects
- Schedule social media content to 8 platforms with the Content Planner Tool
- Create, Edit Premium Videos for any platform with professional audio
- Cloud storage (1TB)
- 24/7 customer support
Canva Teams
- Provides all features of Canva Pro for all team members you collaborate with
Canva Poster Maker Pros
- Canva Pro Version is quite cheap for what you get. Best price for value.
- Very simple to use (Smooth Drag and drop builder tool).
- The instant saving feature is very reliable.
- Canva keeps innovating and adding new much-needed features quickly.
- Saves a lot of time and creative design stress.
- Lifetime free trial. No obligation to upgrade to a premium account.
- Canva provides a lot more than just poster design (logo maker, social media templates, resume maker, banner maker, invitation maker, meme maker, video intro maker, a PDF editor, and a lot more…).
Canva Poster Maker Cons
- The free version has limitations that are not obvious from the start (e.g does not export image files in full design quality, you cannot export to a different poster size, and does not allow you to export designs with transparent backgrounds).
- Online-based software – You cannot use Canva without an active internet connection.
- All design elements belong to Canva – You cannot reuse or resell elements from Canva in a different platform as if they are yours.
What makes a good event poster?
Simply put: it’s all about the design. A great poster should be eye-catching, clear and easy to read, and (most importantly) it should make you want to attend the event.
But not everyone is an expert in design. So let’s break it down. A good event poster should have these seven qualities:
- An Inviting Title that will draw people in (and make them want to start reading the rest of the poster);
- Clear Information about what is being offered at the event;
- A Short Description of who will be there and why they should come;
- A Call To Action that encourages people to buy tickets or RSVP now;
- A Clear Image of what the event will look like, so potential attendees can see if it’s for them or not. Memes actually do great for most event posters to be shared on social media.
- A Clear Date and Time when people can attend—and any other important details (such as location) in case there are any questions later on down the line!
What software would you use to create a poster?
Nowadays, you can easily create stunning event posters online with free templates using any these creative design tools: Canva, Adobe Express, Picmaker and Visme Designer.
Other professional design software you can use are Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator.
Conclusion
So there you have it. We hope that this information is of help the next time you are looking to put together a poster for an event.
Also, as you have seen, event poster design is not that hard, there are a lot of Apps and web Software you can use to create simple, yet stylish posters for events. These Poster Design Platforms allow you to out the different ideas and tricks, or take your own approach towards creating one.
After all, if you are passionate about your event and the cause it represents, that will shine through in your poster design—and who doesn’t love a good cause?
