Signage and more in your church library

Creating advertising can be more intimidating than you might think. The next four computer corner articles will be devoted to helping you create effective advertising, and I’ll let you in on tips and tricks that’ll make your life easier.

While we often use computers in our church libraries for making book lists and creating catalogues for our congregations, computers have the ability to create really great advertising for your church library too. The possibilities can be endless- signs, shelf labels, posters, bookmarks, brochures, fliers, and fridge magnets (sheets of magnetic paper are at the Dollar Store).

To get started, you need a computer, printer (a colour printer is nice but not necessary), and software that will help you create your sign. Software programs like WORD have improved their capabilities in the “creativity” arena and are more than powerful enough for the average library sign. Personally, I also use Microsoft Publisher (part of my Office Suite), and Paint Shop Pro to crop, rotate and edit images (I have version 6, but version 10 is available for $59 US

One of the most effective signs I’ve seen is a plain white arrow on a black background (basically a directional street sign), with the word fiction in black letters on the arrow (see photo). Printing this sign on your computer printer will use far too much black ink – instead, use a piece of black construction paper for the background. The word in the picture was handwritten, but you can print off the shape of the arrow with your words on it using Microsoft WORD, and fasten it to the black background quite easily. Try making signs using coloured paper, and if you stick to one colour (I use neon green) it starts to mean “library” if people see it often enough in that context.

Stay tuned for the next installment of the computer corner …