Our blog
White space is good
03 March 2009
A key factor in the successful delivery of core messages is ensuring that the intended audience reads the message. As we often tell our clients: you can have the best message in the world, one that everyone needs to know, but if no one reads it, then the message goes nowhere.
What can be done to ensure successful receipt of key messages? Although there are many factors that go into that, one key element is ‘white space’. White space is the area of a design piece that does not contain any design elements. It is also called negative space.
But what does that mean in non-designers language?
White space is the areas of the brochure, website or flyer that aren’t covered by text, pictures or perhaps even large blocks of colour used for effect. Giving the key messages – be they conveyed in words or in images – sufficient white space enables them to increase their prominence on the page or screen. Those messages have a bit of room around them to give the viewer’s eye visual direction as to what is the most important.
Consider a company’s headed paper. From a brand identity standpoint, the most important element on the page is the logo or logotype. Pushing contact details or straplines up against the logo reduces the whitespace and visuals clutters the area around the logo. That’s not good. The logo is a key message, so to speak, as it identifies the organisation.
The same concept holds true for that next brochure or website revamp that your planning. When considering designs, it’s important to make sure that the final design gives your messages the white space they deserve. Failing to do so could result in key message delivery failure.