When it comes to designing commercial book covers, quality is a relative term. For example, if you ask an Internet marketer what makes a quality book cover design and you also ask a New York publishing executive the same question, you will likely get very different answers.
This is simply because the target audiences are usually different. Based on our results (with the conversion rates on more than a hundred book projects), the Internet prospect usually responds better to graphics that are more colorful and have more flashy design effects—graphics techniques like embossing and gradients and strokes. When designing for the Internet prospect, you should create a design that comes alive and explodes out of the screen. You want to infuse it with elements that “shimmer” or move (think optical illusions). You want the book cover design to grab attention.
Since you are using a display screen to present your product, you can embellish with colors and lots of shimmer to grab attention.
Conversely, when designing a book cover for a more conservative prospect, possibly a C-level business executive, you need to give the overall cover a more conservative look and feel. Usually, these more conservative prospects are put off by flashy colors and infomercial-like presentations. They are more impressed by a book cover that looks more like a textbook. Avoid flashy graphics and limit your colors to three or maybe four at the most. You should use big conservative text and spaces filled with flat color.
If you follow these basic cover design guidelines, your conversion rate will be higher; we know this from experience.
This is simply because the target audiences are usually different. Based on our results (with the conversion rates on more than a hundred book projects), the Internet prospect usually responds better to graphics that are more colorful and have more flashy design effects—graphics techniques like embossing and gradients and strokes. When designing for the Internet prospect, you should create a design that comes alive and explodes out of the screen. You want to infuse it with elements that “shimmer” or move (think optical illusions). You want the book cover design to grab attention.
I am not sure I fully concur with you on this article. Even so I am normally open to fresh concepts. Probably will have to think about it. Good site anyway.
This is a good,common sense article.Very helpful to one who is just finding the resouces about this part.It will certainly help educate me.