Most yearbook staff members know that planning and designing a school yearbook is not always easy. Whether you are getting a late start or have already begun the process of creating and designing your school yearbook, check out the following helpful tips and ideas every yearbook staff should know.
Here are several tips the yearbook staff should keep in mind:
- SELECT A YEARBOOK THEME: Choose and stick to a theme. Themes help create a cohesive look to the book and provide a framework for design.
- TAKE AS MANY PICTURES AS POSSIBLE: Gather photos throughout the school year of events, activities, and daily school life. Get as many as you can so you will have a large selection when layout time comes. The students, teachers, school staff, and parents are great resources for photos. Some yearbook software options (like Pictavo and YBLive) allow multiple users to upload photos online with ease, allowing all the members of the school community to share their photos with the yearbook staff.
- ASK FOR HELP FROM THE ENTIRE SCHOOL COMMUNITY: Enlist help from students, teachers, and even parents. Your staff may include writers, researchers, photographers, and layout artists, so ask around as early as possible. Ask students to submit their own stories, photos, or illustrations to include in the yearbook.
- MARKET THE YEARBOOK WISELY: Advertise the yearbook throughout the school year! Get the word out at school events, on the school website, through social media, through signage and automated calling that this year’s yearbook will be something the students will cherish forever.
- SELL YEARBOOK ADS: If you want to raise additional revenue for your yearbook, sell advertising space to businesses, students, clubs, and families.
- DON’T PROCRASTINATE: Set goals for all of your staff members to finish their assignments. Be sure that assignments are completed early enough in the process to allow time for review and edit.
- EDIT & PROOFREAD THE YEARBOOK: Edit the yearbook carefully. Read through each word, check the photos, and confirm facts. Pages should be edited by someone other than the designer and by as many people as possible. Editing is the crucial last step in assuring a quality product.
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