Q:I have a degree in graphic design and took one marketing class in college but have never studied the two subjects in relation to one another. I will soon be working closely within the marketing division of a nonprofit and feel I need know more than just how to properly layout a newsletter. Do you have any books you recommend on the topic?
I’m not sure If I can point you in the direction of a specific book. You’ve hit on two areas that I have little to no experience in: marketing & non-profit. Marketing goes hand-in-hand with any form of design in my opinion, and many times I feel needs a common sense approach.
One of the best things you can do is study your end user. IDEO is always unbelievably good at doing this. Know your target, and ask them straight out, what do you want to see? What is going to get your attention?
You seem to be on the right track in thinking you need to go beyond just knowing how to layout a newsletter. Although visually grabbing them is extremely important, knowing what is going to visually grab this is more important. That is especially the case because as designers, we often times lose sight of what should be done, instead of what we want to see done.
For a specific list of books, I would contact your college professors. They will know the best examples of books. I hope I helped at least a little bit. Thanks for the question.
