Marketing materials aren’t cheap. Websites, direct mail and other print pieces, and outgoing emails can cost big bucks.

Beyond the upfront financial investment, they need to be near-perfect because customers notice even small mistakes and imperfections, which can cast doubt on your professionalism and attention to detail. Something that seems trivial to you could cost you a customer, so you can’t let the “little things” go.

Take extra care to avoid these graphic design mistakes in your marketing materials:

1. 1. 1. Using a bad logo. Perhaps it’s outdated? Or blurry? Or hard to read at a small scale. Whatever it is, it makes your entire marketing piece look unprofessional. Potential customers can see it as sloppy or assume you don’t care, neither of which leaves a good first impression. Your logo should be simple, easily recognizable and relevant to your business. If it doesn’t meet that criteria, or it doesn’t scale down well, it’s time to redesign it.
      2. Failing to provide brand consistency. Your marketing materials should carry a consistent theme across the board. That means every marketing piece should share the same color scheme and image and font styles. That consistent look helps to build brand recognition.
      3. Going too small. Anything less than a 10-point size is unacceptable. 12 is better. It’s smarter to cut text and go slightly bigger than to shrink the font size to cram a bunch of copy into a space.
      4. Making the text too dense. Provide plenty of white space around text and images so that your marketing pieces are easier on the eyes. Add at least a 6-point space between lines to make text airy. Additionally, include headers, subheaders and bullet points to break up the space and make marketing pieces scannable.
      5. Using too many typefaces. For any given marketing piece, use no more than two typefaces. Additionally, choose typefaces that are easy to read and represent your brand.
      6. Using the wrong images. You must use high-resolution—of at least 300 DPI—otherwise photos will look blurry. Additionally, you can’t just use any image you find online. You will have to purchase images or choose free, attribution-free ones from a stock image resource, such as Pixabay. Just make sure you don’t go too generic and use stock photos that people have seen a thousand times. You want your pieces to stand out, so choose compelling images that grab people’s attention.
      7. Letting typos sneak in. A misspelling or grammar error is embarrassing and can diminish even the most beautifully designed marketing pieces. Every marketing piece you send should be thoroughly proofed and edited by an expert proofreader before it is sent to a printer or published online.
      8. Refusing to include a strong Call to Action (CTA). Your marketing piece is absolutely useless if you don’t tell people exactly what you want them to do next. Whether you want them to visit your website, call you, download more information or receive a promo code, spell it out specifically.