Is your handwritten flyer better than AI?
One of the latest trends going around is posting a photo of a handwritten flyer that pledges not to use AI slop for promotions, menus, job postings, etc. Credit where credit is due, I’m glad they’re making this pledge but the trend itself isn’t doing what you think it’s doing.
After seeing the masses turn to AI for design work, and rightfully getting a negative response for it, folks are taking an analog approach. The engagement that a lot of these pledge posts has gotten is only fueling the fire. But do those flyers actually work? If you follow a social media trend and post up a piece of paper you hastily wrote details on, will it actually get you the traction you're after?
The truth is, unless your goal is potential temporary attention, your handwritten slop is still slop too. Online engagement presents a false reality of support and patronage. Let’s talk about it.
The Reality of Virality
When a post goes viral, it goes beyond your local reach. If your restaurant is getting thousands of likes and comments on their post pledging not to use AI slop, it is no longer reaching the community that can actually support you. Sure there will be overlap, but the reality is, your restaurant might still sit empty no matter how viral your post went. The algorithm is picking up on a bigger cultural movement and pushing your content in front of people who are most likely to engage with it. Reach and relevance are not the same thing, and virality is chasing the wrong one.
If you're trying to fill a room in your actual city, a post reaching 40,000 strangers who will never be in that room isn't a win. It's just a number that feels good and does nothing.
Somehow folks are starting making this correlation - if using AI guarantees you a loss of customers, then NOT using AI means you automatically gain them. A viral post of your cutest line cook holding a piece of paper would make this seem true - it’s not. Not using AI is a baseline expectation, not an achievement. It might keep someone from writing you off, but it does not entitle you to anyone’s business. And it definitely doesn't convert to ticket sales, busy books, full rooms, or success by itself. Not using AI is the bare minimum. Doing it yourself is admirable, but neither compare to hiring a real artist to do the work. If you have the means, stop trying to skirt around hiring experts.
The Mistakes in Your Flyer
I LOVE a DIY flyer. I take a ton of inspiration from DIY punk flyers from the 80s. So, don’t get it twisted when I say that not everyone should DIY their flyers.
There's a level of understanding that has to go into creating a good flyer, whether you're making it by hand or digitally. The point of a flyer is to convey a message effectively - here’s some mistakes that prevent that.
No Visual Hierarchy
Brains mostly work in a predictable way. Good design moves the eye where it needs to go - headline first, then date, then details, without the viewer having to think about it. If everything on your flyer is fighting for attention at the same volume, nothing wins. Art is subjective but there’s a science to effective hierarchy.
Too Much Information
We live in a time where attention is exceedingly fleeting. Your flyer has just a few seconds to convey what you want people to know before you lose interest. Cramming in every possible detail is killing attention. Nobody's standing at a telephone pole reading your event flyer turned manifesto. If someone can't get your point in about five seconds, the flyer's already failed.
Visual Clutter
People love to overdo it. In an attempt to grab more attention, people add way too much to look at. AI flyers have the same disease, just chopped and screwed: giant distressed lettering, arrows pointing at nothing, glowing 3D text, those three little lines for emphasis. Once you've seen one AI flyer, you've essentially seen them all. All of the clutter on the page is just suppressing the message even more. If the imagery doesn’t support the message, cut it.
Missing Information
One of the biggest problems here is assuming people know the location based on who posted the flyer. PUT THE LOCATION ON THE FLYER FOR YOUR EVENTS PLEASE!!! I am screaming this every day. I cannot say this enough. If someone has to dig to find out where you or your event is, you’re losing them. A flyer's entire job is to answer the basics - who, what, when, where, how much - quickly. Of course there are exceptions like a location not being necessary or it simply clashing with values or safety. I’m not asking you to replace “ask a punk” with your address, but including the city is necessary if you are promoting an event.
Size and Placement
Size matters, baby! And I mean all of it. If you're handing flyers out in person, they need to fold into a pocket. If you're posting them around town, think about how someone's actually going to encounter it - walking past at three feet, or driving past at thirty miles an hour? A flyer at a bus stop needs different sizing and font weight than one on a telephone pole on a busy street. Design for the real viewing conditions, not for how it looks zoomed in on your screen.
How to Actually Design a Flyer That Works
Build from fundamentals.
Know who's supposed to see it. A flyer for a DIY basement show and a flyer for a high end gallery opening should not look the same, because they're not reaching the same demographic or portraying the same message.
Lead with one message. One headline, one clear reason to care. Everything else that supports that shouldn’t compete with it.
Build in hierarchy on purpose. Size, weight, and placement should tell the eye where to go first, second, third without the viewer having to hunt.
Leave open space. Empty space isn't wasted space. It's what makes the information you did include actually readable.
Make the essentials impossible to miss. Who, what, when, where, cost, how to RSVP, etc. If someone only reads three words, those words should answer a question, not decorate the page.
Design for where it'll actually be seen. A phone screen, a shop window, a telephone pole, a hand-to-hand pass-out - each one has a different distance, a different amount of attention, and a different sizing need.
Know when to hand it off. If design isn't your skill, it's a reason to pay someone who does this for a living.
The Bottom Line
Slop is slop no matter which lazy way you pick. Trading a machine-generated template for a rushed scribble isn't a win if neither one actually communicates your message. The handwritten trend can work, but it works when it's doing something on purpose, thought, and reaching the right people.
If you want your flyer to actually pull people through the door, pay an artist to make it, or take the time to learn what makes a flyer effective. Working for something effective isn’t corporate advice, it’s giving a shit. You’re the one asking for their attention, make it worth giving.
