C
O
N
C
E
P
T

Unity

Balance

Relevance

Emphasis

Contrast

Appropriateness

Repetition

Consistency

Simplicity

White Space

  Click image to see a larger version  

C
O
N
T
E
N
T

Focused

Alignment

Hierarchy

Readability

Information Rich

C
O
M
P
O
N
E
N
T

Type

Color

Images

Graphic Elements

Details

Contrast: Contrast goes hand in hand with "emphasis". Once I've established the order of importance of the text, I use contrast to set apart the important from the less important.

Contrast in action:
This was a design for a flyer. Notice how I used contrast to set apart the headline, text, address box, and the price.