I've had a few requests recently to design covers for eBooks. The format of an eBook appears to obviate the need for a cover at all but, even though an eBook 'cover' is abstracted from the text itself, it is still an expected part of the reading experience. More importantly an eBook cover design will be the first opportunity for potential customers to see the book, as a thumbnail image in the online store. This thumbnail image is the first thing a potential customer will look at, even before reading the reviews, so it is very important that the thumbnail/cover image is as clear (and persuasive) as possible. While reviews and recommendations certainly influence an eBook purchase this first glance at the thumbnail image has a tremendous influence on any next steps the customer takes in their buying decision. A good eBook cover needs to be appealing, persuasive and legible primarily as a small thumbnail and, to a lesser extent, a mood setting post-purchase affirmation to the customer. With this in mind I created an eBook cover design for a new publication from Northern Lights PR entitled: 'From Student to Salary with Social Media'.

The eBook cover artwork.

In addition to the usual design iterations this really was a case of less-is-more, as a fairly ruthless process of reduction was necessary to distill the design into something simple enough to work as a thumbnail, yet presentable enough to work at full size on the Kindle/iPad.

I'm pleased with how the completed design looks and also that Northern Lights PR went with my suggestion for the title - a surprisingly difficult thing to get right, but important! 
And once again I am thankful for my Advertising background.

Maybe you can't judge a book by it's cover, but it still pays to have a good thumbnail!