Your Parish's Bulletin Cover Makeover: What to Keep, What to Cut, & How to Shine!

We’ve all heard it before: “Don’t judge a book by its cover.” But when it comes to your parish bulletin, your cover is your first impression — and it absolutely sets the tone for what’s inside.

If your bulletin cover looks like it hasn’t changed in 20 years, or if it’s overloaded with text and hard-to-read information, it’s certainly time for a change. Don’t stress, though! Updating your parish’s bulletin cover doesn’t mean that you must start from scratch. What’s most important is that you are intentional with what you feature, what you remove, and how everything gets organized together.

Let’s walk through a few practical design tips that can transform your weekly bulletin covers from “meh” to “magnificent.”

What to Eliminate

One common issue our designers see with parish bulletins across the country is too much “stuff” on the cover. This mistake can give readers the impression that the parish is disorganized or out of touch with modern communication practices. While it’s tempting to load up the front page with everything from office hours to your staff contact list, this just makes the cover cluttered and uninviting.

Here’s what to consider moving information to the inside of your bulletin:

• Overly detailed content like ministry schedules, office hours, or lengthy welcome messages.
• Visual clutter like too many fonts or inconsistent graphics.
• Anything not absolutely essential to a visitor at first glance.

So what should stay on the cover? Make sure to keep:

• Your church’s name and logo
• Date of the bulletin
• An eye-catching cover image 
• 

These are your must-haves. Everything else? Fair game for the inside pages.

What to Add

Now that you’ve cleared some space, it’s time to make your cover shine.

Beautiful, meaningful cover art goes a long way in making your bulletin feel welcoming. Consider using art relevant to the week’s Mass readings or choosing a cover image series that carries through the liturgical seasons. In fact, sticking to a cover art series creates a consistent and polished feel for both regulars and newcomers.

LPi’s WeCreate provides a variety of liturgical cover series, along with stand-alone covers for every week of the liturgical year, as well as special holidays and celebrations. Did you know? Churches who already partner with LPi to print their bulletins have free access to the entire WeCreate library of content. If your parish doesn’t print with LPi but still wants access to the beautiful catalogue of cover art available inside of WeCreate, subscriptions are available! 

A custom masthead can also add a personal, professional touch. This is the perfect place to use your parish’s logo and branding. Your custom masthead will appear on each bulletin and unify them under your intentional brand. If you don’t have a logo or brand yet, we can help you get started! 

A simplified informational layout is important. Stick to the essentials — if you give out too much information on the cover, nobody will be enticed to open the bulletin! Prioritize the basics (outlined in the next point). They might seem obvious to you, but they matter to your readers — especially visitors. Don’t assume everyone knows the basics about your parish.

Prioritize What Matters

If you’re working with limited space, like on the cover of a church’s weekly bulletin, it helps to think in layers:

Primary Info: This is the information people are likely hoping to find on your cover.

• Church name
• Date of bulletin
• Parish address
• Parish main office phone number
• Parish website URL
• Priest’s name

Secondary: This type of info might be better placed on the inside cover.

• Your Mass times
• Welcome statement
• Social media handle

Tertiary: Information like this, although still important, would shine brighter on an inside page where it can be one of the focus points instead of being smushed into an already crowded cover design. 

• Office hours
• Staff listing
• Mission statement
• Upcoming news or events

Let the most essential details take center stage on your cover and move the rest inside your bulletin.

Lastly, Ask Yourself (or a Colleague):

• Does the front cover feel welcoming and easy on the eyes, or is it too cluttered?
• Does the image you feature catch the attention of your viewers and enhance your bulletin’s visual appeal?
• Is there information on your cover that could live inside your bulletin instead?
• Is anything missing that would help someone feel more at home with your community?

If the answer to any of those is “yes,” it’s probably time for a redesign — something we specialize in!

Ready for a Bulletin Makeover?

If you’re an LPi customer, you’re eligible for a FREE bulletin refresh — yep, totally free! This includes a new cover design template, customized for your parish, and a template for the rest of your inside pages, too! Just reach out to your LPi customer service representative to get started.

Not printing with LPi yet? No problem — we’d love to show you what’s possible.