Before you dive into this year's book, you'll want to take a moment and flip through last year's and give it a good, honest look. What worked? What didn't? What made you smile? What made you cringe a little? This is your chance to learn from the past and build something better!

Gather your team and go through the book together. You'll want to talk about everything from the cover design to the page layouts. How did the theme shine through? Were the photos strong? Was the folio easy to follow? Don't forget to chat about how the team worked together as well...what are the things that helped the process run smoothly, and what could use a tweak?

Here are a few areas you'll want to focus on:

• Cover design and any special effects
• Endsheets and how they tied to the theme
• Book structure and organization
• Page ladder and flow
• Size, shape, and total page count
• Divider pages and transitions
• Overall theme and how it was carried through
• Folio design and placement
• Layouts and visual consistency
• Photograph quality and variety
• How the team functioned and collaborated
  
  

Consider sending a questionnaire to the student body. You'll (hopefully) get a lot of responses, but it will give you a clear picture of how the book was perceived. You can even add a questionnaire form when you distribute the book so it's fresh in everyone's mind.

Once you've had a good look back, you'll be more than ready to move forward with fresh ideas and a clear sense of direction.