Simple Graphic Design Tips to Enhance Your Content Strategy
Things are always changing on social media, which means that the graphic design for your online content needs to keep up with the changes too.
These days we need to consider how images look across different platforms. We need more portrait graphics for Stories, taking optimizing for mobile into consideration. We also need to remember the human psychology that goes into standing out online – capturing attention can really help with your content strategy.
Humans are largely visual creatures, and we tend to look at an image before we read any of your words. So no matter how well crafted your written content may be – graphic design still needs to be a key part of your content strategy.
Let’s look at some simple graphic design tips to enhance your content strategy.
Pick your palette
We all know how important it is to have a cohesive brand look across all your online assets. On Instagram, some business owners are paying social media agencies to create the perfect aesthetic for them. In truth, it’s simpler to do this yourself than you might realize. It is really worth doing too.
Having a consistent brand look on Instagram is about more than just how your wall looks to somebody who might take the time to look. It is also about making your future posts instantly recognizable to your fans.
When people are browsing their feed, they don’t absorb everything they see. But if they recognize your look, and they like you, then they will pause and maybe read your caption too. And this is what you want from your content – to engage people.
Above all, when it comes to choosing these colors, you need to think about what will make you stand out from the crowd. Bold colors can really work. But if your brand is more subtle, then you could try black and white. The simplicity of a black and white image can be a great contrast against the noise of social media.
How to do it
So how do you pick your palette? If you have already established your brand then this is taken care of for you. All you need to do is make sure you use your brand colors and fonts in your social media graphics.
Using a simple and free online tool like Canva or Crello, you can customize your own templates to keep everything you create on-brand. It couldn’t be simpler.
If you don’t yet have your branding set or are thinking of rebranding, then try Colormind to help you pick compatible colors. This is another free tool. It lets you compare colors side by side, and gives you the hex codes to use in your graphic design.
You will also want your logo to match your brand. Check out Logocreator to create your own for free.
The eyes have it
There is a very cool trick used in marketing psychology, and that’s using images of eyes to capture attention. If you take a look at several ads side by side, you might notice how the ones with eyes or faces are more compelling. This is a human trait we are all born with, to seek out others by looking for their eyes.
So when consumers are scrolling through social media, which ads stand out the most? Apart from attractive branding, photographs with models facing the camera do really well too for this simple reason.
You can take advantage of this in your own content strategy. Whether you want people to notice your online advertising, or simply to read your blog posts, use an eye-catching photo to make them stop scrolling.
Make your content fit the platform
These days we need to consider the different aspects of the images we need for different platforms. With the popularity of Instagram and Facebook Stories, we now need more portrait graphics and stock images.
It’s the same consideration with video, and the thumbnail graphics we design for them. On YouTube, we are still working in landscape, but on social, portrait is becoming more important.
A simple way to create what you need and still keep things simple is to have a few different templates set up on your Canva or Crello account. Whichever tool you choose, they both work in much the same way. You are able to set up a square template for your Instagram wall, a portrait one for Stories, and a landscape one for everything else.
As you create the graphic on one template, you can copy and paste the elements across to the other templates and just adjust as needed to fit the aspect. This is a huge time-saver and keeps things really simple.
To conclude
When all is said and done, your content needs to catch attention to be read and to work as part of your wider marketing strategy. Good graphic design is a big part of catching that attention, as humans are largely visual creatures.
Keep in mind your need to stand out from your competition. But also keep in mind the free tools mentioned here. You don’t need to hire a designer or an agency to help you with your visual content. Much of what you need, if not all of it, can be done in-house using simple online tools.
Remember to create content that fits the platforms you are using, and this will instantly update your look with minimal effort.
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