Hi All,

I have come across the most amazing software that I think you should all know about!

So I am sat in the office trying to create a social media advert image in Word.

I cannot be the only one that gets frustrated when you move one thing and every other thing moves aswell! There has got to be something easier than this without having to pay all that money for a graphic designer to do it for you.

Welcome to my life, Canva!!

www.canva.com

The best free thing I think I have ever found. Not only is it free, but it is so easy to use.

You can create Social Media Posts, Presentations, Documents, Book Covers, Marketing Materials and so much more. It gives you a template to work to, so when you download it, it is exactly the dimensions that you need it.

Have you ever struggled with your Facebook or Twitter cover image?

When you come to upload it, the image is usually too large, it gets stretched, or someone’s head get chopped off?! Canva has a social media section where you can choose the cover that you want to create and it supplies you with the template. All the right sizes, hundreds of different fonts, stock images and shapes, icons and elements you can add. Upload and add your own images, edit them easily, add CTAs (Calls to Actions). Then you can easily download the image in a .jpg and upload it to Facebook. No more editing or faffing! Voila!

Of course, there are a few things that are chargeable within Canva, e.g. a few of the images etc but there are so many options, that unless you wanted something very specific, you can do a lot of it free of charge.

It is proven that on Social Media etc, that people interact with infographics and videos much better than they do just text posts. When you consider that 65% of people are visual learners, it makes sense to add images and infographics to your social media posts. 90% of information that comes to the brain is visual and presentations with visual aides are 43% more persuasive than those without. To reap the rewards with an infographic, the layout and design needs to be as impactful as possible. You need to include colours, shapes and fonts and ensure that all facts and figures are accurate. It is not worth disrupting your followers’ news feeds to bombard them with meaningless images.

I am still learning Canva myself, and I have a feeling there is so much more that we can use it for. I will try to keep you updated every time I find something new and exciting but if you are interested and would like to find out more or need help starting out get in contact and I will help you as much as I can. I am self-taught through playing about with it but let me know how you get on. I can’t wait to see all your masterpieces!