3 Apps to Step up your Social Media Design Game

-Originally published on August 14, 2020-

I am not a designer. As much as I’d like to say that I can do graphic design, I really just don’t have the eye or talent to work in graphic design. But, that doesn’t mean that I can’t create visually appealing graphics for social media.

Note: I think that graphic designers are 100% better than a generic app. If you can afford to hire one, PLEASE do. Graphic designers deserve work and do fantastic jobs that can’t be beaten by an app. This post is just for those who can’t afford a designer. If you’re looking for one, check out Emmy Wyatt, Nicole Oviatt , Grant Design or West Village Marketing.

When it comes to making Instagram/Facebook stories, social media graphic posts or banners, you want to have a cohesive feed and similar branding and colours. For more information on how to make a cohesive feed, check out this post. One of the easiest ways to make beautiful graphics is with pre-made templates or sizes that you can edit to make your own. With these three apps, you have access to tons of templates and customization options to make your graphics and stories look beautiful.

Here are the three apps that will help you make beautiful posts, without design experience!

#1: Canva

Canva is probably the most popular website for social media graphics and presentations out there. It’s gotten super popular over the past couple of years and there’s a good reason for that. You can design almost anything on the website, including posters, graphics, presentations, business cards, and much more. The best part about it? It’s completely free.

There is a paid option for the app (like most apps) but I know many people who think that the free version is good enough. The paid version allows you to access more stock photos, save your brand colours and use specific graphics. If you do decide to upgrade, it’s not very expensive as apps go.

The biggest issue with Canva is that it has become too mainstream. If you aren’t careful, it can be very obvious that you are using a Canva template. To avoid this, you need to add your own text and branded colours to the templates available. Make sure you change at least one thing about the template to avoid it looking like a generic Canva graphic.

Ultimately, if used creatively, I think Canva is a great option. See the above images for a couple of examples of graphics that I’ve made on Canva.

#2: Over

(No images for this one because so far I’ve only used it for client work)

Over is a newer app that I’ve begun using. While it doesn’t have as many free options as Canva, I think that it allows for more formal, well-produced content. I use it the more ‘mature’ clients that I have, that don’t like colourful graphics and fun prints.

Over is free, but there are some paid options that do seem like they would be handy. They have some good template options, but I often use those as inspiration, as many of the best templates are paid.

The reason that I enjoy this app is that it’s easy to use and has streamlined editing features. My favourite part of the app is the large variety of fonts.

My tip is to bring your own stock photos (use Pexels or Unsplash) and use their great font and sizing options to make a beautiful story or graphic.

#3: PicMonkey

If you used PicMonkey as a kid to make ugly collages and add terrible filters to your photos, you might think I’m crazy. But, PicMonkey has (as tiktok would say) done a full 180 and totally pivoted to embrace the new, curated Instagram feeds. I’ve been paying monthly for it for a few months now because of its image re-size feature. Since I was already spending money on it, I decided to use the other features and I’m very impressed.

PicMonkey has some beautiful templates with tons of options for sizing, including Etsy, LinkedIn, Pinterest and Twitch!

Even though I spend about $7 USD on PicMonkey per month, I still don’t have access to all of the features. That is the biggest flaw with PicMonkey, you really have to spend money to get anything out of it. You can test it out for free, but if you want to download anything, you have to make an account and start paying money.

Is it worth it? I like the templates more than Canva right now, and it is less popular. If you can spare $7 a month, it’s a good investment.

What are your favourite apps for Instagram? Let me know!