The cover image of your social media profile is the first thing a visitor will see. It’s your chance to make a great impression and communicate what your brand means. Most companies will upload a generic looking image which looks dull and boring. Social media profiles are just as important as your main website, you need to plan the visual look and feel to make a good impression. Standing out from the crowd of content means getting creative with your visual elements. Using social media scheduler to post content can give you a chance to get higher engagement.
Get rid of the boring image and use these 16 tips to create an amazing cover.
Social media visuals can come in the form of more than simple photographs. You can use infographics, quotes, symbols and more. Photographs are a standard choice which means almost all pages will be using them. However, graphic designers can leverage the principals of basic photography to vamp up their designs and craft stunning social media covers. Talk about killing two birds with one stone!
Use interesting images which align well with your brand philosophy. Don’t be afraid to merge multiple images to get the effect you want on your cover. Dynamic images send a powerful message and attract attention.
Your logo is probably the most important branding element, if you are a small business it helps to display a visual reminder of your logo. Place the logo strategically on the cover image to enhance brand visibility. If the logo distracts from your main message make it smaller or increase the transparency.
Come up with a descriptive hashtag and use it in your marketing messages. Your cover can also serve as a way to highlight your hashtag. Overlay the hashtag prominently on the cover image. It will help your visitors discover your presence across social networks.
Display a CTA which directs your visitors to Like/ Follow your brand. If you have profiles on other social media networks, invite visitors to engage with your brand on their preferred network.
Eyes often glaze over text and focus too much on the image. To minimize this and bring your message into sharper focus, use a shape as a container for your text. Be creative with the commandments of color philosophy and leverage the right colors for maximizing impact.
Combine fonts to make your message more attractive and memorable. Make sure all the fonts are easy to read and work well across different sized screens.
You can include a pun or two now and again to show off your lighter side. People often respond more quickly to humor than serious messages.
Typography is about more than just the right font choice. It’s the body language of your text. With the myriads of typefaces available for free, you can unleash your creativity. Use typography tricks to send a powerful message.
An image is great but sometimes an abstract background works best to reinforce your message. Try to find a background that conceptually fits in with your message.
This is a great way to add images but also keep the focus of the reader squarely on your message. This is easy to do in any photo editor, simply add in a colored layer over the entire image and bring down the opacity.
Highlight special events or causes your company cares about by using a themed social media cover. Make special cover images for Christmas, Thanksgiving, Easter, Valentine’s Day, etc. and upload them on your social media profile.
Branding in the age of disruption might seem like a tough nut to crack, until you factor in brand consistency. All your cover photos should be consistent with the brand image you want to portray. Align the covers with your other marketing assets such as emails, logos and website style. Think of what kind of fonts and colors work well with your brand philosophy, its best to create a style guide which can be referred to whenever you need.
Social media platforms have different requirements when it comes to profile pictures, covers, and posts. These guidelines help the layout of your page look professional and neat by specifying the size, color requirements etc. An amazing looking cover page is no good if it gets cropped of compressed to an ugly version once you upload it. And obviously you will be changing the cover page regularly and it’s a pain to keep track of all these requirements, fortunately we have an easy trick for you. (See the next tip)
Use any image editor and create a template for all your social media covers, then all you have to do is insert the images, position them and you are good to go. This is convenient especially if you tent to change the cover pages frequently. Your wok is minimized and you can focus more on being creative.
Most people are using more than one device to access social media sites. People use their mobiles on the go and then usually switch over to their laptops or tablets. Your cover designs should work on regular laptops, tablets and smartphones. This shouldn’t be much of a problem if you stick to the platform’s recommended image sizes but test out the cover pages just in case.
The cover photo acts as the billboard of your social media presence, it needs to be the star of your page. The specific images obviously depend on what message you want to convey to visitors but remember to be creative with your image choices. The choice of cover page speaks volumes about your brand identity, it’s in your best interest to make it as creative as you can.
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Enjoyed reading this post and really informative. I run & manage my company social pages myself, and after reading this post, I am thinking to re-work on my social pages cover pictures, because many of the things are missing. Your ideas sound really good, actionable and effective. Thanks for sharing the post and the tips.