Canva: Learning the Ropes

Getting started with exceptional graphics tools

Photo by Agence Olloweb on Unsplash

I love Canva for designing all the graphics I need to promote my writing and blogging. The free version served me very well initially until my promotion activities became a little unmanageable. (I also coveted some cool fonts: they’re my jam!) I wrote about my struggle to master social media promotion and how I leverage Canva Pro’s content planner.

Canva is available for Windows, Mac, iOS, and Android. The free version offers templates for business and personal applications — social media, YouTube, book covers, printed materials, videos, and so much more. Free Canvas includes 250K template designs, free learning tools, loads of free photos, and more. (I do not work for Canva; I’m just a mega-fan.)

The paid (Pro) version offers:

• 100+ million (yes, million) photos;
• more than twice the template options as the free version;
• an incredible selection of font choices — did I mention I love cool fonts;
• a resize option that allows users to design a social media post once, then resize for Twitter, Instagram, etc.;
• a Content Planner (calendar) that allows users to plan and post content across many platforms — the feature that convinced me to go “pro;”