Business, Blogging
Lauren Hooker
40 Ways to Use Adobe Illustrator to Improve ...

Adobe Illustrator is my go-to software for anything and everything design-related. It's the one program I truly couldn't work without.

And while it's easy to assume that the program's primary focus is illustration based on the name, there is so much more to this design software. 

With tools for type, color, photo cropping, image tracing, drawing, and much more, it has innumerable benefits for bloggers and business owners, alike.

To get your creative gears turning, here's a look at 40 ways Adobe Illustrator can take your blog and/or business to the next level.

40 Ways to Use Adobe Illustrator to Improve Your Blog and Business
Blogging, Business, Branding, Design
Lauren Hooker
How to Create Eye-Catching Blog Post Graphics

First impressions are crucial, especially in business.

Potential customers and clients make judgments about your business within the first few seconds of coming into contact with it, whether it’s through your website, your social media accounts, or a simple blog post graphic.

And those initial thoughts - whether they’re spot on or far off from what you want them to be - are within your control. You have the opportunity to make a killer first impression through high-quality, branded visuals.

If your blog is a large part of your business or you’re hoping to drive more traffic back to your site through your blog, you have to have eye-catching blog graphics to not only generate a positive first impression, but to encourage readers to share your posts on sites like Pinterest and be seen by an even wider audience.

So how do you create eye-catching blog post graphics? And better yet, how can you set them apart so they’ll stand out from the rest and be recognized time and time again?

How to Create Eye-Catching Blog Post Graphics
Business, Visual Marketing
Lauren Hooker
40 Easy, Engaging Video Content Ideas for Your ...

“When I discovered YouTube, I didn’t work for 5 days.” - Michael Scott

Video platforms like YouTube (and more recently, Periscope) are easily the world’s greatest time-wasters. We’ve all been guilty of losing track of time on YouTube at least once, because videos are easily consumable, very addicting, and highly entertaining.

As a matter of fact, studies show that a whopping 78% of us watch videos online every week and 55% watch videos online every day.

Which is why Youtube is also the world’s greatest overnight-success-maker. If you’re on the production-side of a video and you’ve come up with a clever idea, you might just have a viral hit on your hands.

Video holds a lot of potential for interaction, engagement, and shares for creative businesses. And for that reason, it’s one of the best visual marketing tools you can use.

But it producing videos can be a little overwhelming, can’t it? Even with helpful video tools out there like Animoto, many of us struggle to come up with simple ideas for video content that would appeal to our audience. 

And that’s where this post comes in. I’ve rounded up 40 easy, engaging video content ideas to help get your creative gears turning. My hope is that you’ll find a few ideas to implement and as a result, bring your business more exposure.

40 Easy, Engaging Video Content Ideas for Your Creative Business
Business, Visual Marketing
Lauren Hooker
Why You Should Be Using Infographics for Your ...

If you’re looking for a good way to kill at least an hour of your time, type in the word “infographic” in the Pinterest search bar.

Thousands of clever graphics will pop up on everything from “how to make a salad taste awesome” to a baby’s first year in a review. There’s even an infographic that answers the pressing question, “Is your dog sleeping a little too much?”

Then, after you’ve admired the genius creativity behind them, take a gander at how many repins and likes each of those infographics receives. Thousands upon thousands.

In fact, infographic volumes have increased by over 800% in 2 years. Publishers who use infographics grow in traffic an average of 12% more than those who don’t. 

What is it about infographics that makes them so appealing? And better yet, how can you come up with some clever infographics for your business so it gains more exposure through likes and shares?

I have all the answers for you in this post.

Why You Should Be Using Infographics for Your Business (And How to Create Them)
Blogging
Lauren Hooker
How to Create Catchy Headlines

Is your headline the first thing you consider when you sit down to write a post?

Probably not, but creating a catchy blog post title is one of the most important aspects of each blog post. It's the gateway to your content; it convinces people to click or scroll right past your latest post'. 

In fact, studies show that 8 out of 10 people will read your headline but only 2 out of 10 will read your entire post. 

Here are a few pointers for drawing in potential readers and a couple "templates" to help you create a catchy headline for your upcoming posts. 

How to Create Catchy Headlines

Branding

How to Come Up with a Creative Visual Direction for Your Brand

How to Come Up with a Creative Visual Direction for Your Brand

Most people don’t struggle to come up with their brand keywords or identify their ideal client. Or at least that isn’t their greatest branding struggle.

The biggest challenge in creating a brand comes at this stage of the process, when you’ve written your mission statement, identified your ideal client/customer, made a list of brand keywords... and now all that’s left to do is to take all of that information and create some visuals that reflect it.

No big deal, right?

Psh. That’s an overwhelmingly big deal. And if you’ve never branded a business before, you’re probably at a loss for where to start.

That’s where Week 2 of this month’s Brand Challenge comes in. 

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6 Ways to Brand Your Squarespace Website

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6 Ways to Brand Your Squarespace Website

Squarespace is a great website option for business owners who want a lovely, professional website that’s mobile friendly and easy to update.

I chose Squarespace for the Elle & Company website and I highly recommend it to all of my design clients because of the beautiful templates, intuitive user experience, and compatibility.

But with all of those great benefits come limitations on customization.

Unlike Wordpress where the possibilities are endless, Squarespace isn’t as flexible; you have to work within the parameters of their templates and features.

This might be a problem for you if you’re seeking a website that has all of the bells and whistles, but it isn’t an issue for those of you who are seeking to create a simple, intuitive site. 

With these 6 tips (and a little creativity), you can customize your Squarespace site to fit your brand and make it memorable.

Laying the Groundwork for a One-of-a-Kind Brand

Laying the Groundwork for a One-of-a-Kind Brand

What is it that makes the Starbucks brand so distinct?

It isn’t their logo, although the siren mark is definitely different from any other coffee chain out there. 

It isn’t their fonts, because Helvetica is hands-down the most popular brand font among large brands.

And it definitely isn’t their products; you can find a caramel mocha and even a pumpkin spice latte just about anywhere these days.

The thing that makes a great brand like Starbucks so distinct is that they’ve considered the entire experience a customer has with them and they’ve branded every single interaction. 

My Step-by-Step Process for Creating a Streamlined Brand

My Step-by-Step Process for Creating a Streamlined Brand

"When you brand yourself properly, the competition becomes irrelevant." Dan Schawbel

Too many people approach their brand as simply a logo and a color palette. 

They overlook the bigger picture and the humongous impact their brand can have on differentiating themselves and standing out from the crowd.

But a brand is much more than just a logo; it’s the entire experience people have when they interact with your business. 

It’s the tone of your marketing content, the icons you use on your website, the names of your products. 

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Finding, Choosing, and Pairing Brand Fonts

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Finding, Choosing, and Pairing Brand Fonts

There are a couple designer secrets that aren’t often shared when it comes to choosing brand fonts.

The first: Steer clear of using your logo font throughout the rest of your brand (unless it’s a secondary font that you’ve used for your tagline). This makes the logo distinct and keeps it from getting lost among other text on your website and collateral items.

The second: Give each brand font a “job.” Choose one font for your headers, one font for your body text, and maybe one other accent font (maybe). This streamlines your brand by creating consistency.

But even after learning these secrets, you might still have some questions about brand fonts.

How do you go about finding, choosing and pairing fonts that will accurately represent your business and appeal to the right customers?

I’ve got you covered.