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
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Brand Challenge Day 15: Determine the style of your graphics

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Brand Challenge Day 15: Determine the style of your graphics

Your logo is taken care of, your fonts and colors are good to go.

Next up: graphics.

Something as simple as an icon or a border can make your brand distinct and memorable. Much of branding is considering and accounting for the small details.

But before you create fun brand assets like icons, patterns, and borders, you need to consider the overall style of your graphics.

This post is part of Elle & Company’s 4-week Brand Challenge. Click here to see more details, sign up, and access the free workbook.

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Brand Challenge Day 14: Choose your brand fonts

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Brand Challenge Day 14: Choose your brand fonts

Your colors are all set! Now it’s time to dive into fonts.

But finding, choosing, and pairing fonts for your brand isn’t as simple as grabbing Comic Sans and Baskerville from the list of included fonts on your computer and calling it a day.

Actually, please don’t use Comic Sans as a brand font. Ever.

Today’s action step and blog post will walk you through what to consider and how to go about choosing fonts for your one-of-a-kind brand.

This post is part of Elle & Company’s 4-week Brand Challenge. Click here to see more details, sign up, and access the free workbook.

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Brand Challenge Day 13: Set up color options for each logo variation

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Brand Challenge Day 13: Set up color options for each logo variation

Remember those black and white primary logo and alternative logos you refined/created last week?

It’s finally time to add some color to them.

(And now that you’ve already outlined your color system, this step should be easy!)

This post is part of Elle & Company’s 4-week Brand Challenge. Click here to see more details, sign up, and access the free workbook.

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Brand Challenge Day 12: Outline your brand's color system

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Brand Challenge Day 12: Outline your brand's color system

Now that you’ve determined your color palette, it’s time to create your color system.

I know what you’re thinking, “What in the world is a color system?”

Let me explain.

Your whole brand should be viewed as a system.

It’s sort of like an equation; you plug in the values to the framework and you get the right answer.

This post is part of Elle & Company’s 4-week Brand Challenge. Click here to see more details, sign up, and access the free workbook.

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Brand Challenge Day 11: Come up with your color palette

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Brand Challenge Day 11: Come up with your color palette

Color is a great way to distinguish your brand and create recognition.

In fact, color increases brand recognition by up to 80%.

Think about Home Depot, Target, and T-Mobile. Did their brand colors (orange, red, and pink) automatically pop into your mind? Of course they did!

The same should be true for your brand.

This post is part of Elle & Company’s 4-week Brand Challenge. Click here to see more details, sign up, and access the free workbook.