Get To KnowI’m sure you have been on Instagram or Facebook and seen those beautiful images with quotes on them. Maybe you received an email promotion or invite with a cool looking graphic and wondered how someone designed it? Are they a designer? Are they paying for a designer? Chances are they are using Canva.

Canva is an online design site that helps you design everything from social media graphics to presentations to menus. The best part is that Canva is free to use. The site offers templates, layouts and editing features to make great looking designs. Some layouts and photos have a small fee, but there are many designs that can be made for free. You can also use your own images to personalize your graphics. In addition to their website, they have an app for the iPad which is really easy to use.

Why use Canva? Not every business can afford to use a professional designer and Canva gives you a great DIY alternative. Even if you work with a professional designer for overall branding and “the big stuff”, Canva gives you a great tool for making blog and other social media graphics. We know graphics catch the eye of people scanning through their social feeds, so having something that looks great and complements your message is important to cutting through the noise.

Canva is really easy to use and they supply so many tutorials and a design school that allow you to get up and running quickly and making great looking graphics. If you haven’t already given Canva a try, join the almost 9 million users that have.