I get asked often how I strategize representing my persona and interests online. I’ve never had quite the right answer, so I wanted to take some time to share the thought process every time I post in the online world. There’s a lot of my identity that I try to encompass in blog posts, Instagram photos, Pinterest and so on. Some of the aspects are easy to convey on certain platforms and much harder on others. My only way to get through the confusion is to maintain a consistent mindset and goal. I am striving to be authentic and connect with other like minded people. There are simple ways to convey this, the way I dress or more technical like using consistent fonts. I have a set of colors that I always use and consistent lighting for my photography. It is a process to build a brand and I welcome any tools that help! A new favorite of mine is Adobe Post, a free phone app that allows me to create branded images to share on social media. This app along with a few other tricks allows me to keep Planning Pretty consistent and clear to it’s audience. Here are a few ideas to keep in mind while building a brand, including a few photos that show my aesthetic.
Color Palette
This is probably the easiest way to maintain a consistent image online. Using the same color or set of colors in all your imagery will give your audience clarity. I say flip through a big book of color swatches (or box of crayons!) and take note of the colors that speak to you. I realized early on that certain pink shades (typically blush, peach, coral, etc.) really catch my eye. Pink symbolically is a great representation of my values as well: femininity, romance, beauty. I noticed my wardrobe consisted of this shade as well as most of my purchases. Find your color(s) and use on your site, in your photographs and even in your workspace. Try keeping the background of your photographs simple (like plain white) and then shoot objects, people, places in your colors.
Photography Style
All businesses and bloggers need a strong social media/website aesthetic. Using consistent looking images will create a clear message as to what your brand is about. Photograph related images in categories like decor, party, flowers, desserts, cityscapes, etc. When editing your photos be sure to use the same settings for brightness, contrast, clarity and saturation. I have a certain preference for how bright I like my photos to be, so I usually up the exposure and brightness a lot. You can use any photo editing software on your desktop or phone. Adobe Post has a great feature that allows you save your last settings and just switch in a new image. There are several tinted filters and color schemes to match your brand’s colors. I like to use a darkening filter and this place white text over like the image above. It looks clean and chic! It makes the process of creating consistent beautiful photos for sharing so much easier.
Font Selection
Using a set family of fonts is very important when building a digital brand. A wild assortment of text styles is a dead giveaway for an unclear brand. I’ve struggled with choosing a set of fonts over the years and that’s why I chose to mostly do away with fonts altogether. I only have a set for my website text and a favorite for Instagram posts that I create in Adobe Post. I use text overlay for recipe posts primarily, but it also works great when making an announcement or DIY post. Choosing fonts in Adobe Post is extremely simple to do, there are several preset options available. A small business announcing discounts, site launches or special events are perfect examples. Events especially, with all the details for date, time, location and RSVP can conveniently be added over a beautiful image.
Consistent Voice
Maintaining a consistent voice in blog posts, website descriptions and social media can come more naturally than you think. Envision the type of person you want as a customer/reader. Create an imaginary persona and pretend you are speaking directly to them every time you write/share. What does she like and hate? Is she a big fan of bright tropical prints or prefers a dark moody atheistic? I tend to imagine I’m speaking with a close friend. My voice is casual and detailed as if I’m sharing how to do some cool new trick.
Content Themes
On Instagram this is definitely the way to go, but there are various strategies. The trick is to choose a theme. Pastels, cookies, flower bouquets, white decor, high contrast photos, stationery, or life at home (that’s mine!). Pick a theme and stick to it the best you can. If you’re having trouble taking a great photo, the Adobe Post app has a free photo library of beautiful images available in the app (like the one show above). I know the impulse feeling of wanting to share everything on Instagram, but some things need to go somewhere else. Really personal photos can be shared on Snapchat or Facebook. Fun videos can go to Vine, Youtube or more serious to Periscope. The trick is to build a consistent look that becomes clear to your followers. Like a magazine, they will know what to expect. Instagram has become one of the first places curious folks go to learn about your and your brand. Think of it as a visual curated resume next time you post.
I hope a few of these tips help you to understand a little more about branding. Using the right software, quality content and mobile apps like Adobe Post will make this process even easier. It is important to have a clear vision of what you want to communicate. Try creating a Pinterest board or even cutting images out of magazines, newspapers, catalogs, etc. Get a sense of your style and essentially your brand. Then get to work on revamping your image!
Download the app for free today :)
*This post is brought to you in collaboration with Adobe Post. All content, ideas, and words in this post are my own. Thank you for supporting the sponsors that allow me to create new and special content like this for Planning Pretty.
