How To Build A Consistent Social Media Branding

I see you struggling with your Instagram feed, always trying to make it look pretty and coordinated. Always wondering what colors you should use, or how most brands can always look as neat and polished. I know because my branding clients, creative small business owners just like you, ask me about it all the time! Here’s the thing. Building a consistent social media branding comes down to (and is also a consequence of) creating a strong brand recognition and aesthetic.

You really can’t afford to improvise when it comes to the way your brand is perceived and remembered. But don’t worry, you have a nifty handy tool to guide you in this process: branding.

Going through a complete branding journey will teach you the confidence of using your aesthetics right. Knowing your brand’s color psychology, to start with, will boost your consciousness of how your color palette can simply and effectively support your vision. Choosing and knowing how to use the right font system for your brand, then, will mean you’ll never wonder how-the-heck you’re supposed to create a social media graphic once again!

I know, I know. Easier said than done – you’re thinking. Well, it doesn’t have to be!

Want to hear about my top tips for building a consistent social media branding? Here you go…

01. Coordinate all your platforms with static social media graphics

Start with the basics.

Remember all your platforms should look consistent and coherent with each other. If your potential clients are checking you out on Instagram, then on Facebook and on your website, they should be able to recognize your brand and see a clear fil rouge in your visuals. Or they’ll be more confused than before.

Start by uploading the same profile image on all your platforms: it can be a great idea to have a headshot of yourself if you own an individual brand, to allow potential clients to instantly connect on a more personal level. Or you could use a round submark from your brand board!

Then create or commission consistent static social media graphics for your pages covers (Facebook, Pinterest, LinkedIn covers for example). Your brand’s colors and fonts should be used as tools to create consistency in all the static graphics. But you could also include your logo, a submark, brand illustrations or even a branded pattern.

02. Create branded social media templates

Following the same route, create or commission social media templates for your posts. These are graphic templates you can easily edit (in Photoshop, or even Canva), usually to implement texts in your feed (quotes, testimonials, inspiration), which should use your brand’s fonts and colors to always look consistent and coordinated.

To build a consistent social media branding in your feeds, use your editable templates to alternate branded graphics to images and photography. You could use them to quickly create carousels, feed posts, video covers, even social media ads!

Whether you’re using a premade template or a fully custom one, always make sure your social media graphics are unique and coordinated to your brand’s aesthetics, to help you build a strong brand recognition in the meanwhile.

03. Use photography props and filters that compliments your brand’s colors

Most social media feeds are visual and mainly composed of photography. Showing the behind-the-scenes and work in progress of your brand is always a great idea to spark curiosity in your potential clients and help them connect. But with photography it’s quite easy to go off-brand and “ruin” your feed’s aesthetic, isn’t it?

When creating and posting your photo content, remember to plan in advance. While shooting your photos, always include a couple of props in the colors of your palette.

When editing your photos, choose a filter or preset that compliments your brand’s color and recreates the mood your brand wants to communicate. Then be consistent and stick to it for all your posts!

Use an app like Preview if you’re someone who likes to visually rearrange the feed before posting. It will help you plan and alternate your posts between photos and branded graphics. But also have an overview of your feed and tweak any images that don’t feel perfectly on-brand.

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Building a consistent social media branding will allow you to always look professional and trustworthy. As I like to say, your client experience starts from the very first moment a future client finds you online (or offline), and continues until he books you and ultimately your work together is over. By putting care and attention even to the earliest steps of his journey, you’re anticipating and making justice to the quality of your work.

Hopefully with these tips you’ll be able to make your way towards a more consistent and cohesive social media presence.