How to Make Sure your Canva Design will Look Great on Instagram
We all know the power that Canva has when we need to create content for Instagram as small business owners. And we know how quickly we can create something for that platform… but it doesn’t always translate from your computer to your phone screen.
Sometimes the design looks PERFECT when designing on your computer inside of Canva, and when you upload it to Instagram and view it on your phone…
… the text is too small to read.
… the font is not legible.
… the elements looks so chaotic.
… the design looks too busy.
And while we are sure that what you create in Canva looks incredible, and it is on brand, there are a few things you need to keep in mind when creating content for Instagram in Canva for your brand.
And don’t worry, these are very common design mistakes that we see (and that we have done in the past), and there are really simple ways to fix them!!
#1 Keep Ratios the Same for Screenshots
This is the BIGGEST one that we see when it comes to creating content in Canva. Right now Tweet posts are really popular and trendy on Instagram. Basically all you have to do is write and create a tweet and take a screenshot of it, maybe add a background, and post it to Instagram. This is popular for Reels posts, feed posts, and even carousel posts to feature multiple Tweets or Tweet threads.
But people make one key mistake: they take a screenshot from their computer instead of from their phone!
And while you might feel like you are saving time by screenshotting it from your computer, since you are designing on your computer… you are not keeping the same ratios for your screenshot.
Instead what you want to do is head to your phone and take a screenshot, and either Airdrop it to yourself if you have an iPhone, directly upload it into the Canva app, or use a third party service like Google Drive or Dropbox to store the image.
Oh, and if you don’t want to worry about this at all (or if you don’t have a Twitter) we have Canva templates that are the perfect dimensions, and were designed with the proper ratios to make sure this content looks great on your feed!!
#2 Zoom Out In Canva When You Are Done Designing
This might seem a bit weird, but we promise when you zoom out when designing in Canva, you will quickly be able to find the “mistakes” within your Instagram post design. There are a few major benefits of doing so:
When you zoom out, you get a better feel of what it will look like on mobile
When you zoom out, you will see if anything is too hard to read or see
When you zoom out, you can see the flow of your design and if things look weird
And there are a few ways you can accomplish this inside of Canva!! Follow the steps below on how to check your Canva design when you are creating content for Instagram!!
#3 Use Guidelines to make sure your content fits into Instagram aspect ratios
There are so many different ways you can post on Instagram - Stories, Reels, Feed Posts, Carousels, Lives… the list goes on. And each of these post types have their own dimensions and ways that your content will be shown on the platform! Before we dive into this tip, check out our quick cheat sheet for all of Instagram’s post dimensions!
Now, you can use this super cool tool inside of Canva that a lot of people don’t know about: rules and guides! This will allow you to design inside of Canva knowing what boundaries you have to follow so your design isn’t cropped or looks weird once posted on Instagram. Watch this tutorial for a quick lesson on how to access this feature in Canva!!
VIDEO TUTORIAL: How to use rulers + guides in Canva to make sure your designs look right on Instagram
And with these three tips alone, you can take your designs and Instagram content to the next level, while making sure they look great on Instagram!!
Love this? Give us a follow on Instagram @yourtemplateclub and TikTok @yoursocialteam for more Canva, templates and social content tips!
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Manu Muraro is the founder of Your Social Team, an Instagram training membership and template shop that help social media managers and Instagram-savvy small business owners to grow engagement and sales using Instagram and content marketing, without the overwhelm. Born and raised in Brazil, Manu moved to the U.S. in 2000 right out of college to work for Cartoon Network, where she made an award winning career in creative and strategy. In 2021, Manu started Your Template Club, a Canva template subscription service to help social media professionals and Canva-savvy business owners to create content that performs on Instagram, add more Instagram features into their strategy, such as Instagram Lives and Reels, and save time.