A Simple Solution to Make Your Logo Fit

UPDATED MAY 2020

Do you ever get frustrated when trying to make your logo fit your social media profile image?

How do you post your profile images when your logo isn’t square?

Is your logo cropped in some weird way and you’ve spent hours trying to fix it and it STILL doesn’t look good!

And why are the profile sizes different on EVERY. SINGLE. APP??

We totally understand, and we get frustrated TOO! Let me share a simple solution to make every logo work using an actual logo for a client of mine!

Client Case Study: Fernwood Farm

 

We work with a bed and breakfast in New York named Fernwood Farm. The outside of the home has a very unique decorative trim and we used that as part of the logo, unfortunately it doesn’t work well in social media profile images as this rectangle. Since this is the case with many logos we came up with a way to make it work.

Profile Image Sizes:

First of all, as you know, there are tons of social media platforms out there. You are probably on at least three if not more. So let’s start by reviewing a cheat sheet on social media sizes.

The largest option for a profile image is Etsy’s at 500 x 500, the most common shape is square and the smallest maximum image size is 4 mb. So let’s work within those parameters.

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Use Canva.com

Canva.com is a great online software tool for designing social media images. It allows you to use a template or create your own size design. Sign in or register for a free account.

SIMPLE SOLUTION HERE: You will be creating a plain white box, and then placing your logo inside of it. When you upload the final image to your social media – the program crops to the white box NOT your logo.

• Image 1 – This is what your screen will look like when you open it up. We are going to use custom dimensions for this application. Click the turquoise button Create a design and it’ll drop down to give you some options including + Custom dimensions, choose that one right on top!

• Image 2 – Type in the dimensions of 500 x 500 and make sure the PX is showing (for pixels) and then hit the turquoise button Create design!
  
• Image 3 – You’ll now have a white box. EASY! Now upload your high resolution logo as a png or jpg by clicking on UPLOADS in the left column (1), then clicking the turquoise button UPLOAD AN IMAGE OR VIDEO (2). 

• Image 4 – I’ve uploaded and placed the logo for Fernwood (once it’s uploaded to Canva you need to click on it to add it to your box.). I would recommend reducing the logo to have a nice white border around it so it looks balanced and if you’re adding it to any round profile center it with a wider white border.

NOW use the PUBLISH button on the top right and download it to your computer. That’s it! This file will work for all your profile images now.

BONUS:

Now that your logo is uploaded to Canva it’s there to use for other design projects! We LOVE having all of our logo files, brand colors, and brand fonts available in Canva’s Brand Kit available with the paid subscription. They’re available whenever we sign in – no more scrambling to meet a deadline. Everything is there and ready to use.

Other solutions to make your logo fit when it doesn’t want to –

When we are designing logos we always keep the frustrating profile limitations in mind. I suggest alternative designs for the client and/or pull one identifying part out of the logo that can be used as an icon to represent the company. Here are some options we used for Fernwood Farm:                                               

Does Your Logo Still Look Bad?

If you’re still not happy with how your logo looks, it might be that the resolution is just too small. There are many reasons for that – we find most often it’s been over optimized by software.

Or it might be that your original logo was made in Photoshop or even Canva as a rasterized image (If your file ends in .jpg or .png it’s a raster file) rather than a vector image. Check out this blog post to understand the differences between these two file formats and next steps to fix the problems with your logo.

So was that helpful? Do you still have questions, feel free to post it below.

Other Resources for Social Media Post Creation:

• GetStencil.com – Similar to WordSwag, this browser based design tool includes free photos and quotes to use and even resizes your finished image for different social channels.
• DESIGN PRINCIPLES for social media – latest trends in image creation for your social media feeds
• DIGITAL ASSETS with Envato Elements, all the bells and whistles to make your social media stand out can be found here!
• ROYALTY FREE PHOTOS  from Shutterstock Showcase and explore the future of search with their test site for innovative tools.
• How to make quotes for Instagram –  lots of apps I haven’t even used yet, so have fun exploring these!
• Facebook Cover Photo Do’s and Don’ts – now that your profile is uploaded correctly, make sure your cover photo is too!

We are on social media in many different places. If you’re looking for “DIY” posts follow BGD on Facebook, Pinterest or Twitter, if you’re looking for inspiration, encouragement and real life – follow @beckysgraphicdesign on Instagram.