Business, Blogging
Lauren Hooker
40 Ways to Use Adobe Illustrator to Improve ...

Adobe Illustrator is my go-to software for anything and everything design-related. It's the one program I truly couldn't work without.

And while it's easy to assume that the program's primary focus is illustration based on the name, there is so much more to this design software. 

With tools for type, color, photo cropping, image tracing, drawing, and much more, it has innumerable benefits for bloggers and business owners, alike.

To get your creative gears turning, here's a look at 40 ways Adobe Illustrator can take your blog and/or business to the next level.

40 Ways to Use Adobe Illustrator to Improve Your Blog and Business
Blogging, Business, Branding, Design
Lauren Hooker
How to Create Eye-Catching Blog Post Graphics

First impressions are crucial, especially in business.

Potential customers and clients make judgments about your business within the first few seconds of coming into contact with it, whether it’s through your website, your social media accounts, or a simple blog post graphic.

And those initial thoughts - whether they’re spot on or far off from what you want them to be - are within your control. You have the opportunity to make a killer first impression through high-quality, branded visuals.

If your blog is a large part of your business or you’re hoping to drive more traffic back to your site through your blog, you have to have eye-catching blog graphics to not only generate a positive first impression, but to encourage readers to share your posts on sites like Pinterest and be seen by an even wider audience.

So how do you create eye-catching blog post graphics? And better yet, how can you set them apart so they’ll stand out from the rest and be recognized time and time again?

How to Create Eye-Catching Blog Post Graphics
Business, Visual Marketing
Lauren Hooker
40 Easy, Engaging Video Content Ideas for Your ...

“When I discovered YouTube, I didn’t work for 5 days.” - Michael Scott

Video platforms like YouTube (and more recently, Periscope) are easily the world’s greatest time-wasters. We’ve all been guilty of losing track of time on YouTube at least once, because videos are easily consumable, very addicting, and highly entertaining.

As a matter of fact, studies show that a whopping 78% of us watch videos online every week and 55% watch videos online every day.

Which is why Youtube is also the world’s greatest overnight-success-maker. If you’re on the production-side of a video and you’ve come up with a clever idea, you might just have a viral hit on your hands.

Video holds a lot of potential for interaction, engagement, and shares for creative businesses. And for that reason, it’s one of the best visual marketing tools you can use.

But it producing videos can be a little overwhelming, can’t it? Even with helpful video tools out there like Animoto, many of us struggle to come up with simple ideas for video content that would appeal to our audience. 

And that’s where this post comes in. I’ve rounded up 40 easy, engaging video content ideas to help get your creative gears turning. My hope is that you’ll find a few ideas to implement and as a result, bring your business more exposure.

40 Easy, Engaging Video Content Ideas for Your Creative Business
Business, Visual Marketing
Lauren Hooker
Why You Should Be Using Infographics for Your ...

If you’re looking for a good way to kill at least an hour of your time, type in the word “infographic” in the Pinterest search bar.

Thousands of clever graphics will pop up on everything from “how to make a salad taste awesome” to a baby’s first year in a review. There’s even an infographic that answers the pressing question, “Is your dog sleeping a little too much?”

Then, after you’ve admired the genius creativity behind them, take a gander at how many repins and likes each of those infographics receives. Thousands upon thousands.

In fact, infographic volumes have increased by over 800% in 2 years. Publishers who use infographics grow in traffic an average of 12% more than those who don’t. 

What is it about infographics that makes them so appealing? And better yet, how can you come up with some clever infographics for your business so it gains more exposure through likes and shares?

I have all the answers for you in this post.

Why You Should Be Using Infographics for Your Business (And How to Create Them)
Blogging
Lauren Hooker
How to Create Catchy Headlines

Is your headline the first thing you consider when you sit down to write a post?

Probably not, but creating a catchy blog post title is one of the most important aspects of each blog post. It's the gateway to your content; it convinces people to click or scroll right past your latest post'. 

In fact, studies show that 8 out of 10 people will read your headline but only 2 out of 10 will read your entire post. 

Here are a few pointers for drawing in potential readers and a couple "templates" to help you create a catchy headline for your upcoming posts. 

How to Create Catchy Headlines

Squarespace

The Pros and Cons of Squarespace's New Email Campaign Feature

The Pros and Cons of Squarespace's New Email Campaign Feature

Squarespace officially rolled out their new email campaign feature on Wednesday.

Up until then, users have had to use a third-party platform (like Mailchimp or ConvertKit) and sync it up to their website either by a form block or a piece of code.

But not anymore!

Squarespace now offers beautifully designed email campaigns that are easy to create, edit, and automate. It’s just one more way that the website builder is helping people create a beautiful online presence.

This new feature will be beneficial for a lot of Squarespace users. But is it right for you?

Before you ditch your current email marketing platform, consider these pros and cons.

Feeling Stuck? Use These 8 Fantastic Squarespace Resources

Feeling Stuck? Use These 8 Fantastic Squarespace Resources

With all the Squarespace blog posts I’ve written in the past, I can’t believe I’ve never written a blog post rounding up all the Squarespace resources out there.

When I first had the idea to write this post to finish out my Squarespace series I imagined this list would be bursting at the seams with resources.

But when I started doing my research for this post I found it difficult to find quality and consistently updated Squarespace resources.

Here are the 8 resources I found!

How to Blog Like a Pro in Squarespace

How to Blog Like a Pro in Squarespace

If you’ve spent any real time on my blog, you’ll know I’m a huge advocate of blogging (and I have 30+ blog posts about blogging to prove it).

People are always shocked to learn the reason Elle & Company grew exponentially in my first year of business was because of my blogging efforts.

As I tried to attract new design clients, I committed to sharing high-quality content on this blog every weekday for the first year and a half of my business. I learned a lot during that year and a half, including how important your blogging platform is to your overall blogging efforts.

I made the switch to Squarespace from WordPress and Blogger because I needed a backend that was user-friendly. I’ve never looked back or regretted my decision, and I highly suggest Squarespace to each of my clients.

Many of my blog posts about blogging revolve around blogging on the Squarespace platform, so it’s no surprise that I often get asked questions about blogging on Squarespace specifically. Today I’m going to walk through how to blog like a pro on Squarespace and some of the questions I get asked about blogging on this platform most often.