{"id":7418,"date":"2021-06-06T09:59:00","date_gmt":"2021-06-06T15:59:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/twprod.wpengine.com\/10-pros-reveal-how-to-create-scroll-stopping-images-for-social-media\/"},"modified":"2025-02-11T10:01:29","modified_gmt":"2025-02-11T16:01:29","slug":"10-pros-reveal-how-to-create-scroll-stopping-images-for-social-media","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tailwindapp.com\/blog\/10-pros-reveal-how-to-create-scroll-stopping-images-for-social-media","title":{"rendered":"10 Pros Reveal How to Create Scroll-Stopping Images for Social Media"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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When your business relies on <\/span>getting quality traffic from social media<\/span><\/a>, you spend a lot of time crafting the perfect images.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

But there\u2019s nothing more depressing (or infuriating) than spending precious time designing something beautiful only to have it overlooked or ignored.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you’re not a professional designer or marketer, knowing what kinds of graphics will make people pay attention can be hard. In fact, even many designers and marketers are often left scratching their heads when their images just don\u2019t connect.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today, our goal is to help you understand what it takes to create and post scroll-stopping images for social media. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019ll focus primarily on Pinterest, Instagram, and Facebook\u2014but these strategies can be adapted and used on a wide variety of platforms including sites like YouTube or your own blog.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The advice in this post comes from a very talented group of professional designers and marketers who have been in the trenches and know what it takes to get their followers\u2019 attention.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

So if you want your flowers to <\/span>STOP<\/span> and pay attention to you in their social feeds, this roundup of top-notch advice is for you.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s get started:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tip #1: Follow the Data<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019re starting with this tip because it should literally affect every decision you make about social media design moving forward.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019re a true marketer or entrepreneur, <\/span>data and analytics<\/span><\/a> are the most important things to consider when designing for social feeds.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ask yourself: <\/span>What are users actually engaging with?<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

From there, any other questions about brand consistency, colors, fonts, and images all take a back seat.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cStart out by experimenting with different types of images for your content– different colors, fonts, image types, etc– and find what people are engaging with the most (Pinterest analytics<\/a> are an INCREDIBLE resource for this!)– and then use that data to make informed decisions about what kind of images to create moving forward. \u201c<\/p>\nMorgan Nield<\/a>, Marketer and Entrepreneur<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Tip #2: Optimize for Each Platform<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Just because you\u2019ve got a good understanding of what it takes to <\/span>succeed on Pinterest<\/span><\/a>, doesn\u2019t mean the same tactics will work on Instagram.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In fact, they\u2019re almost guaranteed not to.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s essential to make sure that the social media designs adhere to each platform\u2019s size and resolution requirements so that your posts look just right,\u201d explains <\/span>marketing & design expert <\/span>Amalia Madalina Pop<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

But optimizing your designs for each individual platform is about way more than just getting <\/span>the right social media image sizes<\/span><\/a> (although, that is definitely important).<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s about understanding why your followers are using one platform over another.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt is essential to understand which platforms are suitable for your business,\u201d Amalia continues. \u201cWhile Pinterest is one place to find inspiration that leads to purchase, LinkedIn is a more business-oriented platform.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cEvery platform has its specificity. Pick those platforms that will shed the best light on your product or services with the help of social media graphic design.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The <\/span>design team at <\/span>Design Pickle<\/span><\/a> agrees:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cIdentify which platform(s) you\u2019re going to share your designs on before starting the design.<\/span> You’ll have to resize the image to fit the specific dimensions of every platform you plan to share a social media graphic design.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It may seem tedious, but a quick size check could make the difference between cropping out the most important design element and a flawless user experience.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

For more information, review <\/span>how to recycle social media content for multiple platforms<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tip #3: Tap Into Emotion with Faces<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Visual communication is all about emotion: what do your followers FEEL when they see your social posts.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The more emotion you can build into an image or design, the more likely your followers are to stop scrolling, pay attention, engage, or click.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cUse emotion or motion in the images. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This means if you’re going to use someone’s face, make sure there is obvious emotion vs just using a standard smiling headshot.\u201d <\/p>\nClay Mosley<\/strong><\/a>, GetDripify<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Studies show that using faces in your social media images can lead to more likes<\/a>. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The overall goal here is to get your followers to <\/span>feel <\/span>something when they see your graphics. The more they feel, the more connection they will have with your brand, and the more likely they\u2019ll be to engage in positive ways.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tip #4: Don\u2019t Be Too Polished<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Our next design tip for scroll-stopping images has proven to work especially well <\/span>when designing facebook images<\/span><\/a> (particularly for ads).<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our advice? Don\u2019t be too polished.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt may seem counterintuitive at first,\u201d explains <\/span>designer and marketer <\/span>Preston Lee<\/span><\/a>, \u201cbut sometimes a \u2018poorly designed\u2019 image can grab a LOT of attention.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou should balance this decision with other considerations like your overall brand appearance, but often, if your posts are too polished, they\u2019ll fade into the background and get swallowed up by all the noise in your followers\u2019 feeds.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The reasoning behind this is pretty simple:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If an image is over-optimized it can begin to feel too \u201ccorporate\u201d or \u201ccold\u201d where a less \u201cofficial\u201d image can feel authentic, warm, and original.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tip #5: Provide Additional Value<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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When designing images for social media, it can pay off to ask yourself \u201chow can I add even more value here?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Studies show people come to social media for \u201creward processing, social cognition, imitation, and attention.\u201d<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In other words, people come to social media looking for something. Attention, validation, and often <\/span>information<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pro designer <\/span>Amy Kuo<\/span><\/a> reveals how she boosts engagement through social images:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cShare your knowledge! My most engaged-with posts are clear, well-designed graphs or <\/span>carousel posts<\/span><\/a> sharing bits and pieces of my knowledge about branding and design.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s the same with<\/span> interior design expert <\/span>Mania Mavridou<\/span><\/a>. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy personal goal is to connect my architectural studio with professionalism and great taste, but also provide value, showing my expertise and educating prospects and clients,\u201d she explains. \u201cThis is why there\u2019s always some text, an attention grabbing story or useful information, and a link to a blog post for those who want to learn more.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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A post shared by Amy | Brand Strategy & Design (@authorbrandstudio)<\/a><\/p><\/div><\/blockquote>