Picture this: You’re scrolling through Instagram, and suddenly, a stunning post catches your eye. The colors pop, the typography is flawless, and the overall design feels effortlessly engaging. You pause. You read. You interact. That’s the power of great social media design.
But here’s the kicker—behind that seemingly effortless post is a solid foundation of design knowledge, resources, and tools that make it all happen. Whether you’re a seasoned designer or a total beginner, the right resources can make all the difference in creating scroll-stopping content.
In this article, we’ll explore must-have resources for improving your social media design skills—along with some untold tips and tricks that many don’t talk about. Ready? Let’s dive in.
1. Design Tools That Make Your Life Easier
Great design starts with the right tools. Here are some go-to platforms for creating professional-quality social media graphics:
- Canva – A game-changer for non-designers. It offers ready-to-use templates, drag-and-drop functionality, and brand kits.
- Adobe Express (formerly Spark) – Perfect for quick, professional-looking social graphics.
- Figma – If you want more flexibility, Figma’s collaborative features make it a powerhouse for teams.
- Affinity Designer – A budget-friendly alternative to Adobe Illustrator, great for vector graphics.
- Remove.bg – Instantly removes backgrounds from images, making your visuals cleaner and more professional.
- Pixlr – A browser-based alternative to Photoshop for quick edits.
Untold Tip: Stack tools! For example, use Canva for layout, Remove.bg for background edits, and Pixlr for fine-tuning.
2. Stock Photos & Illustrations That Don’t Look Stocky
Nobody wants their social media posts to look generic. But let’s be honest—sometimes we just don’t have time to take our own photos. The trick is to find stock imagery that feels authentic and aligns with your brand aesthetic.
- Unsplash & Pexels – High-quality, free stock photos.
- Moose by Icons8 – Customizable stock photos that let you change colors, backgrounds, and objects.
- Freepik & Storyset – Free illustrations and vector graphics with customizable elements.
- Blush – Hand-drawn, customizable illustrations to make your designs feel more personal.
- Icons8 & The Noun Project – Vast collections of icons that can elevate your designs.
Untold Tip: Instead of using stock images as-is, tweak them—add filters, overlay textures, or crop them creatively to make them feel more unique.
3. Fonts That Speak Volumes
Typography plays a huge role in design. The right font can completely transform your message.
- Google Fonts – Free, high-quality fonts.
- Font Squirrel – A great collection of free fonts with commercial-use licenses.
- Creative Market & Envato Elements – Premium fonts for more unique branding.
- WhatFont (Chrome Extension) – Ever seen a font you love? This tool helps you identify it instantly.
- DaFont – A treasure trove of creative and decorative fonts.
Untold Tip: Use a font hierarchy—choose a bold, eye-catching headline font and pair it with a clean, readable body font. And always test your typography on mobile before finalizing a design!
4. Color Palettes That Pop
Color psychology plays a massive role in how people perceive your content.
- Coolors – Quickly generate color palettes that work together harmoniously.
- Adobe Color – Helps create, test, and save color schemes.
- Khroma – An AI-based color tool that learns your preferences and suggests palettes.
- Color Hunt – Trendy color schemes curated by designers.
Untold Tip: Use high-contrast color combinations to make text pop on mobile. And remember, different colors trigger different emotions (e.g., blue = trust, red = urgency, green = growth).
5. Motion & Animation for More Engagement
Static posts are great, but motion graphics? That’s where the magic happens.
- LottieFiles – Animated graphics that don’t slow down your content.
- Veed.io & Kapwing – Easy tools for adding captions and effects to videos.
- After Effects & Premiere Pro – If you want professional-level motion graphics.
- Canva & Adobe Express – Offer simple animation features for text and images.
Untold Tip: Short, loopable animations work best—keep them under 5 seconds to maintain engagement.
6. Design Inspiration to Keep You Ahead of Trends
Even the best designers need inspiration.
- Dribbble & Behance – Showcases from top designers.
- Pinterest – A goldmine of design ideas.
- Awwwards – Recognizes the best web and UX designs.
- Social Media Feeds – Study brands you admire and reverse-engineer their approach.
Untold Tip: Create a private mood board where you collect designs that inspire you. Analyze what makes them stand out.
7. NLP for More Exposure
Yes, your design matters—but so do the words you use. Natural Language Processing (NLP) techniques can increase engagement:
- Use conversational tones – Write the way people talk.
- Leverage power words – Words like “insider,” “hidden,” “proven,” and “exclusive” spark curiosity.
- Break up text – Short, digestible sentences keep people reading.
- Ask questions – Engagement skyrockets when you invite interaction.
Untold Tip: Try adding an interactive element in your captions. Example: ” Which design trend do you love the most—Minimalism or Bold Colors? Comment below!”
Final Thoughts: Elevate Your Social Media Design Now
With the right resources, your social media designs can go from ordinary to extraordinary. Whether it’s leveraging high-quality design tools, finding the perfect font, or using NLP-powered copy, every small improvement adds up to a major impact.
Next time you create a post, don’t just settle for what’s easy—experiment, tweak, and push your creativity. The best designs aren’t just visually appealing; they tell a story, create an emotion, and, most importantly, get people to stop scrolling.
Now, which of these resources are you most excited to try? Let’s talk in the comments!