There are two types of people in this world: there are Adobe Illustrator wizards, and then there are the rest of us.

Seriously…it’s difficult. 

I fall squarely into the second category, and even though I like to think (key word being “think”) that I have an eye for good design, I have zero talent when it comes to graphic design. ZERO. Zilch.

When I first started blogging, I would browse through Pinterest, all wide-eyed and slack-jawed, wondering how in the world are these people coming up with these amazing images for their pins? Meanwhile, I’m adding text to photos in Microsoft Word (sad, but true).

I’ll just cut straight to the chase…learning how to use Canva was one of the best things I've ever done...because I use it for everything. It is easy to use, even for people like me who are hilariously below average when it comes to graphic design. There are hundreds if not thousands of templates available for just about any business or occasion, and you can upload your own fonts and use your own colors. It’s fantastic, people.

One of the best things about Canva, especially for new businesses owners, is that it is free! Of course there is a paid version that has more features, but the free version works just fine for creating basic graphic design projects.

I’ve put together a list of 26 design projects for your business that can be created using Canva, along with an explanation as to what each of them could possibly be used for in your small business.

26 Things to Create for Your

Small Business Using Canva

Branding: 

• Business Cards: Along with the great mystery of how faxing is still a thing…business cards are just as relevant as ever in the business world today. There are lots and lots of online sites for designing and printing business cards, but if you want to design them yourself, Canva is the place to do it! Create and download your design, and then have it printed or print it yourself!

  
  

• Tags/Stickers: This can apply to any niche, as stickers can be used on anything. But if you are creating and packaging a product to send to your customers, branded tags/stickers are super important. Your packaging is what your customers see before they even see your product! When I was heavy into my vinyl business, I took great pride in packaging my items (even though I spent very little money doing so). I talk more about the importance of packaging in my post How I Make $1,000/month Cutting Vinyls.  You can design a simple label with your business name, logo and website to stick in/on your packaging to make it look even more put together. Extremely easy but speaks volumes about your brand! Design online, download and print!

  
  

• Letterhead: Okay, so this isn’t as fun as everything else, but it’s part of the bigger picture that your business is legit. Chances are, at some point, you are going to need to send correspondence to your customers or to other business professionals. There’s no denying it, letterhead really does say “I have my life together." And luckily, Canva makes it extremely easy. They have templates where literally all you have to do is type your information in…it doesn’t get much easier than that! Grab yourself some nice, thick paper (I personally like to use resume paper because I like how it feels) and print your letterhead on it.

  
  

• Desktop: This may not be 100% necessary, but it’s still fun. Canva has design templates specifically for designing a background for your desktop! If you have a store or office where customers/people you may be meeting with come through, there’s a chance they may catch a glimpse of your computers at some point. Wouldn’t it be nice to have a crisp, branded image as your background? Or if you own a healthcare practice and you need to "sleep" your computers when you aren't using them to protect patient information, it's nice to have a custom screen instead of a blank one. Like I said, not a true necessity, but it’s nice to have the option.

  
  

• Presentation: Because you’re an expert in your niche, chances are you may be asked to give a presentation at some point. cue the sweaty palms. Half the battle with presenting is having a top notch presentation to go off of. If everyone is focused on how great your presentation looks, they won’t even notice the bullets you’re sweating. If you are tired of using PowerPoint and want something with a little more pizzaz, explore Canva’s presentation templates!
  

• Event Items: Signage, Tablecloths, Promo Items - oh my! One of my favorite features of Canva is that you can create designs of any size. Simply figure out the dimensions, input them into Canva and complete your design.

Graphics for Social Media: This first set of design ideas focuses on your social media accounts. Like I’ve said before, regardless of what industry you’re in, it’s super important to have a presence on social media! Even if you don’t think you need it, you do.

• Instagram Posts: Instagram is pretty much 100% visual. Most of the time, I don’t even stop to read the captions…I just want to look at photos or videos. Have a project you want to brag on? A testimonial you want to share? A new post to your blog or website? Create a graphic for it and share away!
  

• Instagram Reel Cover Photos: One thing that I like more about Instagram Reels than TikTok is that you can upload your own cover photo that will show in your feed. If you want the feed to look consistent, a great way to do that is to create uniform cover photos. Canva makes that extremely easy to do.
  

• Pinterest Images: Another free resource that is amazing for bloggers/business owners, Pinterest! Believe it or not, it matters what your pins look like. Like Instagram, Pinterest is almost 100% visual, so much, in fact, that it has been dubbed a “visual search engine.” Vertical posts with large, readable text are proven to perform best on the platform. Canva has that figured out, and has a million awesome templates to take the stress out of designing your pins.
  

• Facebook Posts: When you’re sharing an awesome photo on Facebook, it’s super important that it looks good on a computer AND on a phone/tablet. Using the proper resolution will make it responsive no matter what device it’s being viewed on. Have a photo you need to resize? Create a blank template using the recommended sizing and drag your photo onto the template. This will appropriately crop and resize your photo so it looks best on the platform you want to share on.
  

• Facebook/LinkedIn Cover Photo: Once you’ve created your business Facebook and LinkedIn pages, you’ll need a cover photo to make your profile look complete. This could include your logo, a photo of yourself, a photo of your products with your logo, etc. You can really customize it to fit your brand and appeal to your customers. It’s really important to size this correctly, because it’s a long, skinny space and if you don’t have your photo sized right, it will cut a lot of it off.
  

• Ads: I'm the biggest advocate of organic marketing, but ads do have a time and a place. So when you're ready to run one, Canva is a great tool for creating the visuals. They have layout templates for you to customize so you never have to start from scratch.

Digital Marketing: 

• Email Graphics: Whether it's a header, images to go in the body of the email or a custom email signature, there are so many opportunities for customizing your emails.
  

• Website Graphics: It's easier than ever to create professional looking graphics for your website. Download them as a PNG with no background and they can go anywhere on your site without that pesky white box ruining the look.
  

• eBook Cover: eBooks are fantastic, and are all the rage right now. eBooks can be created for ANY niche – cooking, drawing, painting, lawn care, dog training, writing, teaching…you name it! Create an eBook to sell as part of your business or to give away as a freebie for your readers/customers. Canva has templates specifically for eBooks which makes putting them together a breeze!
  

• QR Codes: One of the best ways to track your marketing efforts and promotions is to put unique QR codes on everything. This way, when a lead comes in with that specific offer, you'll know exactly where they found you.

Print Marketing Materials: 

• Poster: Could be used to hang in local businesses around town (with permission, of course. Can you say cross promotion!) or maybe at a local event to advertise your business.
  

• Menu: Not just for food! This could be a list of all the products/services that you offer. Think spas, pet groomers, landscapers, pressure washers, house cleaners...the list goes on. You could put these in newspaper boxes as an advertisement or hand out to potential customers.
  

• Brochure: Another piece that could be handed out at a function, put in newspaper boxes or given to potential customers. This would give an overview of your business, what you offer, photos of your work and possibly some testimonials from past customers. The tri-fold design is classic and professional, or if you want to go a more simple route, a front and back rack card is perfect.
  

• Flyer: Have a special event or sale coming up? Flyers are a great way to advertise! Easy to design, print and hand out!
  

• Gift Certificate: Gift certificates are great to have, especially around the holidays because they’re such easy gifts! If one of your customers gives a friend one of your gift certificates as a gift, that’s a free referral for you! Design and print these yourself as an inexpensive alternative to gift cards. You can also give away gift certificates as part of contests on social media to increase your likes/followers.
  

• Postcards: The USPS has a program called Every Door Direct Mail where you can select certain zip codes and have pieces mailed to every household (or parts that you select). A postcard is a great option for several reasons. The first being there is no envelope involved, so you have a better chance of potential customers actually seeing your mailer instead of throwing it away. Also, postcards are slightly less expensive to mail than cards with envelopes. Design your mailer online, have it printed and then use EDDM to canvas your entire area!
  

Read more about Every Door Direct Mail here!

• Invitation: Maybe you’re participating in a private event, or hosting an event or fundraiser. Having professional invitations printed is always a nice touch. I design mine on Canva and either have them printed locally or through Vistaprint.
  

• Program: To go along with said event/fundraiser. Create custom programs to let everyone know what’s going to go down!
  

• Card: Never underestimate the power of a good ol’ fashioned card. I have several friends and clients who are realtors, and they get more referrals from cards than most anything else. They keep record of their past customers and they keep up with them on social media. If they see that they got married, celebrated a work anniversary, had a baby, etc. they send them a card. This is a great way to stay at the front of mind. They see a card from you and it jogs their memory that their friend’s sister’s mom is selling her house and needs a realtor. See how that works? Don’t let people forget that you’re there! Also, it’s an awesome gesture…and everyone loves mail.
  

• Certificate: Maybe you work with unique materials and you want to give customers an authenticity certificate, or maybe you’re offering a training and want to give a certificate of completion. Whatever the case may be, Canva gives you that option.

  
  
  
  

Long gone are the days when you had to be a graphic design ninja to create your own graphics for your business. Not saying it doesn’t help to be a graphic design ninja…but Canva makes it easy for small business owners with little to no design experience to create their own graphics and marketing materials.