Stand Out from the Crowd

Designing the perfect blog feature looks different for every company. Here at Roundpeg, we’ve been through many designs, allowing us to test which designs work best. Since the featured image is the first thing people see on social media, we want an image which grabs readers’ attention right away.

Featured images link and support a blog article or web page and by default, they are pulled first when sharing the link on any social platform. Sharing the blog links on social media creates the perfect opportunity to create a great looking social share with a catchy title to ensure people want to read your content.

When I first started at Roundpeg, we had a design style which relied on colorful stock photography  related to the blog subject. Each was unique and eye catching, but did little to build our overall brand identity.

We began testing blog designs that were on-brand and off-brand, allowing us to show off our fun and creative side. By rotating the styles of blog features, we saw what people were drawn to and eventually had discussions about what impressions we want to give people as soon as they see a post from us.

Are Blog Features Really That Important?

Featured images are essential to engage readers on your blog and through social media. On social media, they can help drive more traffic to your blog, which can enable a reader to click-through and learn more about your business or continue reading other posts. At Roundpeg, the images are a way for us to brand our content across the web.

Stats to consider:

• Articles with images get 94% more views than those without
• LinkedIn posts consisting of images get, on average, 98% more comments
• Facebook posts with photos receive, on average, 37% more engagement

Design #2: Illustrations & Vivid Colors

Illustrations are a great way to give your blog image a bit more of an edge. Because there are so many companies that use stock photography, using a more “cartoony” approach can give you the advantage of standing out. Don’t worry, you don’t have to create illustrations yourself if you don’t have the skillset, these types of photos are available on many platforms where you can also find great stock photography.

Roundpeg Takeaway: When we were applying this type of style to blog posts there weren’t a lot of companies that were using this same method. We found that using these illustrations inspired our readers to read the post.

Final Design: Consistent Branding Elements

At first glance, you can tell that there are several elements in this design approach but they are done in a simple, clean way. The text is the main focal point and by using two different fonts and two different sizes, we are able to make it stand out a lot more.

We stepped up our branding game with the help of our graphic designer and decided to streamline this look so that all blog posts are consistent. Each category of content that we offer now has a unique photo and labeling so that the reader gets more specifics about the content they’re about to read.

Figure Out What’s Best for Your Brand

Every brand is unique and what works for someone else, may not work for you. Since there are so many ways to design a social share, I believe that there is actually no such thing as a “perfect design or process” there is really just “what is working perfectly right now.” Whether you design a blog feature that consists of stock photography, icons, or simple text you have an advantage over competitors by creating with a unique approach that is different and refreshing. Good luck.