Brilliant free branding concepts for your veterinary practice

It's no secret that I LOVE Canva and it's one of my favourite online tools.

Although there's no subsitute for the skills of a graphic designer, Canva can certainly help you design the basic day-to-day images you need in your practice to use on social media, etc. and it can help you to maintain a strong business brand.

What's branding all about?

If you're not sure what branding is all about or why it's so important, you might find these Vetanswers blog posts a good place to start:

• How much thought have you given to your veterinary brand?
• It's time for a marketing refresh for your veterinary business

Canva also publishes an awesome blog packed with useful tools and information just like this one - 50 Brand Kits You Can Steal. 

50 Free Templates - how can you use them in your veterinary practice?

1. Use them to help you design your next marketing promotion e.g. puppy pre-school

To access any of the templates in the post 50 Brand Kits You Can Steal you'll need a Canva account but you can sign up for the free version and still get access to all the templates. Just visit www.canva.com and sign up for the free account.

Now scroll through the layouts in the blog post to search for those that will work well with your existing branding. Click on any designs you think might work and as long as you're still logged in to your Canva account it should automatically open up in Canva. Now all you need to do is modify the colours to suit, change the images to cute animal ones, change the wording to suit and you're on your way!

If you need help finding suitable images check out this Vetanswers blog post for suggestions: My Favourite Free Stock Photo Websites. You can also search for free images on Canva and there are paid options as well.

2. Thinking of re-branding your veterinary practice but have no idea where to start?

You won't even need a Canva account for this one.

Scroll through the images in the post and make a note of those that catch your eye. Make it even easier by saving them by following these steps:

1. Right click on the image,
2. Select 'Save image as'
3. Save them in a suitable folder

When you sit down with a graphic designer to discuss your re-branding you can show them the templates you've chosen and explain why they caught your eye. It will make their job easier and you're far more likely to end up with a design you really like once they have some visual clues as to the style and colours you prefer.

Still no idea?

Of course if you have absolutely no interest in design then you're definately better off to start working with an expert from the start. And if you're looking for an excellent graphic designer who understands the veterinary industry, contact Jess at Veterinary Branding and tell her Vetanswers sent you.

If you haven't already had a look, click here to see the blog post 50 Brand Kits You Can Steal from Canva. Which ones are your favourite?