How to use Canva to Make Ads

Hey there! For the next 30 days, I will be creating marketing material for a startup called In Stock to expand their customer base and build new business partnerships. In this post, I will walk you through my step by step process for making Instagram and Facebook ads. To explore my entire project, click here.

Canva is an awesome tool used to design anything you can imagine! They have templates for social media posts, pamphlets, logos, cards, and everything else!

I utilized their website to create marketing material for In Stock. This step by step will help show you how to use Canva to create your own content.

Getting Started:

Here on Canva’s homepage, you’ll find templates to get you started. I scrolled until I found the Instagram template. It automatically adjusts the workspace dimensions to match the dimensions on Instagram.

I made 4 different posts, 3 with animations and 1 without. I did some previous research on what elements make up an effective ad which you can find here.

The Design:

Here, you’ll find the design page. The tools on the left-hand column allow you to choose a template theme, upload your own images or use stock images Canva provides, add shapes, text, music, etc.

For this ad, I wanted to pull at the heartstrings a bit. I went to the photos tab and searched for an image of a family. The image I found of the family gathered around the laptop was perfect for symbolizing placing an In-Stock order.

I added the text by clicking on the text tab on the left-hand side. I used two different text boxes, one for the white text on the right side of the ad and for the blue text at the bottom.

Next, I added the white banner by clicking the Elements tab and selected the square shape, and adjusted it to fit my text. I also added a white circle to house the In Stock logo.

To add the logo, I downloaded the image from In Stock’s Facebook page. Then I went back to Canva and clicked on the uploads tab and uploaded the image from my desktop.

Adding Animations:

By clicking on the Animations tool in the white ribbon at the top of the page, you’ll see this options page.

Each different animation option controls every element that is in the workspace. The options with the crown in the corner are premium features that you can access if you buy a Canva Premium Subscription.

Once you select your desired animation style, you can adjust the time length by clicking on the stopwatch image in the white ribbon at the top of the screen.

The Final Product:

Once your ad is finished, you can download it to your computer by clicking the “Download” button in the top right-hand corner.

A drop-down menu will appear where you can select the file type you’d like to download. The suggested type with auto-fill the box, but you can hit the down arrow to choose a different option. Then all you have to do is click “Download” and you’re finished!

My final ads for In Stock can be found here. Feel free to check them out and use them for inspiration for your creations!