How to Level Up Your Design in Four Easy Steps

I get asked about graphic design quite a lot. Most days I’m asked to look over some content or ads to see if they’re good to go.

And I almost always end up speaking about the same four things. The same four things those who haven’t spent a scary amount of time learning about design get wrong.

They’re simple, but when you keep them in mind, your designs can be hugely elevated.

Limit Your Colours

Designs live or die on clarity.

Simple colour schemes keep designs consistent across formats, makes approvals easier, and reduce the chance of a brand looking “off” when adapted for different channels.

Two or three core colours plus neutrals (whites, greys, etc) help key CTAs and messages stand out without fighting for attention.

Always think: does adding a new colour improve this design? Most times, it doesn’t.

One Font Does a Lot of Work

In design, legibility and consistency matter more than novelty and funky layouts.

Using a single, well-chosen typeface (and varying weight, size, and spacing) creates hierarchy and cohesion without introducing brand risk or readability issues.

It also makes scaling designs across paid, organic, and wherever else they’re needed far more efficient.

You Need More Space Than you Think

Most content we create ends up being skimmed, not read word for word. This means we need to design for that scenario.

Generous line spacing improves this scannability, reduces cognitive load for those interacting with your content, and helps messages land quickly as people scroll.

This is especially important for content on social media, where everyone is competing for attention. Clarity beats cleverness every time.

The Margin Should be Consistent

When designing things with multiple pages – carousels, slide decks, whitepapers, etc – having consistent margins is essential.

Set up grids on the page, and then stick to them.

If you don’t have consistent margins across your design, the overall thing ends up looking unprofessional and messy.

Sometimes that aesthetic is great, but for most brand-centric content, it’s not.