A gallant knight, mounted on his majestic steed, charges forth with unwavering determination. His armor gleams like a polished mirror, reflecting the sun’s rays. Upon his arm is a shield bearing vibrant, orange designs. It’s a well-known symbol throughout the kingdom, inspiring hope, courage, and honor. Onlookers recognize him as he rides past, even though his face lies concealed under his helm.
Medieval heraldry is not so different from modern-day graphic design. Every color and symbol has a specific meaning behind it, and while the kingdoms of yore may have lacked Facebook (how did they even live!?), their concepts of branding, graphic design, and social media engagement are closer to ours than you’d think.
The Code of Blazon
Medieval blazon is an unspoken language used to describe the heraldry of knights, lords, and ladies. It became essential for properly identifying coats of arms, particularly in tournaments or official documents. By looking at a knight’s shield, you’d know he was a nobleman visiting from France just by the blue color palette, that the land he owned was located near a river by the wavy lines, and that his family was very wealthy by the grapevines.
If you think this all sounds very familiar, you’d be right! Modern graphic design follows the same principles for branding. Your company may use a cool color palette of blue to inspire a cleaner “corporate” look. Your logo may contain a symbol relating to the services you offer, a feeling you want to evoke, or perhaps a personal icon you want people to associate with your brand.
The Quest for Social Engagement
So what does this all have to do with social media? The answer is simple. It’s about using design to tell a story! To be effective, every post should be distinct, have an overall purpose, catch the reader’s eye, and reinforce your brand.
“An audience is more likely to spend more time engaging with a social media account if the graphics are visually appealing and include real people doing real things. By creating various forms of social media content such as videos, short-form content, and static graphics, you can easily diversify your profile and stand out amongst your competition.” — Mikayla, Social Media Coordinator at Rock Paper Simple
Lift Your Visor
Social media users scroll through their feeds quickly and will only get a glimpse of your brand before the joust, so make it count! Encouraging user-generated content is a particularly powerful method of getting more engagement, as it’s seen as authentic and made by real people. However, it’s not for every industry or service. Consider videos and interactive quizzes, anything to show the face behind your visor.
Fly Your Colors
Vibrant colors and high contrast can instantly grab attention, and experimenting freely is good. But just like a knight in a jousting tournament, your social media represents your brand to people who may not have heard of you before. You’ll confuse readers if you aren’t following your own brand messaging, colors, and tone. You’ll reinforce brand familiarity by integrating your company’s established guidelines into your social media.
A Call to Arms
Just like in a coat of arms, the choice of symbols, colors, and fonts in social graphics are carefully considered to evoke certain emotions and associations in the minds of consumers. You want to engage your audience and let them participate in what you’re promoting. Each social post should have a defining call to action and portray the underlying message through visuals.
Jolly Cooperation!
In order to do battle and protect the realm, every knight needs the proper equipment and support from their liege. While you may not have a use for a suit of shining armor or a colorful shield nowadays (we, however, recommend you get both, just because), partnering with a marketing agency can arm your social media for success.
Social media moves at lightning speeds, and in order to cut through the noise, you need graphics that both stand out and leave a strong impact. At the same time, everything you produce should reinforce your brand image. Marketing agencies have enterprise-level access to full creative suites and tools, and the experience to wield them to great effect. Partnering with an agency will bolster your social media content, focus on your target audience, and, most importantly, stay consistent with your brand.
Make Your Design Legendary
Your social channels bear the heraldry of your brand and weave a tapestry for all to behold. Like any noble court, you want your knights to make a good impression when questing in faraway lands.
If you’re looking for more on how to forge the ultimate social graphic, send a missive to Rock Paper Simple today!
