Canva is a popular, simple online graphic design tool. Users can import images, use templates to design banners and logos, or pay to use Canva's premium stock images/paid templates (elements starting at $1).
$12.95
per month
Shorthand
Score8 out of 10
N/A
Shorthand enables the user to create interactive multimedia stories for any online audience — all with no code. The vendor boasts that Shorthand is used by hundreds of publishers, brands, non-profits, and more — including the BBC, Honda, Business Insider, and Doctors Without Borders.
They are suited to serve the non-profit space, offering premium features at no charge for up to 50 users. They provide tools for non-graphic designers that help to create appealing and attractive pieces. For those who are unsure about where to start with a project, Canva offers templates that can be edited to suit the current need.
Shorthand is ideally suited to visual stories where you have a good number of images and/or embeds or video to include. It is well-suited to long-form stories, where you wish to keep the readers' attention longer than usual. It can help to differentiate particularly important or intriguing stories from others on your website - and for this reason, it could be used as a premium content tool, perhaps for subscribers. It can also be used to showcase stories about awards you've organised, giving them special treatment. It is less suited to breaking news, or very time-sensitive news stories, as it can take some time to prepare, post or update shorthand stories. And it doesn't work well for stories with strong accompanying imagery
A de minimis incentive was given to thank the reviewer for their time. The incentive was not used to bias or drive a particular response, nor was the incentive contingent on a positive endorsement. More Info
It helps you find the right design and helps you start with the right template
It helps in creating for all platforms, basically you need to create the design only once and Canva takes care of the rest by resizing the design for whichever platform you want to publish it to.
It also comes with a content planner which is extremely helpful for obvious reasons. It relieves you from the hassle of posting when the right time hits.
There's a Brand feature which is also extremely fascinating as it helps you store all your brand information (even color) at the same place.
A de minimis incentive was given to thank the reviewer for their time. The incentive was not used to bias or drive a particular response, nor was the incentive contingent on a positive endorsement. More Info
I have a hard time coming up with any improvements, perhaps increase the number of free elements to use in design.
Maybe, Canva should check if you start editing a previous document to see if you want to change the current design or create a new one as a clone of the current document (design).
I'm sorry, I really can't think of a 3rd. Overall, I really like working in Canva.
A de minimis incentive was given to thank the reviewer for their time. The incentive was not used to bias or drive a particular response, nor was the incentive contingent on a positive endorsement. More Info
Additional flexibility in how text is overlaid on pictures would be welcome so that there are more choices on what images to use with particular layouts
Enabling users to control the path of text - for example, enabling runaround - could enable some excellent designs
Adding additional section templates could speed up design
More flexibility in caption placement would be helpful
A de minimis incentive was given to thank the reviewer for their time. The incentive was not used to bias or drive a particular response, nor was the incentive contingent on a positive endorsement. More Info
The ease of use makes Canva a powerful tool for manipulating images, creating original content, and testing ideas without requiring the involvement of graphic design or more time-intensive image editing software such as Photoshop. While it doesn't have the full functionality of a mature software, such as Photoshop, The speed and simplicity of Canva makes it a necessity in a business of any size
A de minimis incentive was given to thank the reviewer for their time. The incentive was not used to bias or drive a particular response, nor was the incentive contingent on a positive endorsement. More Info
It is super easy to use, but it could be limiting if you're on a small device. It is easier on a bigger device because you can resize graphics and text easier than with your fingers on a small device. I do think it's perfect and easy for non-designers who don't have any training. As long as you have a good eye for visuals, Canva is a wonderful substitute for graphics programs on-the-go.
A de minimis incentive was given to thank the reviewer for their time. The incentive was not used to bias or drive a particular response, nor was the incentive contingent on a positive endorsement. More Info
I have yet to encounter Canva being offline in at least 6 years of using it regularly. They also announce well in advance if there may be upgrades to the code and the hours during which there may be issues accessing the service.
A de minimis incentive was given to thank the reviewer for their time. The incentive was not used to bias or drive a particular response, nor was the incentive contingent on a positive endorsement. More Info
I have never known it to be down during my use of it. All you require is an internet connection to log in and you can use it on multiple devices. Adding ease of accessibility, there are simple ways to log in. I've also never known a Shorthand story to go down once live on our site.
A de minimis incentive was given to thank the reviewer for their time. The incentive was not used to bias or drive a particular response, nor was the incentive contingent on a positive endorsement. More Info
I haven't ever had issues with a slow-loading site and there haven't been any lag issues within the software. There have been maybe a handful of times over the past six years where I have tried to upload a large image and it will slow down as it loads the last megabyte, but I have yet to have the system time out or require any interference by me
A de minimis incentive was given to thank the reviewer for their time. The incentive was not used to bias or drive a particular response, nor was the incentive contingent on a positive endorsement. More Info
Due to the integration with our content management software, there is a short delay on our site while it loads, which may cause some readers to drift away. However, I've seen other sites where it instantly loads articles, so I believe this to be down to the content management software behind our site more than Shorthand itself. Once that brief initial period is over, it doesn't require additional loading time.
A de minimis incentive was given to thank the reviewer for their time. The incentive was not used to bias or drive a particular response, nor was the incentive contingent on a positive endorsement. More Info
Overall, Canva is easy to use, easy to train others to use, allows for creativity with a professional look without enormous associated costs. The mobile apps works almost as easily, but at a minimum allows for easy review and downloading in a pinch. Really, anyone can learn to use Canva quickly and will immediately benefit from the results.
Remember to download the mobile app onto your phone for easy image manipulation on the go. Adding company colors, logos, and typefaces to your company account is an easy process. When images are uploaded, these can also be shared between accounts within a company, as can canvases you've created for easy editing among teams.
A de minimis incentive was given to thank the reviewer for their time. The incentive was not used to bias or drive a particular response, nor was the incentive contingent on a positive endorsement. More Info
Canva is faster and easy to use. There aren't complex menus like Adobe products and everything is generally intuitive. Menus are mostly open and visible or relatively small. Small changes to the program add to it's usability rather than detract. I also appreciate that Canva helps the user become more creative through use. By giving you editable examples through templates you can choose to re-design something ir create something from scratch w/ a similar concept or feel. Canva often gives me ideas that I can implement into my design or into the entire project even. I also like how Canva is intuitive in it's approach. The program gives you suggestions when it comes to graphics, etc. without getting in your way if you know what you already want
Very easy to add accounts and share content between them. Collaboration is also easy to manage and can be done on a project-by-project basis. The cloud-based software means it is incredibly fast to add a coworker and have them editing images within minutes. A live internet connection is required to access Canva so this is something to consider if expecting to use the software while on journeys without access to wifi etc
A de minimis incentive was given to thank the reviewer for their time. The incentive was not used to bias or drive a particular response, nor was the incentive contingent on a positive endorsement. More Info
As a web-based service, it is easy for users to log into from anywhere. Content can easily be shared, as you can set up teams that enable access to each other's work as required. And content can be reviewed by others before publication using the sharing function. You can also view how an article will look on different devices.
A de minimis incentive was given to thank the reviewer for their time. The incentive was not used to bias or drive a particular response, nor was the incentive contingent on a positive endorsement. More Info
As far as ROI is concerned, Canva has proven itself time and time again as having a positive impact for business.
Just yesterday, I had to prepare an hour-long presentation on the fly; the great reviews of the presentation and the materials (all made in Canva) only served to advertise for Canva and it proves that Canva is a smart investment.
I don't think in the time that I have been a Canva pro user that I can say that my ROI has been negatively impacted. Highest recommendation. The software more the casually pays for itself time and time again.
A de minimis incentive was given to thank the reviewer for their time. The incentive was not used to bias or drive a particular response, nor was the incentive contingent on a positive endorsement. More Info
A de minimis incentive was given to thank the reviewer for their time. The incentive was not used to bias or drive a particular response, nor was the incentive contingent on a positive endorsement. More Info
