Hot Take: I Can Tell When You Use a Canva Template

Canva templates are a truly amazing launch point for creating graphic designs — especially for beginners. But they should only be used as a starting point. Far too often, I see flyers and notices in coffee shops using the exact same Canva template — fonts and all!

As a professional graphic designer and daughter of a graphic designer, I must remind myself that the rules of hierarchy, contrast, and alignment aren’t innately in everyone’s brain at birth. I realize it can be intimidating to mess with the presumed perfection of a plug-and-play Canva template. However, it’s necessary so your designs don’t look like everyone else’s.

Regardless of your experience level, poor graphic design reads across the board. But fear not! Here are three ways to absolve your designs of that overdone Canva feel — and you don’t have to be a professional designer to master them.

Simple Tips for Customizing Canva Templates for Your Brand

1. Pick a damn font.

If you take anything from this blog post, let it be this: Never use a template’s original fonts. Using the design’s original fonts is a surefire way to make your graphic look like millions of others across the world made by people with the same access to Canva templates as…