I was traveling recently to Sin City and couldn’t have gotten by without my mobile apps in Las Vegas where it seems no one sleeps! They keep me productive even while I’m away from the office.
So I’m going to recommend five apps that are my go-to tools on my iPhone, iPad, and Macbook Pro for developing high-quality branded content.
If you’re not an Apple user, not to worry; many of these apps can be found on the Android platform too or be used on any PC desktop/laptop.
WordSwag This is such a useful app, especially when creating content for Instagram or Pinterest. The app allows you to take a photo or use one from your smartphone library and then arrange text content on the image. Very powerful and simple tool for creating quotes or quick ads. It’s a free app available in the App Store and Google Play.
Canva This app takes graphic design to the next level, yet it makes it simple enough that anyone can do it. I use this to design my featured podcast episodes as well as to create PowerPoint slides for my seminars. It’s also fantastic for creating Facebook ads for my clients. A powerful graphic design tool that can help you get fast, good-looking designs done quickly and inexpensively. It’s free to use on your desktop or your iPad. You can upload your own images to use or search its database for free and paid images. Most of the paid images will cost only about a buck. However, if you need to change the content on a paid image, you’ll pay again to download your project. Still very inexpensive and a great, useful content tool, this one also is available on both platforms.
Snapseed This powerful image editor is a must-have. While you can do simple image editing using Apple’s photo software on the iPhone, Snapseed takes it a step further. I’m so tired of seeing photos on Instagram and Facebook that are poorly lit. This app will help you lighten the photo even if the original was poorly lit.
So, unless you’re the publisher of the blog, Dimly Lit Meals For One, you’ll want to download the free cross-platform app and use it to touch up your images before you post. Trust me, you’re followers will appreciate it.
I was recently showing my Instagram feed to my nephew and the first thing he noted was how clear and sharp the images were. A little touch up with Snapseed is all it took to get high-quality results.
ProCam 3 is a great tool for photography and video for the iPhone. It makes your smartphone nearly on par with a much bigger and more expensive camera. The app gives you control over things that the smartphone doesn’t offer or doesn’t provide enough range. You have “unparalleled control and quality with DSLR-like camera functionality and full featured photo / video editing capabilities,” says the company on its website. You’ll love what you can do… a dream tool for photographers, videographers, and video journalists. The app cost about $5.
s This one is new and it’s free. It’s from the makers of ProCam 3 and it definitely is one to try if you’re editing video on your iPhone. iMovie is an option on the iPhone but this one is worth downloading because of the different animation, text options that you can overlay, and the color-grading tools that you can apply to your videos. It looks very similar to iMovie. So, if you’ve been using that app then this one will come easy. If not, it’s still simple to pick up. It’s available for free in the iTunes App Store.
Give these a try and let me know how you like them and how you use them to produce your branded content.
