Before this course: Graphic Design Basics (Canva) (course 11.1). You already know contrast, repetition, alignment and proximity, readable colour and fonts, a simple brand sheet, and exporting PNG, JPG and PDF. This course turns those basics into a whole project with a brand kit and multi-page layouts.
Start with a brief and a plan
Before you build a treehouse, you decide who it is for, how big it is and what goes inside. A design project is the same. You write a short plan first, so you do not have to redo everything later.
- A design brief is a short page that says what you are making and for whom. It saves time because everyone agrees before the work starts.
- A simple brief has: goal (what should the viewer do or know), audience (who), deliverables (what pieces you will make), format and size, deadline, and must-haves (logo, date, place, call to action).
- Canva's own guide on designing from scratch says to start with your goal and audience, and not to use too many fonts because the design can look messy.
- Choose the size first. Canva can resize later, but Resize is limited to paid plans, so plan your sizes now (see Lesson 6).
- Project folder. Keep the brief, the logo files, the colour codes and the exported files together, with clear names such as "poster-v1".
- Respect rights. Only use images and logos you have the right to use (see course 11.1, Lesson 6).
| Brief item | Example (pretend client) |
|---|---|
| Goal | Get neighbours to the Saturday plant swap |
| Audience | Families in the neighbourhood |
| Deliverables | 1 poster, 4-page booklet, 2 social posts |
| Must-haves | Date, time, place, logo, "Free" |
| Deadline | Two weeks from today |
- Pick a real or pretend client (a club, a shop or an event).
- Write the goal in one sentence.
- Write the audience in one sentence.
- List the deliverables (at least one multi-page piece and one single-page piece).
- Write the format and size of each deliverable.
- List the must-haves for each piece.
- Create a folder called with the client name and put the brief in it.
- Check: a stranger could read your brief and know what to make.
Videos by other creators on YouTube, for reference. They are not made by or affiliated with The Future Market.
Read the video script
[Host at a desk with a notebook] "Great design starts before Canva. It starts with a brief."
[Text on screen: Goal. Audience. Deliverables. Size. Deadline.] "Five questions: what is the goal, who is it for, what pieces, what sizes, and when?"
[Screen: a one-page brief] "Write it on one page, and keep it in your project folder."
[Host] "A clear brief saves you from rebuilding the whole design later."
Write a one-page brief for a pretend client, using the table above. Add three must-haves and two rights questions (who made the photos and the logo, and can you use them?). Keep it for the rest of the course.
ClaudeStuck? Copy a ready-made prompt for Claude
Copy this, open Claude, paste it, and Claude will walk you through the lesson step by step.
For a grown-up: Claude is for adults (18+). Copy this, paste it into Claude, and use the answer to explain the lesson to your child.
I'm learning "Design Projects: brand kits and layouts" on The Future Market. Lesson 1: "Start with a brief and a plan". What the lesson teaches: - A design brief is a short page that says what you are making and for whom. It saves time because everyone agrees before the work starts. - A simple brief has: goal (what should the viewer do or know), audience (who), deliverables (what pieces you will make), format and size, deadline, and must-haves (logo, date, place, call to action). - Canva's own guide on designing from scratch says to start with your goal and audience, and not to use too many fonts because the design can look messy. - Choose the size first. Canva can resize later, but Resize is limited to paid plans, so plan your sizes now (see Lesson 6). - Project folder. Keep the brief, the logo files, the colour codes and the exported files together, with clear names such as "poster-v1". - Respect rights. Only use images and logos you have the right to use (see course 11.1, Lesson 6). - Brief item - Example (pretend client) The exercise I'm working on: Write a one-page brief for a pretend client, using the table above. Add three must-haves and two rights questions (who made the photos and the logo, and can you use them?). Keep it for the rest of the course. I'm stuck. Please: 1. Explain the main idea in plain, simple words with one everyday example. 2. Walk me through the exercise one small step at a time. Ask me what I've done so far before giving the next step. 3. Don't just give me the final answer. Help me do it myself, and check my work when I share it.
I'm a parent helping my child (about 8 years old) with a lesson called "Start with a brief and a plan" from the course "Design Projects: brand kits and layouts". Here's what the lesson says: Before you build a treehouse, you decide who it is for, how big it is and what goes inside. A design project is the same. You write a short plan first, so you do not have to redo everything later. The activity: Write a one-page brief for a pretend client, using the table above. Add three must-haves and two rights questions (who made the photos and the logo, and can you use them?). Keep it for the rest of the course. Please explain this so an 8-year-old understands: short sentences, a fun everyday example, and no hard words. Then give me 3 simple questions I can ask my child to check they understood, and a way to do the activity together, one tiny step at a time.
Sources
- Canva, A step-by-step guide to designing from scratch: www.canva.com/learn/a-step-by-step-guide-to-designing-from-scratch/
- Canva Help Center, Resize designs and size limits: www.canva.com/help/resize/
Build a brand kit in Canva
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Type rules: hierarchy and two fonts
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Colour rules: roles, themes and contrast
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Grids, margins and guides
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Multi-page layouts that stay consistent
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Export, proof and critique
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Final project
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Quiz
What five things does a simple design brief cover?
Goal, audience, deliverables, format and size, and deadline (plus must-haves).
Which logo file types does Canva recommend for the Brand Kit?
PNG for flexible use and SVG for scalable vector use, especially for print.
How should you label colours in a brand kit?
With hex codes and role labels such as "Primary background" or "Accent".
How many fonts does Canva generally recommend for one design?
Two.
What are the three levels of a simple visual hierarchy?
Most important content, section organizers, and details.
What contrast ratio does WCAG ask for normal text?
At least 4.5:1 (3:1 for large text).
What is a grid?
A structural framework of intersecting horizontal and vertical lines that keeps items organized.
How do you show print bleed in Canva?
File, Rulers and guides, Show print bleed.
How big is Canva's print bleed?
0.125 inches (3.175 mm) per side, for products that get trimmed.
Who can use Canva's Resize?
Paid plans (Pro, Teams, Education, Nonprofits).
Which PDF option is for printing, and what must you turn on for crop marks?
PDF Print, and turn on crop marks and bleed in Advanced Settings.
What should you do before ordering a print?
Proof it, and ask the print shop what file type, size and bleed it needs.
Final exam
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Certificate
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