Nowadays, many companies and instructors are branding their online courses to match their company’s colors and themes. It is important that students can identify your course and presentation to be your own. When branding, there are many different areas to consider, including, color schemes, style of visuals, and use of text, font, and formatting. With these various factors taken into consideration, these are a few do’s and don’ts for branding your online course.
Color Schemes
Most companies have established color schemes, but you don’t need to limit yourself to just those colors. Instead, consider adding one or two accent colors, in addition to your company color schemes. Accent colors can really draw attention and make it pop.
Fonts
Many times companies will have a few standard fonts used for annual reports, and/or presentations. Again, don’t limit yourself to just those select fonts. Instead, use a standard font for headings or certain sections, and use a new font for the main content.
Layouts
When it comes to creating a great layout or theme for your online course, the sky is the limit. Rather than using one specific layout for every course, mix it up a little bit. Consider having 3-5 different layouts to rotate between courses. This would keep it fresh and grasp your student’s attention.
Images
Does your company have a stockpile of images they’ve used in the past or photos they’ve taken themselves? Or maybe they have a subscription to an online image library? It is likely that you can tap into their image library and find some great quality images for your courses.
Logos
Be sure you always have a large array of company logos in various sizes, shapes, colors, and transparencies. Logos can be used throughout your course, especially if your logo has a symbol within it. By having various quality logos available, you can always keep your courses uniform. You never want to use pixelated images or logos.
What do you think, should you brand your online courses? If so, what other factors need to be considered?