The big idea: Same concept, different platforms. Keep the idea and brand consistent, and adapt the format, size and tone to how people use each platform.
See it in action
Reformat Lab
One ad, four shapes. Pick a platform and a size, turn on safe zones, then adapt the layout and see what has to move.
Key concepts
- Aspect ratios: Vertical 9:16 for Reels, TikTok and Shorts; 4:5 or 1:1 for Instagram feed posts; wider formats for links, YouTube and presentations.
- Safe zones: Keep text and logos away from the edges where buttons and captions cover the screen.
- Platform tone: TikTok is casual and fast, LinkedIn is professional, email is personal and direct.
- Design for the small screen: Most people see your work on a phone, so use big type and simple layouts.
- Consistency across adaptations: Colors, type and voice should stay recognizable everywhere.
Frameworks from class
Same heartbeat, different chapters
A campaign should feel like one story told in many places. Each platform tells a different chapter. Repeat your core visual language and message so people recognize you. Vary the format and execution so each piece fits its platform. The goal is continuity without monotony.
- Instagram delivers the emotional hook.
- Print delivers the detailed promise.
- Packaging delivers the hands-on brand experience.
- Each touchpoint reinforces the others.
Three anchors of cohesion
When these three are strong, your work stays connected across platforms, no matter how many people contribute.
- One clear big idea: the emotion or promise that drives every piece
- Shared visual language: palette, type, photo style and tone never waver
- Story flow: each platform adds a chapter to the same arc
What each platform is for
Every platform has its own audience and habits. Match the content to what people go there to do.
- Facebook: older audiences, longer captions, local community and events
- Instagram: visual storytelling through photos, Reels and Stories
- TikTok: younger audiences, trends and unpolished, authentic video
- Pinterest: people searching for ideas and solutions, like recipes and guides
- LinkedIn: professional and B2B expertise
- YouTube: long-form tutorials and in-depth stories
Class exercise: Map one idea across three chapters
Plan how a single campaign idea shows up differently on three touchpoints.
- Write your campaign’s big idea in one sentence.
- Pick three touchpoints, such as an Instagram Reel, a print ad and packaging.
- For each one, write the chapter it tells: the hook, the promise or the experience.
- List what stays the same on all three: color, type, photo style and tone words.
- List what changes on each: format, length, copy and call to action.
- Lay the three side by side and ask whether someone would know they are one brand without the logo.
Try it
Take one visual from your brand and adapt it for three platforms: an Instagram feed post, a vertical Story or Reel, and a LinkedIn or email header. Note what changed in size, layout and copy, and what stayed the same.
Tips and best practices
- Design for the biggest shape, then adapt. Plan the shoot with room around the subject so you can crop to 9:16, 4:5, 1:1 and 16:9 without cutting off the product or the people.
- Keep text inside the safe zone. On vertical video, buttons and captions cover the right side and bottom. Check the platform’s current safe-zone template before you export.
- Re-lay out, don’t just crop. Move the headline, resize the logo and reposition the button for each format. A straight crop almost always cuts something important.
- Test on a real phone. Look at the export on a phone at arm’s length. If you have to squint at the headline, make it bigger or cut words.
- Add captions to video. Many people watch with the sound off. On-screen captions keep the message working and make the video accessible.
- Change the tone, keep the brand. TikTok can be casual, LinkedIn professional, email personal. Colors, logo, type and voice stay the same so people still know it is you.
Quick check
Think through your answer, then select a question to reveal one.
What aspect ratio fits Reels, TikTok and Shorts?
Vertical 9:16.
What is a safe zone?
The area away from screen edges where platform buttons and captions won’t cover your text or logo.