Branding is about more than just meeting an organization’s design requirements. It’s also a subtle but effective way to signal to learners that your e-learning isn’t just generic content—it’s specific to the needs and challenges of their workplace.
Thankfully, Rise 360 makes customizing the look and feel of your course as easy as it is to build it. You don’t have to be a graphic designer to get fantastic results that reflect your company’s branding guidelines. Just use these simple tips.
Choose Just the Right Theme and Layouts
While you might initially think of logos and colors when it comes to branding, Rise 360 allows you to think even bigger! With the help of themes, you can quickly adjust your course’s entire look and feel to better suit your design needs.
Start by choosing from three stylish themes to best suit your brand:
- Rise: the classic theme you know well, but now with more customization options
- Apex: a bold and contemporary look that features striking, angular finishes
- Horizon: an elegant aesthetic with understated flourishes
Once you’ve made your selection, you’ll get access to the wide range of cover pages, lesson headers, navigation layouts, and button styles included in that theme. You can customize what learners see at the start of the course and each lesson, weave in brand colors and imagery, and refine your navigation elements—all subtle but important ways your visuals can connect this course to your company.
For instance, notice how quickly I was able to adjust the look of this example course by swapping in a different cover page layout, switching to the compact navigation option, playing with the types and colors of buttons, and picking a taller purple lesson header.
Mixing and matching these options makes it easy to create a look that feels unique, cohesive, and on-brand.
Add a Course Image—and Maybe Lesson Header Images Too!
When browsing through the theme layout and navigation options, you’ll quickly notice how often they feature a project’s course image. That means picking just the right photo or illustration for it can not only grab people’s attention and reinforce your course content—it’s another easy tool for aligning your course with your brand.
To change your course image, go to the Theme menu, pick Cover Page, and select Edit. You’ll then have two ways to include the perfect picture:
- Upload a file from your computer
- Browse the millions of photographs and illustrations available in Content Library 360
Want to fine-tune the image you chose? Click Edit again and you can crop it right in Rise 360.
Looking for even more ways to weave in brand imagery? Try the Image option in the lesson headers. With it, you can add custom photos or graphics to the top of every lesson.
Pick the Perfect Fonts and Colors
It’s amazing how changing a course’s fonts and accent color can instantly make it feel on-brand.
To get started, head back to the Theme menu and select Fonts. From there, you have three ways to choose the perfect font combinations.
- Pick a Pre-Curated Pair: The Recommended tab features curated combinations of headings and body fonts that look beautiful together and match your theme. Choose the pairing that best suits your brand and you’re all set!
- Use the Included Fonts: Rise 360’s font library lets you create your own custom combo too. Select the More tab and use the dropdown menus to choose heading and body fonts that align with your brand.
- Upload Your Own Fonts: Does your brand use specific fonts? Under the More tab, click Manage Custom Fonts to quickly add your own font files to the options in Rise 360.
To update your course accent color, return to the Theme menu and pick Colors. From there, you can select one of the pre-curated colors, use a color selector to browse options, or input the Hex code for a specific shade.
Customize Your Button and Label Text
Every company has a voice or style it uses when communicating with employees and customers. For some, it’s a formal, serious voice. For others, it’s playful and more conversational. It all depends on how the organization wants to be seen by others.
But don’t worry if your brand voice is different from the default Rise 360 button and labels text. In addition to giving you options to customize the look of your buttons, it’s easy to adjust the copy within them and make it your own!
To make changes, go to the Settings tab at the top of the main course screen and choose Labels.
From here, just update the course button and label copy to better match your company’s voice. You can even fine-tune this copy further to align it with the course subject matter and audience.
Upload Your Logo
Now it’s time for the finishing touch: adding your company logo! It’s a small addition, but one that can make the connection to your brand abundantly clear.
To do this, return to the Theme menu, click Cover Page, and scroll down to find the Upload Logo button. Once you’ve uploaded an image from your computer, it’ll appear right by your course description.
The Bottom Line
Following brand standards doesn’t have to take loads of time or make your e-learning look bland. The Rise 360 themes give you a fantastic baseline style as well as options to customize the course look and feel further. By making a few quick refinements—such as adding a course image, picking fonts and an accent color, customizing labels, and uploading your company logo—you can make your project feel completely on-brand in no time at all.
Looking for more ways to align the look and feel of your course with your company? Check out these articles:
- 3 Creative Ways to Incorporate Your Logo into a Rise 360 Course
- Make Over Your Rise 360 Course in 4 Easy Steps With Themes
- 3 Ideas for Balancing Branding Guidelines With E-Learning Design
- What to Include in an E-Learning Style Guide
Want to try creating a Rise 360 course but don’t have Articulate 360? Start a free 30-day trial, and come back to E-Learning Heroes regularly for more helpful advice on everything related to e-learning. If you have any questions about branding or advice on what works for you, be sure to share them in the comments below.
Published 8 years ago
Version 1.0
