How To Create A New Twitter Header

Have you seen that Twitter has launched a new header?  All designed to raise your profile and make your expertise more obvious to followers.  The new look is more visual, in keeping with the recent changes to Facebook and the popularity of Pinterest.

However, how do you design it?

Well, your avatar automatically becomes centred over the new header image so bear that in mind when you are creating it.  The text from your profile is then centred below that so it is best not to make the image too busy.

I’m sure graphic designers will be busy creating new twitter header images for businesses. If you want to create your own – here’s some tips on how to do it.  I am the least technical person imaginable and I managed to create this one at picmonkey so go on, have a go.

Go to Picmonkey

Choose a collage layout – I chose jigsaw, uploaded a selection of pictures and added my two main pictures to the middle left and middle right. I added a wordle I had created previously to the bottom left and right boxes. Then I cropped it at the top (jigsaw layout is square) so the image was approximately 1200 x 600.

I then needed to create a blank background for the avatar and the text to sit against. I didn’t want to obliterate the existing images too much and I noticed that as the profile text was centred, it created an oval effect.

I clicked the overlay option in Picmonkey (under P – is the loveheart, speech bubble and star option), chose geometric and picked the oval shape, spreading it out until it was the correct size and in the correct position. I could have picked a rectangle and then used an eraser to make the images visible either. I was running out of time then and chose a picture for the top (to go behind the avatar) and chose the blue colour option.

To upload it to twitter, choose settings (top right in the dropdown menu), then choose design (on the left side) and choose Header (upload photo).

Okay, you’d know a graphic designer hadn’t created it but the text is clear as is the avatar. The pictures of my business partner and I are clear as is the logo to the top right.  Not too bad for a quick attempt.

Do share your new twitter headers with us by linking to them in a comment – we’d love to see them and hear what you used to create them.

And if you’d like to follow me on twitter, please do, and say hello