Societal Dilemmas Of Frankenstein And Frankenstein

Jerrold E. Hogle claimed â€Å"the longevity and power of Gothic fiction unquestionably stem from the way it helps us address and disguise some of the most important desires, quandaries and sources of anxiety† implying that the relevance of Gothic novels to modern and contemporary subject matters allows them to be timeless classics and provoke different reactions from different eras. This is due to the substance of the Gothic novels, and how the authors were often not afraid to address societal dilemmas. Frankenstein by Mary Shelley and Dracula by Bram Stoker are two examples of this. Mary Shelly uses Frankenstein’s monster as a metaphorical figure to demonstrate the treatment of the marginalised. This is clarified through the Monster’s†¦show more content†¦However, Count Dracula is illustrated as a villain and the antagonist of Dracula, who the characters are terrified of, whereas Frankenstein’s monster is more of a ‘tortured soul’, meaning Shelley inflicts a moral dilemma on the readers due to the unclear idea of whether Frankenstein’s monster is the antagonist or protagonist. Due to this, the characters individual treatments as the ‘Other’ conflict each other. Dracula is treated far better due to his dominance over other characters and how his physical/mental abnormalities allow him to just be exceedingly powerful. The female characters in Dracula and Frankenstein illustrate the societal expectations of women during the Victorian era. The main culprit is Mina Harker, as she seems to be an incarnation of the quintessential woman during the Victorian era. After she marries Jonathan she becomes attentive to his every need. In one of Mina’s letters to Lucy, she proclaims â€Å"I must stop, for Jonathan is waking—I must attend to my husband!† The anaphoric repetition of the imperative ‘I must’ illustrates how Mina believes it is imperative to fit into societal norms for women – during the Victorian era, it is expected of women to be the ‘angel of the house’- someone that cooks and cleans but never is seen nor heard, and excessively polite. This included tending toShow MoreRelated Identity of Women in Shelleys Frankenstein, Brontes Jane Eyre, and Eliots The Mill on the Floss1471 Words   |  6 PagesWomen in Shelleys Frankenstein, Brontes Jane E yre, and Eliots The Mill on the Floss George Eliot is quoted as stating: A womans hopes are woven of sunbeams; a shadow annihilates them (Miner 473). To extend this notion, Jean Giraudoux in Tiger at the Gates, states I have been a woman for fifty years, and Ive never been able to discover precisely what it is I am (474). These two statements are related to each other because they express, in large part, the dilemma facing Mary ShelleyRead MoreIn What Ways Does Frankenstein Complicate the Romanticist Conceptions of Creativity and Individualism? Make Reference to Frankenstein and at Least One Other Romanticist Text.1884 Words   |  8 Pagesways does Frankenstein complicate the Romanticist conceptions of creativity and individualism? Make reference to Frankenstein and at least one other Romanticist text. Mary Shelley’s novel, Frankenstein, complies with all the fundamental principles associated with Romanticism; use of the supernatural and sublime, especially with regards for nature, thus leading to pantheism, compassion and a sense of morality towards humankind, individual freedom and rebellion against contextual societal constraintsRead MoreMary Shelley s Frankenstein, And The Modern Prometheus3901 Words   |  16 Pages â€Å"Frankenstein, or the Modern Prometheus†, by Mary Wollstonecraft (Godwin) Shelley Mary Shelley s novel Frankenstein is best known for its influence in popular culture through many film adaptations. It is in fact, however, one of the great novels of ideas. Write an essay that discusses in what sense you think it is a novel of ideas. What are its claims about human reason and human nature? Shelley explores some aspects of human nature, specifically human lust for power and the unfortunate way weRead MoreEssay on Creation and Alienation in Mary Shelleys Frankenstein3425 Words   |  14 PagesThroughout Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, also known as The Modern Prometheus, this notion of alienation, is an illuminating theme that is manifested throughout the story. Another theme is that of creation, in which Victor Frankenstein, a main character in the book, usurps the role of God by giving life to a creature in his laboratory, but by artificial means, rather than conceiving one legitimately. Furthermore, the underlying factors of creation, that are carried out by Frankenstein, as well as the alienationRead MoreMoral And Ethical Implications Of 3d Printing Technology1478 Words   |  6 Pagesstudy raises the specter of Frankenstein. Hopes run high on what the possibilities will include and how it will alter medicine as we know it. However, the fears run just as dee p, if not deeper, about what could be done if these technologies are successful. Many people make the leap of logic from organs to human clones and the debate over the moral implications runs well ahead of the technology. Just where do the body parts start and stop within the scope of the societal norms for morality? FortunatelyRead MoreHomosexuality in Victorian and Elizabethan Literature.6608 Words   |  27 Pagesand managed to reverse them, making men faint like women, and making women powerful like men, and called it Dracula. Mary Shelley created a a physical being out of a mans suppressed homosexuality due to his Victorian male upbringing; a man named Frankenstein. Robert Stevenson described what happens when a homosexual male attempts to live double lives to cover up his true feelings, and entitled it The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. The Elizabethan era, like the Victorian era, had its own viewRead MoreThe Significance Of Tom s Occupation And Success1512 Words   |  7 Pageshe would have put his entire life at risk. Although black-owned businesses were being phased out in favor of white competition, many customers also preferred the â€Å"superior service† (Chesnutt 248) a black-owned barber shop could provide. These two dilemmas are what propel Chesnutt’s commentary on the complications of race relations to the forefront, creating a distinct perspective that redefines the inner workings of racism. Likewise, Tom views himself as a representative of his people and their communityRead MoreUlrich Beck World Risk Society3877 Words   |  16 Pagesnon-quantitative uncertainties, to risks that cannot be known. When I speak about risk society, it is in this latter sense of manufactured uncertainties. These true uncertainties, enforced by rapid technological innovations and accelerated societal responses, are creating a fundamentally new global risk landscape. In all these new uncertain risk technologies, we are separated from the possible end results by an ocean of not knowing. Can you give me an example? A few years ago, the U.S. CongressRead More THE IMPACT OF KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT PRACTICES IN IMPROVING STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES65118 Words   |  261 Pagesjobs more rewarding and work more effective, working groups of staff and educators from across departments are persuaded to come together as teams by common need and exchange information to address concerns of students, institutions, parents and societal expectations, etc. In this process, the teams also build relationships, trust, and expertise and create a shared repertoire of resources, tools, and artefacts that support future learning. In many organizations, these kinds of informal, selfsustaining

Beauty Vs Body Image - 1772 Words

Across the world humans generally feel the need to be liked and accepted among their peers. The same ideal can be applied to body image and self-image. The term body image means how we view our own bodies while the term self-image is how we view ourselves as a person such as our personalities and appearances. The idea as humans we need to be liked and accepted by our peers can be applied to body image and self-image because these are the things that we change about ourselves in order to fit in with our peers. What determines what our peers and even ourselves find acceptable? It is the standards that we have created as a society to deem what is appropriate and acceptable. Society has created and implemented multiple standards for†¦show more content†¦The result of society s beauty standard is health and mental issues such as eating disorders, depression, suicide, and more. We constantly speak of peace as a society and accepting the differences in others but how can we accept others when we can’t accept ourselves for having imperfections. We have trouble with self acceptance because we are constantly being shown what we should look like and when we don’t look like the images presented to us we feel like there is something wrong with us. We start to see all of our imperfections in a negative light which impacts us heavily. As a society we should start teaching each other how to love ourselves and then how to love others and accept flaws because that is what makes us human. The question was intended to make the reader think differently about how as a society we make standards that don’t accept human imperfection but strive for perfection no matter the cost. Women are faced with the standards of being perfect to be beautiful and since we are born naturally with imperfection we push ourselves to extremes to obtain perfection. A society where we risk death and complications to go under a scalpel to change ourselves for the purpose of being beautiful. Literature Review Society creates a standard of beauty for women that often changes along with society due to a new perspective on what it means to beShow MoreRelatedDefinition Of Beauty Essay749 Words   |  3 PagesBeauty is commonly defined as the combination of qualities that pleases our senses, mostly our sight. Despite this, throughout many years, the concept of beauty has been considered one of the hardest riddles to solve. This happens not only because of all of what it covers, but also because of society’s beauty patterns. Society has been in charge in making people, mostly girls, to feel inferior because they do not complete this â€Å"beauty standards† in order to be considered beautiful. We need to beRead MoreCosmetic Surgery Is Becoming An Acceptable Solution For Beauty987 Words   |  4 Pages People have created the modern technical methods to serve the beauty needs of everyone. Aesthetic technologies are going along with the change of beauty over the time and changing the perception of beauty. Not only nature beauty brings criterion for beauty definition, but also artificial beauty is mutating the standard prescript and the view of beauty. Elective plastic surgery is becoming an acceptable solution for anyone who would like to improve the appearance. The statistics in Medical News TodayRead MoreWesternization Vs. Eating Disorders1645 Words   |  7 PagesWesternization Vs. Eating Disorders Historically, through an array of cultures worldwide, individuals have transformed their appearances in order to conform to the beauty ideal of relevant culture. Those that are apart of the Pa Dong Tribe, which reside among the boarder of Thailand, practice the elongating of the neck through the use of brass rings. African and Amazonian tribes consider beauty through the stretching of their lips that is achieved using large lip plates. Tribes in Africa striveRead MoreCosmetic Surgery Is Becoming An Acceptable Solution For Beauty1552 Words   |  7 Pages People have created the modern technical methods to serve the beauty needs of everyone. Aesthetic technologies are going along with the change of beauty needs over the time and adjusting the perception of beauty. Not only nature beauty brings criterion for beauty definition, but also artificial beauty is mutating the standard prescript and the view of beauty. Elective plastic surgery is becoming an acceptable solution for anyone who would like to improve the appearance. The statistics in MedicalRead MoreCosmetic Surgery Is Becoming An Acceptable Solution For Beauty1579 Words   |  7 Pages People have created modern technical methods to serve the beauty needs of everyone. Aesthetic technologies are going along with the change of beauty needs over the time and adjusting the perception of beauty. Not only does natural beauty bring criterion for beauty’s definition, but also artificial beauty is mutating the standard prescript and the view of beauty. Elective plastic surgery is becoming an acceptable solution for anyone who would like to improve their appearance. In a report from MedicalRead More Medias Influences on the Development of a Womans Self-Esteem1301 Words   |  6 Pageswith this, young women are liable to worry about their body image, and may want to conform to those who have achieved the desired image. This image may be thin, muscular, or just average. This can be attributed to the medias portrayal of women (Body Image Advertising). The majority of women in ads; television, movies, and magazines are thin and are seen as attractive because of this. Yo ung women will see these women and may want their image as their own, and some will go to any lengths to acquireRead MoreFemale Vs. Male Answers1401 Words   |  6 Pages When faced with fabricated images of beauty on magazines and billboards, the average everyday person begins to objectify themselves, leading to feelings of self consciousness and humiliation. Now imagine, that with all the different types of medias nowadays there are scantily clad men/women everywhere. Covers with photoshopped images of â€Å"perfection† have now become the new norm and society is feeling the pressures to keep up. The average American walks past and sees about 3,000 advertisements perRead MoreThe Birthmark Literary Analysis914 Words   |  4 PagesHawthorne, the use of the archetypal conflict Nature vs. Science, the character of Damsel in Distress, and the symbol of the Incurable Wound show how easily beauty is overlooked in the endeavor for perfection. The archetypal conflict of Nature vs. Science is shown in Aylmer’s intention to remove the birthmark, nature’s constant reminder of human mortality, from Georgiana’s cheek. Aylmer believed that the birthmark might heighten Georgiana’s beauty if it wasn’t her only visible imperfection, but onRead MoreFashion Industry on Women ´s Body Image973 Words   |  4 PagesThe fashion industry plays a huge role in portraying bad images of ideal beauty, which in turn affects today’s society perception of their own body image. Not only are women affected by what is seen and heard about how the perfect body should appear, children of young ages are now feeling insecure and obsessed with their bodies before they reach teenage years. This ‘ideal image’ the fashion industry continues to enforce only focuses on very thin models who seem to be in shape and are very healthyRead MorePropaganda from the Beauty Industry1226 Words   |  5 Pagesw e are, and who we ought to be. The beauty industry and its’ advertisements is one type of propaganda that ultimately characterizes the way we think of ourselves. The media is relentless in reminding us every chance they get why women need to be perfect and what we need to achieve that. There is endless pressure as women to have a perfect body and appearance. The beauty industry’s aim through advertisement is to make women feel as if we need to buy the beauty products in order to look and feel like

How a Save a Live by The Fray free essay sample

The song How to Save a Life is bluntly about someone who is suicidal, but there is more of a meaning behind it and I wont tell you the true meaning behind this song. . . but my meaning. You dont have to wear a cape to be a hero. Put yourself in someone elses shoes and walk a mile in them all they may need is support, not to be judged every time they do something. To just tell someone to stop cutting, stop drinking, stop smoking, or stop doing drugs is so hard for someone to do at such a young age. To be addicted to something for so long to just stop has to be the hardest thing someone may have to do. This isnt about being brave or being a hero its about realizing that not everyone who goes to bed can sleep so easily. To the girls and boys who cry themselves to sleep, drifting off into another world wishing they could be out of it. We will write a custom essay sample on How a Save a Live by The Fray or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page How to Save a Life teaches me that maybe not everyone shows their secrets but you can see the signs and be the one who helps someone overcome the certain things in life. I dont mean to become involved with what they do but to be supportive and tell them that theyre not alone.

Virus Invaders Essays - Virology, Virus, Medicine, Clinical Medicine

Virus Invaders Katie Turner Technical Writing Period 7 Virus Invaders, written by Alan E. Nourse, M.D., explores different viruses and our body's defenses against them. This book traces the history of the discovery of viruses, and discusses the difficulty of identifying them, major diseases caused by viruses, the present state of virology, and the prognosis for the treatment. This book is an up-date examination of the structure and function of viruses that covers how they invade the body and what they do once they have entered. Common and uncommon diseases (chicken pox, hepatitis, mononucleosis, herpes, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, encephalitis, AIDS) are discussed in depth. Viruses are so mysterious and their behaviors are so complex that it is almost as difficult to describe them to the nonscientist as it is to study them in the laboratory. Nourse does an awesome job of writing in laypersons' terms without making the reader feel like a child. The most fascinating chapter describes viruses as the not-quite-living enemy. The photographs of laboratories look dull and fuzzy in the book and the black-and-white illustrations are not that great for representing magnified specimens. However, Nourse does a good job in explaining this information. Nourse describes the discovery of viruses and their nature, and discusses the variety of viral diseases, vaccines and immunity, and recent research. He presents a wide scope of information; detailed, complex explanations about such topics as DNA and RNA; and focuses on AIDS and HIV. Likewise, hepatitis A, B, and C are dealt with separately. An excellent double-page chart details in outline form the viruses, diseases caused, organs attacked, symptoms, usual outcomes, and possibilities of an available vaccine. Analogies and action-packed adjectives and nouns will keep young readers actively involved in unraveling the mysteries of these 'tiny tyrants.' . . . Current areas of viral research are presented, encouraging a continued interesting this subject. Only a couple of minor flaws are seen in the beauty of this excellent presentation. The book is recommended highly, both for general knowledge and as material for the classroom. Bibliography Whats up man English Essays

Worship Essays

Worship Essays Worship Essay Worship Essay Word Study: (AVODAH) † Work/Worship BY WILLIAM D. BJORAKER Avodah is the transliteration of the Hebrew word for worship and work. Have you ever thought about the connection? Is worship work? Is work worship? The root word means to work or to serve. The cluster of words derived from the root give us insight into the nature of both worship and work. An oved is a worker. An evid is a slave. Avdut is slavery. Work involves the idea of serving someone. Avodat Elohim is the service or worship of the true God. Avodah ara is literally strange worship (it is also the title of one of the tractates of the Talmud, which discusses the subject of idolatry and corrupt and false worship). Avodat Elillim is idolatry, the worship of false gods. Indeed, false worship or idolatry is in essence serving the devil and leads to avdut-bondage, slavery to Satan. Worship of the true God in Messiah Jesus through the Holy Spirit and in truth is hard work. It demands expenditure of energy. Worship is not mere campfire singing. It requires focus and concentration of our faculties. Be still, and know that I am God (Psalm Worship requires an inner humbling, a surrender of self-will, a repentance of sin, and trust. It requires cultivating the presence of God. It ascribes to Him the supreme value of who He is and acknowledges His worthiness (worth-ship) in words, deeds, and posture. Worship is hard work. Work (labor, enterprise, exertion) is always serving. For the worshiper of God, the believer in Jesus, it is serving God. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus (Colossians 3:17). One of the great recoveries of the Protestant Reformation was an affirmation of the dignity of all honest occupations and manual labor as vocations (literally, callings). Historically, the Jewish father was considered derelict if he didnt teach his son a trade. Most rabbis also plied a trade (for example, Rabbi Moshe, the shoemaker or Rabbi Shaul, the tentmaker). Work is an essential part and expression of our humanness. It is not, as some mistakenly assume, a result of the Fall. Work was part of Adam and Eves activity in Eden before they sinned. They were to work the Garden and take care of it (Genesis 2:15). Work is an expression of the creativity inherent in human nature out: My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I, too, am working Oohn 5:17). Only work that is drudgery is a consequence of the Fall. In Messiah we can experience a substantial redemption from drudgery to meaningful, enjoyable work and achievement. Whatever your Job, it can be an expression of worship if you do it unto the Lord. In modern Hebrew, uv-dah means fact. A fact works in or with reality because it is true to reality. Likewise, in modern Hebrew, u-vad means adapted†something worked over to fit reality. One more point is necessary: Jesus replied: Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind [worship]. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself (Matthew 22:37-39). These commands are always in that order. If you get them turned around, it will destroy you. Thats a fact. It wont work; it is not true to reality. If you give yourself first to neighbor-love, you will find out it cannot be sustained. You will burn out. Only neighbor-love growing out of primary love for God has staying power. Neighbor-love works when it flows out of a life of worship. Worship has priority over work, yet true worship is hard work. Work can be a form of worship, and the work of worship has priority over all other work. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain (1 Corinthians 15:58). Lets remember, Night is coming, when no one can work Cohn 9:4). Lets worship God and get to work.

Existent vs. Extant

Existent vs. Extant Existent vs. Extant Existent vs. Extant By Mark Nichol What’s the difference between existent and extant? It might be more appropriate to ask, what’s the difference between exists and â€Å"is extant†? Existent usually seems awkward to me; exists or â€Å"to exist† often seems more suitable. (Even a comparative sentence such as â€Å"Unicorns are just as existent as umbrellas† seems odd and not just because of the subject matter; though the meaning is not exactly the same, I would instead write, â€Å"Unicorns are just as likely to exist as umbrellas.†) The root word for both terms is exist, from the Latin term existere, which means â€Å"to emerge† or â€Å"to stand forth† (hence the ex- element, which means â€Å"out of† or â€Å"from†), as well as â€Å"appear† or â€Å"be.† The adjective existent derives from the noun existence, which stems from the Latin term existentia, itself coming from existentem, which means you guessed it, â€Å"existent.† (The second syllable, from sistere, which means â€Å"cause to stand,† is also found in assist and subsist and their variants.) Synonyms include inherent (verb form inhere), from the Latin term inhaerere, â€Å"to stick in or to,† and the aforementioned subsist, which has a connotation of minimal survival. Several other words that include the root exist are coexist (â€Å"exist together† or â€Å"live together peacefully†) and preexist (â€Å"to exist beforehand†), as well as existential, which refers to a philosophy centering on the absence of certainty about morality, which has overshadowed the generic meanings of â€Å"grounded in existence† or â€Å"relating to existence.† And then there’s the unfortunately obsolete existimation, a synonym for esteem or estimation. So, what about extant? Its Latin origin is extare, which means â€Å"stand out, be visible, exist,† but it has acquired a slightly different connotation a more extended one than existence: It means â€Å"in existence,† even â€Å"still in existence.† Thus, to say that something exists and to say that it is extant are two distinct statements. What this means is that extant is appropriate for describing something that still remains or survives, though it is reasonable to assume that something might not do so. It’s employed usually in references to artifacts and documents, or to species and other categories of biological classification. Something that exists, by contrast, merely is. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Misused Words category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:7 English Grammar Rules You Should KnowProved vs. ProvenHow Do You Fare?

Conflict Management Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Conflict Management - Term Paper Example All these can be categorized to fall under four different causes of conflict – personality, leadership, communication and the work environment (Psychometrics 2009). Poor leadership plays a significant role in generating conflict. In nutshell, when there is clash of values, conflicts occur. Positive and negative conflict   Conflicts can reduce morale, lower productivity, increase absenteeism and lead to long-term confrontations leading to violence and crime (Gatlin, Wysocki and Kepner 2008). Conflicts increase group-tension and lead to negative emotions. It can also trigger the desire to abandon the project mid-way, and lead to antagonism, frustration and stress (USDA 2005). Not all of these conflicts that are likely to arise are negative. Conflicting perceptions, for instance, can give rise to something entirely new and creative. New solution to an existing problem implies that conflicts can be positive. Conflicts can help individuals evolve with time and experience. It can lead to better cohesion within the group; it can lead to growth and change. Conflicts act as painful stimulus that urge one to act and grow. Conflicts also indicate commitment to organizational goals as all involved are trying to find the best solution (Stack 2011). It promotes challenge and increases efforts. Conflict is essential for the continued development of human beings (Pedler 1977). The consequences of conflict depend upon how the people involved choose to approach it. Conflict process Since conflict does not always have negative consequences, the first step should be to identify the problem, and then the causes of conflict. Conflict is a process and involves five steps. The prelude stage is the frustration or the latent stage where the variables conducive to the conflict are present – the people, the environment and the relationship between the people (Cahn and Abigail 2007 p43). The triggering phase marks the beginning of the perception of the conflict and could st art with something as insignificant as criticism. The initiation phase is the time when personal realization occurs through feelings of anxiety and tension that there exists some conflict. During the differentiation phase conflict becomes evident to others around, even those that are not involved. Strategies are devised and participants work on dealing with problems and issues. This is followed by the last phase known as the resolution phase when the parties involved agree to arrive at some conclusion which then gives rise to a new phase. However, all these require effective communication methods. II. Communication in conflict   Communication can be complex even within a single culture and society. It has pervasive problems among nations. However, when two cultures are involved, communication is even more complicated. One of the strategies to resolve conflicts is the S-TLC system. Stop - One has to take time out (Stop) and not continuously engage the mind in conflict. Think - The mind has to then engage in thinking rationally instead of jumping to conclusion about others. One should learn not to take things personally. Listen – In conflicts people tend to justify their own actions and become defensive. However, one should devote time to listen to others, their view points because perhaps listening itself could provide solution to the conflict. Communicate –

Shouldice Hospital Ltd Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Shouldice Hospital Ltd - Case Study Example Due to the growing popularity of their program and the procedure, Shouldice has reached capacity and has recently been exploring ways in which to add to their customer base. Several options have been considered including the construction of new facilities, extended hours, and diversification. In addition, Shouldice Hospital is preparing for a change in senior management due to the impending retirement of Dr. Degani. The task that faces Shouldice Hospital is to facilitate growth, while maintaining the current levels of patient care and employee relations in the midst of management change. Problem: The biggest problem facing Shouldice is increasing the patient load, without impacting quality of care or employee relations. Operating on Saturday, or going to multiple shifts, could serve more patients by increasing the utilization of the existing facilities. However, the senior staff is opposed to Saturday hours and the issue seems to be irreconcilable in regards to employee relations. Previous experience has shown that opening a new facility, or expanding the current facility, will be met with an increased demand for treatment. However, the growth rate of 100 patients every six months through word of mouth advertising may not meet the financial demands of a significant expansion. However, Shouldice Hospital runs the risk of product piracy, or image problems when advertising directly to the public. Framework: Because many of the patients at Shouldice come fr

Literature on HSBC Essay Example for Free

Literature on HSBC Essay Legacy HSBC Group. HSBC Bank is a key component of the HSBC group which was specifically established for trading with India and China in the hey days of the British Raj in 1865, after a necessity for the same was felt by Thomas Sutherland who identified that Hong Kong lacked local banking facilities. The bank has been primarily dominant in the Asia Pacific region and has pioneered modern banking facilities in these areas. It is now seen to take up its earlier mantle and is creating a new wave of modernised banking in the emerging economies of East and South East Asia. Based in London and with operations around the world, HSBC Holdings plc is reported to be the biggest bank and financial services banking company in the World with operations around the World in 9,500 offices and presence in 80 countries across the globe. Its share holders are said to be spread in 100 countries. HSBC Personal Banking. HSBC has a number of progressive personal banking schemes as it calls itself the Worlds local bank. (Express Banking, 2006). Some of the initiatives it has are schemes such as express banking which is designed to save time. This includes paying a bill online, thereby encouraging internet banking, use of cash machines and mobile phone top ups. (Express Banking, 2006). The bank is also extensively offering gifts for such schemes to include attractive offers as a 42 inch Phillips Plasma television for using its cash machines. (Express Banking, 2006). Its personal insurance services are similarly attempting to induce customers to go online. Thus a 10 percent discount is offered when a person buys on line car insurance. The no claims discount limit has also been raised to 70 % and there is a monthly installment option which has also been included. (Car, 2006). It has also services which can be availed by customers by providing prior intimation of their renewal dates to the bank and once again are provided attractive prizes for the same. The mortgage services offered by HSBC are also very innovative and provide not just for a loan but complete services such as mortgage offers, choices for repayments, varied interest rate option and tailoring these to the prices. (Mortgage, 2006). There are separate services on offer to first time buyers who can also remortgage as well as use the home to borrow more. Similarly the home insurance features also offer very heavy discounts for switching to HSBC Home Insurance, promise to settle claims over the phone without completion of forms and provide for replacements. HSBC Business Banking. HSBC business banking facilities are also unique. It has 12 months free banking facility extended to a current account holder which provides for borrowing at fixed rates large sums up to ?25,000. The service also includes foreign exchange rates for foreign currency payments for HSBC net customers, provides for management of trading in China and a commercial card enables a 56 days interest free credit. Banking for business is carried out through the commercial centres which provide multiple facilities to customers. For business there are other factilities that are being provided such as business internet banking as well as HSBCnet which provides larger companies with a complete range of services on the internet including invoice finance. There are a wide range of business insurance packages that have been made available by the bank, to include virtually all the possible contingencies for which insurance is required by business such as small business for turnover less than ? 1 million or less than 10 employees, commercial packaged insurance, customer packaged insurance, business car insurance and keyman insurance for prinicpals. The insurance package also covers share holders and partners, professional indemnity and trade credit. (Insurance, 2006). International Business Banking. The international services provided by the Bank include import and export bills clearance, guarantees and documentary credit. The Bank also provides many other forms of assistance to businesses to include opening of a business overseas. (International, 2006). The debit and credit card processing facilities include acceptance of debit and credit card at the place of work, over the internet, by mail order, fax or even on telephone. The finance and loans services being provided to the business by HSBC includes flexible overdraft, cash against invoices, protection against bad debts, small business loans at fixed interest rates upto ? 25000, flexible loans, financing of commercial properties, equipment, mortgages, vehicles and so on. Business managers are also provided with cash flow management services and fixed bond rates on high interest Deposit Bonds over ? 5,000. HSBCnet is an advanced service provided for businesses which enable these to carry out futuristic online banking. This is considered ideal for small businesses who do not want to invest in an internal financial management organisation. Thus it provides tools such as cash management, reporting and trading along with analytics and research. (hsbcnet, 2006). The customers are continually provided high quality services on HSBCnet such as management of foreign currency transactions as easy as domestic transaction, payments and account transfers at par with operations of a domestic account. The basic advantage provided is that a customer does not have to change his platform to access different types of services. Chapter 4 Findings Findings are derived from qualitative and quantitative analysis. Data analysis is meant to calculate correlations between variables. The intention is to find relations among the variables. Correlation is a measure of the degree of linear relationship between two variables. A positive correlation occurs when both variables either increase or decrease. Negative correlation occurs, when one variable increases and the other decreases. The detailed findings of the primary and secondary research carried out based on qualitative and quantitative collation are as per succeeding paragraphs.

Gun Control Only Taking Freedoms, Not Saving Lives Essay --

In the 18th century our founding fathers met in Philadelphia to create a document that would lay the foundation for what the United States is built upon. The document would be called the Constitution. However, some would not ratify the Constitution without also having a Bill of rights to protect the rights of the American citizen. Among these amendments that would be added to our Constitution was the Second Amendment. The Second Amendment gave the American citizen the right to keep and bear arms, and to form state militias. The idea behind forming state militias is that in times when a tyrannical government is trying to control the people the people can form a militia to reinstall liberty and dethrone a government that tries to control the people. (Alters) Gun control over the years has proven futile because it only takes away the rights of the American citizen. The founders were strong believers in small government and letting the American people have their own lives and have their own privacy. A right to bear arms is necessary because the American citizen needs a way to defend themselves, their family, and their home. What if someone’s home is invaded in the middle of the night and and their is no gun in the house? If the parents of the house try to attack the invader they will get shot or stabbed and the house will be robbed. Now if that parent has a gun, he doesn’t have to shoot to kill necessarily, but if a robber sees a gun in the house and gets shot at chances are the robber will flee the house. Another major Thornton 2 importance of the Second Amendment was to allow the American citizen to control the army. The founders knew that with state militias, all of them combined could overwhelm any oppressive standing... ... for any invasion. Now no one has been foolish enough to attempt such an attack, but I believe America should model our Gun laws system after them. In conclusion America needs to learn from Switzerland. They may be in a better positioned area but, we must learn from the Swiss. More gun laws has produced more deaths (see Chicago) and less gun laws have produced fewer deaths. The point is if guns are easier to own we would have an easier way to defend ourselves. So instead of cheering for stricter gun control laws we should be fighting for less. Switzerland may never be attacked, but America sure has Thornton 5 and what’s stopping someone from doing it again? I’m not saying five year-olds should be owning RPGs, but kids, teens, adults, and seniors alike should all have some form of training just in case someone does get bold and attempt a repeat of 9/11.

Management Changes Affects Employee Morale

Management Changes Affects Employee Morale As the world changes, many organization may create changes to their company structure in order to remain successful and look good amongst shareholders. These organizational changes may be beneficial for the company overall. However, it may affect the remaining employee’s morale. Some organizations changes such as layoffs, reduce work hours, a stagnate in benefits increases and rewards may result in management trying to figure out a way to motivate and gain employees trust and loyalty.Layoffs When an organization experiences a downturn in the economy, they may be force to perform employee layoffs. Organizations such as the Boeing Company  announced in September 2001, that they will be cutting 10,000 jobs which is caused by the U. S. airlines to decrease operational capacity by about 20% due to traffic reductions. Airlines are expected to park older aircraft and defer deliveries of newly built transports as they trim their operational fleets (Smith B. (2001)).The Boeing Company  is an American  multinational  aerospace  and defense corporation that was founded in 1916 and is the largest exporter by value in the United States (Smith B. (2001)). This layoffs will created a shortage of aerospace jobs and has created a tough hiring environment for unemployed workers. Brockner, J. (1992) stated that â€Å"if the layoffs are mismanaged, thereby hampering survivors' productivity and morale, then the organization stands to lose a sizeable portion of the savings it hoped to achieve by introducing layoffs. Even though employee layoffs may allow organizations to cut jobs and safeguard relationships with the existing employee this can be create a challenge to the remaining employees in that, they may experience excessive stress of increase workload, lack of motivation and they may consider searching for a new place of employment to reduce redundancy. Heathfield, S, M (2010) stated that â€Å"employees experience a n increased level of stress relating to both the increased workload and your distrust of management. Depending on how respectfully the layoffs were handled with their organization, this distrust may run deep. This may cause distrust with the employee and the organization. Employees may be less motivated to complete assigned work when coworkers depart from an organization due to layoffs. According to Adler, N. (2008) â€Å"motivation is a passion to work for reasons that go beyond money or status a a propensity to pursue goals with energy and persistence. † One would suggest that to motivate these individuals could consist of bringing in bake goods to work or have a potluck with existing coworkers. This could motivate the remaining employees to work towards a successful work performance and accomplishing team goals.Searching for a new place of employment to reduce redundancy is common in organizations when layoff occurs. According to Heathfield, S, M (2010) â€Å"Research ind icates that many employees polish up their resumes and begin a job search which can help the downsizing survivor feel more in control of their situation. † Employees could be fearful to be unemployed due the many responsibility of life such as child care expenses and bill payments. Child care expenses could include child support payment, food and clothes while bill payments could include mortgage, rent and utilities. Child care expenses and bill payments is essential to one’s life.A decline or shortage in salary for childcare expenses and bill payments and could result in one child or children being uncared for and one could become homeless. Reduce work hours Management changes can include reduction in work hours for employee, early-retirement and furloughs. Pierce, J. L. ; Dunham, R. B. (1992) conduct a research on police officer responses to changes to their work schedule from a rotating eight hour shift to a compacted 12 hour shift which includes personal activities, work schedule attitudes, stress and fatigue and concluded that â€Å"employees was not satisfied with the result†.One would suggest that the organization give the employee ample time to prepare for the individual wages to be reduced in that the employee can be proactive and make changes that can affect them in their personal life. Some of these proactive measures could include speaking with loan officers to refinance personal loan, cut back on dinning expenses or discontinue insurance plans or retirement matching plans. Even though furloughs may temporarily aid organization on reducing pay cuts in staying in business employee may choose not to return to work after being furlough or the employee may consider to ind another place of employment. Organization may offer senior employees early retirement as another method for to reduce operation cost during an economy downturn. Senior management and those who have been working for an organization the longest usually make the highe st salaries and have the best benefits package Bradley J, B. ; Demand M. (2011). Early retirement of senior employees may result in can result lost of unspoken knowledge over a long run. One would suggest that the organization. Some organizations perform furloughs in economy recession. A furlough is mandatory time off for an employee.For non-exempt employees, the employer doesn’t pay the employee when the employee is not at work. However, exempt employees are required to take a mandatory full workweek off without pay (marylandnonprofit. org). Salary reduction of any kind can also be hardened on the employee where as the individuals may also have to limit expenses in order to afford to pay for regular expenses. Benefits and rewards Benefits reductions and canceling educing reward are other ways for organization to cut back on operation expenses. Benefit reductions are yet another way to cut back on expenses.An employer may have to discontinue some insurance plans, reduce or el iminate retirement plan matches or contributions, or require employees to pay higher co-pays and deductibles on health and/or dental insurance (marylandnonprofit. org). Organizations changes such as layoffs, reduce work hours and a stagnate in benefits increase and rewards affects employee morale in that, employees consider a new place of employment or retire earlier than expected. Employees may also be less motivated to accomplish goal or become stress from work overload as a result from their past co-workers who have left the organization.Mossholder, K. W. , Richardson, H. A. , ; Settoon, R. P. (2011) stated that â€Å"employees are encourages perceiving that developing and maintaining relationships creates a tacit social resource from which to draw when pursuing more complex or ambiguous goals. Relationships among employees will be more lasting than in market pricing climates, for they serve as an asset that has value for both extrinsic and intrinsic reasons. † References Adler, N. (2008). International Dimensions of Organizational Behavior. (5th ed. ). Mason, OH: Cengage Learning. Brockner, J. (1992). Managing the effects of layoffs on survivors.California Management Review, 34(2), 9-28. Retrieved from http://web. ebscohost. com. ezproxy. umuc. edu/ Smith B. (2001). Boeing  cuts delivery estimates, prepares for major  layoffs. Aviation Week and Space Technology, 155(13), 29-p+, 2p. Retrieved from http://ehis. ebscohost. com. ezproxy. umuc. edu/ Chatterjee, N. (2009). A study on organizational culture and its effect on employee retention. Journal of Management, 2(2), 147. Retrieved from http://proquest. umi. com. ezproxy. umuc. edu/ Pierce, J. L. ; Dunham, R. B. (1992). The 12-hour work day: A 48-hour, eight-day week.Academy of Management Journal, 35(5), 1086-1098. doi: 10. 2307/256542 Michel, A. , Stegmaier, R. , ; Sonntag, K. (2010). I scratch your back – you scratch mine. Do procedural justice and organizational identification matter fo r employees’ cooperation during change?. Journal of Change management, 10(1), 41-59. doi: 10. 1080/14697010903549432 Mossholder, K. W. , Richardson, H. A. , ; Settoon, R. P. (2011). Human Resources systems and helping in organizations: A relational perspective. Academy of Management Review, 36(1), 33-52. doi:10. 5465/AMR. 2011. 55662500 Heathfield, S, M (2010).How to Cope When Coworkers Lose Their  Jobs. Retrieve from http://humanresources. about. com/od/layoffsdownsizing/a/survivors_cope. htm Bradley J, B. ; Demand M. (2011). What Are the Reasons Why Organizations Offer Early Retirement Plans. Retrieve from http://smallbusiness. chron. com/reasons-organizations- offer-early-retirement-plans-110. html Maryland Nonprofit. Retrieve October 25, 2011 from http://www. marylandnonprofits. org/ html/support/documents/Lay-offsinaToughEconomy. pdf Hennigan W. J. (2011). Boeing cutting 900 jobs at Long Beach C-17 plant. Retrieve from

Physiological Change Essay

What is a drug addiction? Why don’t people just simply quit doing drugs? Well here is a news flash, an addiction to drugs is a disease! Why is it when someone is diagnosed with cancer other people are concerned and feel horrible, however, when someone is diagnosed with an addiction to drugs they are faced with ridicule, and alienation? It seems that it may be this way since cancer has been researched for many years while drug addiction has not. People who abuse drugs are affected by physiological changes that occur in the brain, unfortunately these changes are what leads to addiction and should be treated as the disease it is and not as if it is a choice. The disease that addictions cause makes many physical changes to the human body but addiction is more than just a behavioral disorder, another thing that it can cause is emotional changes. The disease physically alters the way the user thinks. Over time consecutive use of the drug could make the users body immune to that dosage, therefore it makes them feel they need more to achieve their â€Å"High†, and here lies the start of an addiction. Many uninformed individuals would say if its bad quitÍ ¾ however, this problem isn’t that simple. Along with altering the way the user thinks, the disease also alters cells in the body.

Free sample - Enforcing internet security in organizations. translation missing

Enforcing internet security in organizations. Enforcing internet security in organizationsThe position of organizational internet security in the current growth of computing is gaining the presence of many companies as internet is expanding globe. Software companies are coming up with new security measures which can be implemented to counter the current needs of secure information and data transfer. Commoditized security measures have been around for long and therefore the need for enhanced internet security measures which offer high levels of security cannot be overlooked. Internet security technologies that offer competitive advantage to organizations are considered sometimes hard to implement. However critics emphasize that they are made to separate organizations from others in terms of accessibility, the major focus should be to retain secure information transfer. As new technologies emerge in the market, their adoption has been slow, but they offer an upper hand. Both physical and logical access remains vulnerable to hackers. This should prompt the need to redefine security technologies which will ensure secure operation and reduce the level of vulnerability to organizations data.   Organizations security is an area that is conceivably the most elementary and nevertheless the most critical of all the technologies and disciplines for the business or organizations sensation. An organization without concrete enterprise security processes and rules exposes it to considerable threats. This should therefore open up their minds that network security is an arms race and therefore attacks and prevention measures should be put in place that are not one sided. Evans (2003) stated that â€Å"while hackers try to exploit vulnerabilities, software companies and enterprise security specialists continue to close the gaps and find new solutions and approaches to secure enterprise operations and data† (p. 31). The role of internet security in the current growth of computing has been gaining the presence of many stakeholders including organizations and learning institutions around the globe. While governments have made it possible to use the internet for commercial and personal purposes its record in the realm of privacy and security is not unblemished. Internet security can be enforced through various ways to ensure a considerable level of security in organizations. Information security program for the organization should consist of various policies and procedures, security education, security management and a range of internet security mechanisms (Chen, 2005). The organizations internet security policy document should be of great and critical importance to the organizations internet security program. The internet security policy should be a sub policy of the whole organizations information security policy and therefore it should be determined during the requirements definition phase (Chen, 2005). Organizations should consider many diverse factors identified as influential for internet security policy. Chen (2005) says that â€Å"human issues dominate internet security enforcement which include freedom of internet use, privacy, trust, monitoring, surveillance, censorship, right to be kept informed, accountability, sanctions, ownership and ethics† (17). This implies that human issues should take center stage during the process which all other factors were viewed while establishing various sub policies of the internet security policy in the organization. The term internet security should imply that the organization has taken all the necessary measures of security have been ensured or adopted. Vacca on the other hand says that internet security should be about the information security and integrity of both private and organizational end user’s systems, networks and other terminal devices accessing the internet through the publicly available service providers (2007). Enforcing internet security should bring to our understanding that the organization has enforced the following types of internet security which include: system architecture level, virtual private networks, use of trusted links, and use of multiple firewalls, intrusion detection mechanisms, and encryption. Vacca says that the organization should use encryption as a primary means for providing confidentiality services for information sent over the internet (2007). Encryption should therefore be used to protect any electronic traffic such as mail messages or the contents of a file being downloaded (Vacca, 2007). Another measure that should be taken by the organization in connecting to the internet is to involve a number of system architectural decisions that will impact overall system security of the organization (Vacca, 2007). System level architecture uses virtual private network and trusted links so as to control access from unauthorized people. Trusted links in the organization are used to connect geographically separate networks. The publication by Science and Technology Committee (2007) noted that internet security in institution should not involve installation of the appropriate technology alone but also further sensitize the members of the organization on internet security. This should be in line with changing attitudes and behavior towards the internet through education and training. The organization should also ensure that security remains up to date (Science and Technology Committee, 2007). Besides the above measures which imply that the institution has fully enforced internet security there should also be the use of strong passwords and antivirus software’s. Strong passwords ensure that after computers boot only authorized users can access the internet to avoid security breaches. They should thus be used to prevent an unauthorized person form hacking to the computers while still online. Well configured firewalls and strong password should be used to enforce accepted level of internet security. The organization should use antivirus programs which prevent malicious malware or virus from interfering with data stored in these computers. The antivirus programs will protect other attacks from hackers who may want to gain access to data stored in computers in the organization. Cheswick, Bellovin and Rubin say that there should be careful control of network access and the files obtained from foreign sources greatly reduces the risk of infection (2003). Antivirus programs prevent human propagated viruses where people forward messages to other individuals promoting them to give their login details. On the other hand Maiwald (2003) says that the implementation of internet security in the organization should include mechanisms such as firewalls and virtual private networks coupled with changes to network architectures within the institution. The organization should place an access control device between the internet and the organizations internal network. This means that without such protection all internal systems will exposed to unlimited attacks (Maiwald, 2003). Internet security enforcement should ensure that the organization’s staffs will be well trained on matters concerning internet security. Maiwald continue to say that internet security enforcement should come with the implementation of security mechanisms and ensure that they observe responsibility for the security of the organization (2003. As part of enforcing internet security the organization should actively raise security awareness as an important part of any good security program (Maiwald, 2003). Some of the steps toward attaining internet security will include determining the key information that must be communicated to the employees of the organization (Maiwald, 2003). In this context Maiwald says that employees should pay particular attention to password requirement, badges, use policies and anything else that directly affects your employees will work (2003). Internet security enforced should imply that the institution has provided its employees with detailed knowledge about protecting organizations information resources. Maiwald thus says that both the students and employees should be aware why the organization needs to protect its information resources (2003). This also indicates that the organization’s security department should have plans to conduct audits of policy compliance. Maiwald (2003) established that â€Å"such audits should focus on system configurations, backup policy compliance or on the protection of information in physical form† (198). In order to enforce the required level of internet security, there should be a need for well resourced formal organizational internet security infrastructure, featuring an internet security management program (Chen, 2005). The institution should adopt a multifaceted approach to controlling the employee contribution to internet security concerns including the development for very secure internet connectivity to institution. The institution should pay a close attention to the important human issues associated with internet security and usage (Chen, 2005). Besides this the organization should make its employees accountable for their actions through appropriate policies, awareness activities, monitoring and sanctions (Chen, 2005). Internet security should thus start with the use of appropriate security technologies. Organizations should look forward to truly secure critical business operations today and therefore companies need to adopt competitive security technologies. This means that security professionals should understand, implement, and operate effectively enhanced security technologies to ensure business continuity in these organizations. The level of vulnerability to organizations increases as the world advances in technology adoption. In this context it is important to ascertain that the need for competitive security technologies is at hand in many organizations. In conclusion, it is important to note that with the looming threat of internet security in the global environment, the challenge now should be to develop internet security solutions which will afford corporations the high level to protection needed to withstand prolonged and diverse attacks (Chen, 2005). Therefore only solutions based on strong comprehensive, holistic internet security management and policy should be implemented in organizations (Chen, 2005).   These measures should ensure that the institution’s information and data is secure despite its internet connectivity. As new technologies continue to evolve in computing the level of threat also increases and therefore this means that the organization should stay updated on its internet security approach.      References Connolly, K. (2003). Law of internet security and privacy 3rd ed.   Los Angeles, CA: Aspen Publishers Online. Chen, W. (2005). Statistical methods in computer security. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press.Cheswick, W, Bellovin, S Rubin, A (2003). Firewalls and Internet security: repelling the wily hacker. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Addison-Wesley. Evans, N. D (2003). Business innovation and disruptive technology: harnessing the power of breakthrough technology for competitive advantage Boston, MA: FT Press. Great Britain: Parliament: House of Lords: Science and Technology Committee (2007). Personal internet security: 5th report of session 2006-07, Vol. 2: Evidence. Glen Burnie, MD: The Stationery Office. Maiwald, E (2003). Network security: a beginner's guide 2nd ed. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Professional.Vacca, J (2007). Practical Internet security. Chicago, IL: Springer.

Social Media Images How To Make Them (With 128 Free Photos)

Social Media Images How To Make Them (With 128 Free Photos) The idea is pretty simple: Lets combine two of your favorite, top-performing tools- social media and imagery- to produce the best  social media images thatll engage your audience. Unfortunately,  while the idea is simple, the application can be quite challenging since  the visual options seem to be endless. But, today we have good news! With the correct sizes, best colors, awesome imagery types, and social image helpers in , youll be well on your way to a successful social media image that will extend far beyond its initial post life. How To Make The Best Social Media Images Step By Step (+ Free Photoshop Action)Get Your Free Social Media Images + Photoshop CC Action Are you ready to save hours of time!? Rather than designing custom images for each social network, simply use this Photoshop CC action that will size and save them all for  Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Google+! Not only that, but use  the social media images infographic for every day reference, and enjoy these 14 images already sized for every single network! 1. Size Your Images For Optimal Attention The very first step to creating  the best social media images is by producing the correct size for each social network. You're  only given a limited space to capture your audience's attention, so you'll  want to use every pixel you're  given. This can get quite tricky when each network has different ratios and proportions, but if you know the posting sizes for each one, you'll be off to a great start! Below you'll find all of the recommended sizes for Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, LinkedIn, and Google+ with the preferred size for  social posting. Keep in mind that all social platforms accept these three main file types: GIF, JPEG, and PNG. Alright, with that, here we go! Facebook Image Sizes Facebook is still the most popular social network today with over 1.6 billion active monthly users worldwide. With such a great audience, it's essential to optimize every single post for top engagement, especially for business. Facebook  image posts are known to get 39% more interaction  than that of a normal one, which is a perfectly great reason to start using social images for every single post. Plus, they've found that 87% of a Facebook Page's interaction comes solely from image posts, and that people remember the information better over a longer period of time. This study found that  information paired with an image  was 65% retained after a three day period. That's amazing! In recent news, Facebook now allows you to  post several images for one post, appearing as an album. There's been some discussion whether a single image or multiple images perform better, but  according to Convince and Convert, using multiple images can  increase clicks by 1,290%! Facebook's Three  Golden Rules: Use images in every single Facebook post and  multiple images whenever possible. Use the 1200 x 630px image dimensions. Post on the weekends at 12–1 p.m. for best performance. Facebook's Recommended Image Sizes: Profile Photo: 180 x 180px Cover Photo: 828 x 315px Shared Image: 1200 px 630px Shared Link: 1200 x 630px Highlighted Image: 1200 x 717pxIncrease clicks by 1,290% when you use multiple images on #Facebook. #marketing Recommended Reading: 12 Effective Ways To Expand Your Facebook Engagement 10 Fundamental Ways To Boost Your Facebook Organic Reach By 193% Facebook Marketing Strategy: Why You Need One ( How To Build It) Twitter Image Sizes Twitter, one of my personal favorite networks,  sends out 500 million tweets per day. That's 6,000 tweets every second! Adding images to your tweets not only gets you 18% more clicks, but also 89% more favorites, and  150% more retweets.  Talk about an engagement boost! Plus, Twitter has kept their network posting consistent in proportion, so there's no question that a 440px by 220px image is the best size  to reach the most people. If you really want to make sure your resolution is clear, bump it up to 506 by 253px so desktop users have the highest clarity. Twitter's Three  Golden Rules: Use images in every  tweet. Use  images that are  506 x 253px for optimal resolution. Schedule your tweets for Wednesdays at  12–1 p.m. or 5–6 p.m. Twitter's Recommended Image Sizes: Profile Photo: 400 x 400px Header Photo: 1500 x 500px In-Stream Photo: 506 x 253pxUse images on #Twitter  to  get 18% more clicks, 89% more favorites, 150% more retweets. Recommended Reading: 15 Tactics To Boost Twitter Engagement Backed By Research How To Get Started With Twitter Video Marketing How to Expand Your Organic Growth on Facebook and Twitter for Free LinkedIn Image Sizes While LinkedIn is one of the older social networks, it has continued on throughout  the years and thrives  with its 414 million users. LinkedIn's focus on business professionals creates a perfect space for business-specific content to be seen and viewed across the world. Although, post with caution. According to Jeff Bullas, being 'too professional' without first creating a relationship can actually be a common mistake when using LinkedIn. This idea seems to  validate just how important using  images can be for establishing that desired connection and relatability. LinkedIn's Three Golden Rules: Make sure your images have a personal touch. Use  images that are 531px wide. Schedule your posts midweek at  or 5–6 p.m. LinkedIn's Recommended Image Sizes: Banner Image: 646 x 220px Standard Logo: 400 x 400px Square Logo: 60 x 60px Hero Photo: 974 x 330px Profile Picture: 400 x 400px Background Image: 1000 x 425px Regular Post Image: 531px wide Linked Image Post: 191 x 100px414 million #LinkedIn users engage best with images that are 531px wide.Pinterest Image Sizes The average time spent on Pinterest per visit is 14.2 minutes! Multiply that by the 110 million active  users, and you're looking at one very powerful source of information and inspiration. With all of that collective time spent on Pinterest, that also means it's one of the fastest growing websites, creating the  greatest opportunity  for your business to grow along with it. Similar to Instagram, Pinterest is  highly visual, but rather with an emphasis in sharing content with strangers and friends alike as 80% of pins are repins. In order to have the best Pinterest images, avoid using faces, use  red or orange, and rock a less distracting background. Pinterest's Three Golden Rules: Always link back to content on your blog or website wherever you can convert that traffic. Use  images that are 600 x 1102px for highest engagement. Schedule your pins on Saturday from 8–11 p.m. Pinterest's Recommended Image Sizes: Profile Picture: 165 x 165px Pin Board Large Thumbnail: 222 x 150px Pin Board Small Thumbnail: 55 x 55px Pins On Main Page:  238px wide Pins Once Expanded: 600px wide Pins Enlarged Pin: 500px wide176 million Pinners spend 14.2 minutes a day on #Pinterest. Best image sizes here: Recommended Reading: How To Improve Your Pinterest Engagement With These 15 Tactics How To Get More Followers On Pinterest With 21+ Tactics That Will Grow Your Following The Ultimate Guide On How To Use Pinterest For Marketing Instagram Image Sizes Instagram is unique in that it solely allows photo-based posts. With an imagery-focused platform, it draws visual connections that make both a memorable and human impression. "Instagram’s per-follower engagement rate for top brands is 58 times higher than on Facebook and 120 times higher than on Twitter," according to Forrester, which might be why 85% of top brands are adopting it to grow their business. Just recently, Instagram opened their strict square ratio image size up to a variety of landscape and portrait options in addition to  increasing their resolution to 1080px for top clarity! Surely,  Instagram  is a great place for both connection and business. Instagram's Three Golden Rules: Always include a link back to your content in your profile. Use  images that are 1080px wide for highest resolution. Schedule your Instagrams for Monday at  2–3 p.m. or 8–9 p.m. Tip: Did you know that now schedules Instagram posts? Now you can schedule Instagram alongside all of your other social media marketing, making you more strategic and better organized. Instagram's Recommended Image Sizes: Profile Picture: 110 x 110px Photo Thumbnails: 161 x 161px Photo Size in App: 1080 x 1080px Instagram's engagement rate is 120x higher than Twitter. Best #Instagram image sizes here: Recommended Reading: How To Improve Your Instagram Engagement With 15 Tips How To Get Way More Instagram Followers With 20 Easy Tactics The Ultimate Guide On How To Use Instagram For Business Google+ Image Sizes While Google+  may very well be slowly disappearing, it still has a lot to offer if used correctly. After all, its partner in crime, Google, is our greatest source of information across the internet, one of the highest sources of revenue  for a lot of businesses, and one of the greatest companies worldwide. Your Google+ account is directly tied to the search engine so your business information is carried over into helping your SEO. Win-win. Everyone knows and loves Google. For that reason alone, it's no surprise that Google+ has 300 million active members. With that large of an audience, it's best that your images are set up for optimal performance. Google+'s Three Golden Rules: Use the .png image format rather than .jpg format for highest clarity. Use  images that are 426 x 255px. Schedule your posts on workdays from 9–11 a.m. Google+'s Recommended Image Sizes: Profile Picture: 250 x 250px Cover Image: 1080 x 608px Shared Image: 518px wide   Shared Link Thumbnail: 150 x 150pxMake perfect images for #Google+ to reach 375 million active users.There you have it! A complete guide to the best social image sizes, with the most important recommendations  for each and every network. Find the size you're looking for, and use that when you begin the creation process with your images. Simply choosing the correct size at the beginning, will save you so much time when you're ready to save and export your images for the world to see! Recommended Design Tools: Check out these awesome tools to help you create the best social media images with the perfect sizes- Canva, Piktochart, Visage, and more  free design tools. 2. Use The Best Colors To Increase Your Engagement While several factors go into making an image its very best, color is one of the most  essential ingredients. Color psychology has proven time and time again that we can convey emotions simply by using a particular color! In May of 2015, I did a two-month study on the popularity of a given color in 's graphics. Since we typically use a three-color palette for our blog graphics, I was able to give appropriate rankings to each of the three colors used  to see how they each performed. I quickly realized that certain colors might be performing better  simply because we use them more often, so I then compared the popularity percentage to the usage percentage  to find an overall color grade. Basically, I nerded out super hard and used data to see what colors performed the best. Use a graph like this to review and test your color schemes. At the end of my study, we found that blue and green were our highest performing colors! If we look at color psychology, both of these colors reflect a calm, clean, comforting presence which seems to  be the perfect match to the experience we want our readers to have, especially if they're new to the blog. Blue is also one of our brand colors. The other two top-performing colors were none other then red and orange. While blue and green provide a safe, calm place for our readers, orange and red are perfect complements because  they grab our audience's attention and spark their  interest. Blue and green and orange and red are a dynamic set of colors that will help you succeed. #colorPsychology tells us that red and orange represent passion, energy, and success.  I couldn't imagine a better pair for blue and green's calm, comforting presence than the passion and success of orange and red. Together, they seemed to make  a dynamic duo, so I tried using those color pairs over the past year... Out of our top 10 posts, 8  of them have either blue or green as the main color. The remaining two blog posts have orange as their main color. Absolutely none of our top performing posts contain any other  main colors! By understanding which colors performed better, we were able to help  increase our page views by  833.76%! You can do this, too! Simply follow the steps below to see which colors work best for your brand: Review your blog post header graphics and write down the primary, secondary, and third colors. Define  a ranking to the most prevalent 3 colors in your graphics. (i.e. 3 points for the primary color, 2 for the secondary color, and 1 for the third most-used color.) Look at the total shares each  post received during a set amount of time. For more than  x amount of  shares (at , we did per 100 shares), give each color that set amount of ranked points that you decided on above. (e.g. If the color blue was the primary color in a post that received 300 shares, blue  would have 9  total points, 3+3+3. If red was the second most-used color  in the post with 300 shares, it would have 6  points, 2+2+2.) At the end of each week, track the overall totals and see which colors perform the highest. After 8 solid weeks, you should start to see trends stick out, revealing your top-performing colors. While everyone has different colors that match  their brand and audience demographics, it's essential to test out the waters and find the colors that work best for you! But when in doubt... use blue or green. Recommended Reading: What 20 Studies Say About the Best Times to Post on Social Media 3. Use The Types Of Social Media Images That Get The Most Attention Now that you know your target image size and top-performing colors, it's time to decide what type of image to  use. While almost anything can be an image- screenshots, illustrations, photos, quotes, GIFs- there are a few standout images you  can depend upon to receive the most engagement. Quotes Quotes come in all shapes and sizes. Maybe it's from a speaker, conference, or a book that you've recently read. Or, maybe it's from an article or blog  online.  No matter the  form or social network, quotes can be an excellent way to reach your audience with images. Simply find a quote you like and pair it with a color or simple background. The dynamic duo will allow your readers to ponder, identify with, and in return, share your quote. For example, at we started sharing quotes from our blog authors on Facebook, and we received 98% growth in engagements and 91% growth in clickthroughs. Facebook isn't alone! Here's another example from Twitter: 20 Ways To Be Creative When You Dont Feel Inspired https://t.co/JS5YcKZFoQ pic.twitter.com/hRaof4lPfV (@) January 16, 2016 This tweet received  2,107 impressions and 38 engagements because the quote had insight, intrigue, and direct application. It not only complemented the content topic of creativity, but gave further information that could be easily shared with their family and friends. Quote images are a perfect way to give something to your audience that they can share and be proud of, all the while giving your content more traction. Try them out! GIFs GIFs are one of the office's favorite things both in our work chats and on social media because they  perform well, all while bringing a smile. Even in challenging situations, GIFs can bring a delight to those who would rather be frustrated. Hook you audience, tell a story, and make their day. Here's an example: Uh, oh. #facebookdown In the meantime, enjoy a cat gif! pic.twitter.com/34o2LYk61a (@) September 28, 2015 By using a GIF and bringing a humorous moment to a normal circumstance, we received  15,953 impressions and 381 engagements! We've also found that tweets with GIFs tend to get 22.3% more engagement than tweets with plain images. Here's an example: Are You Excited? You Can Now Pin To Pinterest With https://t.co/014yRye9xG pic.twitter.com/uo6Kenojn6 (@) March 8, 2016 Just by turning a static image into a motion-filled GIF, the tweet received  1,328 impressions, 77 views, and 15 engagements! Plus, this tweet isn't alone! When tweets contain GIFs, they get 166.6% more clickthroughs. GIFs allow motion to make your social posts stand out, get even more attention, and bring delight. What are some of your favorite GIFs? Infographics At this point, it's no secret that infographics are one of the most popular and highest shared content types  in today's digital world. Not only do they get shared 3 times more often, but they're also 30 times more likely to be read than a purely textual article! If that  wasn't good enough, infographics are also the perfect pair for one of the top-performing visual bookmarking site: Pinterest. Infographics get a lot of attention on  Pinterest  because they tend to be longer in format, which fits Pinterest's 4:5 image ratio that receives 60% more Repins. Here's an example of our top-performing pin: Is it a surprise that it happens to be an infographic? I think not. Titles You  work really hard to find the perfect headline for your content. You  search for  keywords, words  filled with emotion,  then use the headline analyzer to find the precise, most-effective title. So why not take advantage of that in your social image? At , we reviewed some of our top-performing tweets, and found that they all included a title image.  Our top  tweet in March  received 5,043 impressions and 85 engagements, our top tweet in April  had 3,556 impressions and 35  engagements, and in May  our top tweet got a total of 7,951 impressions and 58  engagements all with title graphics. That's an average of 5,516  impressions and 59 engagements from using a title graphic within the tweet. March  Example:   How To Use The Right Content Marketing Tools For Every Job - https://t.co/TQesnglq9t pic.twitter.com/pX4UcGXKi5 (@) March 2, 2016 April Example: Want to write killer blog posts? Here is the ultimate process to awesome content. https://t.co/2HO8vmL4mA pic.twitter.com/OD0IGGccCI (@) March 30, 2016 May  Example: How to Triumph at Content Marketing On A Limited Budget https://t.co/nRe4lMv1jP pic.twitter.com/D6nlmVH2Q1 (@) May 8, 2016 As you can see, titles extend beyond the written context, and can certainly be effective within the graphic itself. Find the title of your blog, announcement, or event, and use that in the image to see the top performance. 4. Automate Your Images For Social Media To Save Time As the graphic designer on 's marketing team, I live and breathe images every, single, day, so although creating your graphics well is super important, so is making sure you're efficient when it comes to uploading  them to your social messages. After all, time is money, and money is time you could be spending on other projects. This is exactly where is a HUGE time saver for me. Let me introduce you to a magical thing called 'Social Helpers'. What Are Social Helpers in ? But First, I should probably back up and start with Social Templates. Social Templates is  a great way to reuse your social sharing schedule time and time again. That means that you can create a social campaign just one time (with the best times and right frequency), save it as a template, and then apply it to all other forms of content from there on out. Just one time! (That's hours of savings right there.) In case you'd like to see it in action, here's a live demo of social templates. If that wasn't awesome enough, there's three key components  of social templates that save  us even more time. Within each social template, you  can create an individual message 'template' using social helpers. Let me show you how it works: Within , Social Templates live to the left of your social campaign. 2. If you click on a Social Template, you can modify each and every single message within that template. This is a great way to personalize your messages for each network. 3. Do you see those blue things? Those are social helpers! There are text, image, and video helpers. 4. Here's where the magic comes in. Are you ready? You can add specific helpers to  your messages so whenever the template is applied, rather than writing that message 10x or uploading that same image 10x, you only have to do it once! Wherever that helper is located,  the content will auto-populate to all your messages at one time. What Does That Mean for Social Images? The brilliance of Social Image Helpers, is that I no longer have to upload images to every individual message for every piece of content. If your team is like ours, we have about 17 messages per piece of content, so before Social Image Helpers, I uploaded  the same image 17 times. That took a lot of time! Time spent I could be doing better things like image creation, design strategy, or connecting with our audience. With Social Helpers, I can now do what I had to do 17 times, just once. Once! This saves me so much time, and allows me to focus more time on what makes an image great, rather than worrying about how it'll publish across every single network. Social templates and social helpers take the guess-work out of it, and allow me to quickly place my images, moving onto the next thing. Now You Know How To Make Successful  Social Media Images From Beginning To End Social media images can take quite a few different forms, colors, and sizes- but with this data, you've found exactly what equation works best for each social network. If you happen to be in a rush or maybe you're just starting out, use a  2:1 ratio for your image size, incorporate blue or green with a pop of orange or red in your color scheme, stick to the four main image types: GIFs, quotes, titles, and infographics, and save time uploading with Social Image Helpers. Without much time at all, you'll be on your way to success! What colors, sizes, and image types have worked best for you? Share below! Social Media Images How To Make Them (With 128 Free Photos) The idea is pretty simple: Lets combine two of your favorite, top-performing tools- social media and imagery- to produce the best  social media images thatll engage your audience. Unfortunately,  while the idea is simple, the application can be quite challenging since  the visual options seem to be endless. But, today we have good news! With the correct sizes, best colors, awesome imagery types, and social image helpers in , youll be well on your way to a successful social media image that will extend far beyond its initial post life. How To Make The Best Social Media Images Step By Step (+ Free Photoshop Action)Get Your Free Social Media Images + Photoshop CC Action Are you ready to save hours of time!? Rather than designing custom images for each social network, simply use this Photoshop CC action that will size and save them all for  Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Google+! Not only that, but use  the social media images infographic for every day reference, and enjoy these 14 images already sized for every single network! 1. Size Your Images For Optimal Attention The very first step to creating  the best social media images is by producing the correct size for each social network. You're  only given a limited space to capture your audience's attention, so you'll  want to use every pixel you're  given. This can get quite tricky when each network has different ratios and proportions, but if you know the posting sizes for each one, you'll be off to a great start! Below you'll find all of the recommended sizes for Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, LinkedIn, and Google+ with the preferred size for  social posting. Keep in mind that all social platforms accept these three main file types: GIF, JPEG, and PNG. Alright, with that, here we go! Facebook Image Sizes Facebook is still the most popular social network today with over 1.6 billion active monthly users worldwide. With such a great audience, it's essential to optimize every single post for top engagement, especially for business. Facebook  image posts are known to get 39% more interaction  than that of a normal one, which is a perfectly great reason to start using social images for every single post. Plus, they've found that 87% of a Facebook Page's interaction comes solely from image posts, and that people remember the information better over a longer period of time. This study found that  information paired with an image  was 65% retained after a three day period. That's amazing! In recent news, Facebook now allows you to  post several images for one post, appearing as an album. There's been some discussion whether a single image or multiple images perform better, but  according to Convince and Convert, using multiple images can  increase clicks by 1,290%! Facebook's Three  Golden Rules: Use images in every single Facebook post and  multiple images whenever possible. Use the 1200 x 630px image dimensions. Post on the weekends at 12–1 p.m. for best performance. Facebook's Recommended Image Sizes: Profile Photo: 180 x 180px Cover Photo: 828 x 315px Shared Image: 1200 px 630px Shared Link: 1200 x 630px Highlighted Image: 1200 x 717pxIncrease clicks by 1,290% when you use multiple images on #Facebook. #marketing Recommended Reading: 12 Effective Ways To Expand Your Facebook Engagement 10 Fundamental Ways To Boost Your Facebook Organic Reach By 193% Facebook Marketing Strategy: Why You Need One ( How To Build It) Twitter Image Sizes Twitter, one of my personal favorite networks,  sends out 500 million tweets per day. That's 6,000 tweets every second! Adding images to your tweets not only gets you 18% more clicks, but also 89% more favorites, and  150% more retweets.  Talk about an engagement boost! Plus, Twitter has kept their network posting consistent in proportion, so there's no question that a 440px by 220px image is the best size  to reach the most people. If you really want to make sure your resolution is clear, bump it up to 506 by 253px so desktop users have the highest clarity. Twitter's Three  Golden Rules: Use images in every  tweet. Use  images that are  506 x 253px for optimal resolution. Schedule your tweets for Wednesdays at  12–1 p.m. or 5–6 p.m. Twitter's Recommended Image Sizes: Profile Photo: 400 x 400px Header Photo: 1500 x 500px In-Stream Photo: 506 x 253pxUse images on #Twitter  to  get 18% more clicks, 89% more favorites, 150% more retweets. Recommended Reading: 15 Tactics To Boost Twitter Engagement Backed By Research How To Get Started With Twitter Video Marketing How to Expand Your Organic Growth on Facebook and Twitter for Free LinkedIn Image Sizes While LinkedIn is one of the older social networks, it has continued on throughout  the years and thrives  with its 414 million users. LinkedIn's focus on business professionals creates a perfect space for business-specific content to be seen and viewed across the world. Although, post with caution. According to Jeff Bullas, being 'too professional' without first creating a relationship can actually be a common mistake when using LinkedIn. This idea seems to  validate just how important using  images can be for establishing that desired connection and relatability. LinkedIn's Three Golden Rules: Make sure your images have a personal touch. Use  images that are 531px wide. Schedule your posts midweek at  or 5–6 p.m. LinkedIn's Recommended Image Sizes: Banner Image: 646 x 220px Standard Logo: 400 x 400px Square Logo: 60 x 60px Hero Photo: 974 x 330px Profile Picture: 400 x 400px Background Image: 1000 x 425px Regular Post Image: 531px wide Linked Image Post: 191 x 100px414 million #LinkedIn users engage best with images that are 531px wide.Pinterest Image Sizes The average time spent on Pinterest per visit is 14.2 minutes! Multiply that by the 110 million active  users, and you're looking at one very powerful source of information and inspiration. With all of that collective time spent on Pinterest, that also means it's one of the fastest growing websites, creating the  greatest opportunity  for your business to grow along with it. Similar to Instagram, Pinterest is  highly visual, but rather with an emphasis in sharing content with strangers and friends alike as 80% of pins are repins. In order to have the best Pinterest images, avoid using faces, use  red or orange, and rock a less distracting background. Pinterest's Three Golden Rules: Always link back to content on your blog or website wherever you can convert that traffic. Use  images that are 600 x 1102px for highest engagement. Schedule your pins on Saturday from 8–11 p.m. Pinterest's Recommended Image Sizes: Profile Picture: 165 x 165px Pin Board Large Thumbnail: 222 x 150px Pin Board Small Thumbnail: 55 x 55px Pins On Main Page:  238px wide Pins Once Expanded: 600px wide Pins Enlarged Pin: 500px wide176 million Pinners spend 14.2 minutes a day on #Pinterest. Best image sizes here: Recommended Reading: How To Improve Your Pinterest Engagement With These 15 Tactics How To Get More Followers On Pinterest With 21+ Tactics That Will Grow Your Following The Ultimate Guide On How To Use Pinterest For Marketing Instagram Image Sizes Instagram is unique in that it solely allows photo-based posts. With an imagery-focused platform, it draws visual connections that make both a memorable and human impression. "Instagram’s per-follower engagement rate for top brands is 58 times higher than on Facebook and 120 times higher than on Twitter," according to Forrester, which might be why 85% of top brands are adopting it to grow their business. Just recently, Instagram opened their strict square ratio image size up to a variety of landscape and portrait options in addition to  increasing their resolution to 1080px for top clarity! Surely,  Instagram  is a great place for both connection and business. Instagram's Three Golden Rules: Always include a link back to your content in your profile. Use  images that are 1080px wide for highest resolution. Schedule your Instagrams for Monday at  2–3 p.m. or 8–9 p.m. Tip: Did you know that now schedules Instagram posts? Now you can schedule Instagram alongside all of your other social media marketing, making you more strategic and better organized. Instagram's Recommended Image Sizes: Profile Picture: 110 x 110px Photo Thumbnails: 161 x 161px Photo Size in App: 1080 x 1080px Instagram's engagement rate is 120x higher than Twitter. Best #Instagram image sizes here: Recommended Reading: How To Improve Your Instagram Engagement With 15 Tips How To Get Way More Instagram Followers With 20 Easy Tactics The Ultimate Guide On How To Use Instagram For Business Google+ Image Sizes While Google+  may very well be slowly disappearing, it still has a lot to offer if used correctly. After all, its partner in crime, Google, is our greatest source of information across the internet, one of the highest sources of revenue  for a lot of businesses, and one of the greatest companies worldwide. Your Google+ account is directly tied to the search engine so your business information is carried over into helping your SEO. Win-win. Everyone knows and loves Google. For that reason alone, it's no surprise that Google+ has 300 million active members. With that large of an audience, it's best that your images are set up for optimal performance. Google+'s Three Golden Rules: Use the .png image format rather than .jpg format for highest clarity. Use  images that are 426 x 255px. Schedule your posts on workdays from 9–11 a.m. Google+'s Recommended Image Sizes: Profile Picture: 250 x 250px Cover Image: 1080 x 608px Shared Image: 518px wide   Shared Link Thumbnail: 150 x 150pxMake perfect images for #Google+ to reach 375 million active users.There you have it! A complete guide to the best social image sizes, with the most important recommendations  for each and every network. Find the size you're looking for, and use that when you begin the creation process with your images. Simply choosing the correct size at the beginning, will save you so much time when you're ready to save and export your images for the world to see! Recommended Design Tools: Check out these awesome tools to help you create the best social media images with the perfect sizes- Canva, Piktochart, Visage, and more  free design tools. 2. Use The Best Colors To Increase Your Engagement While several factors go into making an image its very best, color is one of the most  essential ingredients. Color psychology has proven time and time again that we can convey emotions simply by using a particular color! In May of 2015, I did a two-month study on the popularity of a given color in 's graphics. Since we typically use a three-color palette for our blog graphics, I was able to give appropriate rankings to each of the three colors used  to see how they each performed. I quickly realized that certain colors might be performing better  simply because we use them more often, so I then compared the popularity percentage to the usage percentage  to find an overall color grade. Basically, I nerded out super hard and used data to see what colors performed the best. Use a graph like this to review and test your color schemes. At the end of my study, we found that blue and green were our highest performing colors! If we look at color psychology, both of these colors reflect a calm, clean, comforting presence which seems to  be the perfect match to the experience we want our readers to have, especially if they're new to the blog. Blue is also one of our brand colors. The other two top-performing colors were none other then red and orange. While blue and green provide a safe, calm place for our readers, orange and red are perfect complements because  they grab our audience's attention and spark their  interest. Blue and green and orange and red are a dynamic set of colors that will help you succeed. #colorPsychology tells us that red and orange represent passion, energy, and success.  I couldn't imagine a better pair for blue and green's calm, comforting presence than the passion and success of orange and red. Together, they seemed to make  a dynamic duo, so I tried using those color pairs over the past year... Out of our top 10 posts, 8  of them have either blue or green as the main color. The remaining two blog posts have orange as their main color. Absolutely none of our top performing posts contain any other  main colors! By understanding which colors performed better, we were able to help  increase our page views by  833.76%! You can do this, too! Simply follow the steps below to see which colors work best for your brand: Review your blog post header graphics and write down the primary, secondary, and third colors. Define  a ranking to the most prevalent 3 colors in your graphics. (i.e. 3 points for the primary color, 2 for the secondary color, and 1 for the third most-used color.) Look at the total shares each  post received during a set amount of time. For more than  x amount of  shares (at , we did per 100 shares), give each color that set amount of ranked points that you decided on above. (e.g. If the color blue was the primary color in a post that received 300 shares, blue  would have 9  total points, 3+3+3. If red was the second most-used color  in the post with 300 shares, it would have 6  points, 2+2+2.) At the end of each week, track the overall totals and see which colors perform the highest. After 8 solid weeks, you should start to see trends stick out, revealing your top-performing colors. While everyone has different colors that match  their brand and audience demographics, it's essential to test out the waters and find the colors that work best for you! But when in doubt... use blue or green. Recommended Reading: What 20 Studies Say About the Best Times to Post on Social Media 3. Use The Types Of Social Media Images That Get The Most Attention Now that you know your target image size and top-performing colors, it's time to decide what type of image to  use. While almost anything can be an image- screenshots, illustrations, photos, quotes, GIFs- there are a few standout images you  can depend upon to receive the most engagement. Quotes Quotes come in all shapes and sizes. Maybe it's from a speaker, conference, or a book that you've recently read. Or, maybe it's from an article or blog  online.  No matter the  form or social network, quotes can be an excellent way to reach your audience with images. Simply find a quote you like and pair it with a color or simple background. The dynamic duo will allow your readers to ponder, identify with, and in return, share your quote. For example, at we started sharing quotes from our blog authors on Facebook, and we received 98% growth in engagements and 91% growth in clickthroughs. Facebook isn't alone! Here's another example from Twitter: 20 Ways To Be Creative When You Dont Feel Inspired https://t.co/JS5YcKZFoQ pic.twitter.com/hRaof4lPfV (@) January 16, 2016 This tweet received  2,107 impressions and 38 engagements because the quote had insight, intrigue, and direct application. It not only complemented the content topic of creativity, but gave further information that could be easily shared with their family and friends. Quote images are a perfect way to give something to your audience that they can share and be proud of, all the while giving your content more traction. Try them out! GIFs GIFs are one of the office's favorite things both in our work chats and on social media because they  perform well, all while bringing a smile. Even in challenging situations, GIFs can bring a delight to those who would rather be frustrated. Hook you audience, tell a story, and make their day. Here's an example: Uh, oh. #facebookdown In the meantime, enjoy a cat gif! pic.twitter.com/34o2LYk61a (@) September 28, 2015 By using a GIF and bringing a humorous moment to a normal circumstance, we received  15,953 impressions and 381 engagements! We've also found that tweets with GIFs tend to get 22.3% more engagement than tweets with plain images. Here's an example: Are You Excited? You Can Now Pin To Pinterest With https://t.co/014yRye9xG pic.twitter.com/uo6Kenojn6 (@) March 8, 2016 Just by turning a static image into a motion-filled GIF, the tweet received  1,328 impressions, 77 views, and 15 engagements! Plus, this tweet isn't alone! When tweets contain GIFs, they get 166.6% more clickthroughs. GIFs allow motion to make your social posts stand out, get even more attention, and bring delight. What are some of your favorite GIFs? Infographics At this point, it's no secret that infographics are one of the most popular and highest shared content types  in today's digital world. Not only do they get shared 3 times more often, but they're also 30 times more likely to be read than a purely textual article! If that  wasn't good enough, infographics are also the perfect pair for one of the top-performing visual bookmarking site: Pinterest. Infographics get a lot of attention on  Pinterest  because they tend to be longer in format, which fits Pinterest's 4:5 image ratio that receives 60% more Repins. Here's an example of our top-performing pin: Is it a surprise that it happens to be an infographic? I think not. Titles You  work really hard to find the perfect headline for your content. You  search for  keywords, words  filled with emotion,  then use the headline analyzer to find the precise, most-effective title. So why not take advantage of that in your social image? At , we reviewed some of our top-performing tweets, and found that they all included a title image.  Our top  tweet in March  received 5,043 impressions and 85 engagements, our top tweet in April  had 3,556 impressions and 35  engagements, and in May  our top tweet got a total of 7,951 impressions and 58  engagements all with title graphics. That's an average of 5,516  impressions and 59 engagements from using a title graphic within the tweet. March  Example:   How To Use The Right Content Marketing Tools For Every Job - https://t.co/TQesnglq9t pic.twitter.com/pX4UcGXKi5 (@) March 2, 2016 April Example: Want to write killer blog posts? Here is the ultimate process to awesome content. https://t.co/2HO8vmL4mA pic.twitter.com/OD0IGGccCI (@) March 30, 2016 May  Example: How to Triumph at Content Marketing On A Limited Budget https://t.co/nRe4lMv1jP pic.twitter.com/D6nlmVH2Q1 (@) May 8, 2016 As you can see, titles extend beyond the written context, and can certainly be effective within the graphic itself. Find the title of your blog, announcement, or event, and use that in the image to see the top performance. 4. Automate Your Images For Social Media To Save Time As the graphic designer on 's marketing team, I live and breathe images every, single, day, so although creating your graphics well is super important, so is making sure you're efficient when it comes to uploading  them to your social messages. After all, time is money, and money is time you could be spending on other projects. This is exactly where is a HUGE time saver for me. Let me introduce you to a magical thing called 'Social Helpers'. What Are Social Helpers in ? But First, I should probably back up and start with Social Templates. Social Templates is  a great way to reuse your social sharing schedule time and time again. That means that you can create a social campaign just one time (with the best times and right frequency), save it as a template, and then apply it to all other forms of content from there on out. Just one time! (That's hours of savings right there.) In case you'd like to see it in action, here's a live demo of social templates. If that wasn't awesome enough, there's three key components  of social templates that save  us even more time. Within each social template, you  can create an individual message 'template' using social helpers. Let me show you how it works: Within , Social Templates live to the left of your social campaign. 2. If you click on a Social Template, you can modify each and every single message within that template. This is a great way to personalize your messages for each network. 3. Do you see those blue things? Those are social helpers! There are text, image, and video helpers. 4. Here's where the magic comes in. Are you ready? You can add specific helpers to  your messages so whenever the template is applied, rather than writing that message 10x or uploading that same image 10x, you only have to do it once! Wherever that helper is located,  the content will auto-populate to all your messages at one time. What Does That Mean for Social Images? The brilliance of Social Image Helpers, is that I no longer have to upload images to every individual message for every piece of content. If your team is like ours, we have about 17 messages per piece of content, so before Social Image Helpers, I uploaded  the same image 17 times. That took a lot of time! Time spent I could be doing better things like image creation, design strategy, or connecting with our audience. With Social Helpers, I can now do what I had to do 17 times, just once. Once! This saves me so much time, and allows me to focus more time on what makes an image great, rather than worrying about how it'll publish across every single network. Social templates and social helpers take the guess-work out of it, and allow me to quickly place my images, moving onto the next thing. Now You Know How To Make Successful  Social Media Images From Beginning To End Social media images can take quite a few different forms, colors, and sizes- but with this data, you've found exactly what equation works best for each social network. If you happen to be in a rush or maybe you're just starting out, use a  2:1 ratio for your image size, incorporate blue or green with a pop of orange or red in your color scheme, stick to the four main image types: GIFs, quotes, titles, and infographics, and save time uploading with Social Image Helpers. Without much time at all, you'll be on your way to success! What colors, sizes, and image types have worked best for you? Share below!