If you just created or are about to create your own social network using Ning, let me start by congratulating you. You have started a journey that can change your life. You have undoubtedly heard of the importance of online social networks. Well, Ning is a platform that allows you to create your own social network for free. That’s it, free.

Not only is it free, but the tools and features Ning offers let you take it to the level you want. There are so many options available to network builders that it is almost insane. In this article, I will discuss three ways that you can customize your network header. Header customization can go a long way in making your network stand out.

First of all, only some of Ning’s themes allow you to do this kind of customization. You will need to ensure that you use one of the following themes: Stonewashed, Biomatic Tangerine, Fresh, Baby Blue, Icy, Royal, Jam, Biomatic Emerald, Grass, Pure Dark, and Pure Light.

Option 1: Use an existing background image as a header This option is the simplest, but as you can imagine, it also produces the least impressive result. When you select an image for the header, the name of your network will continue to appear in the header; it will only show up at the top of the header image you select. Additionally, the menu items will also be displayed on top of the header image.

If you haven’t selected a background image yet, you can do a quick search online for “free background graphics” and locate an image that works for you. Once you have identified which image to use, you will need to perform the following steps (note that only the network creator or an administrator can perform these actions):

1.) Go to the Manage tab and click Appearances.

2.) Scroll past the themes and click on the All Options tab.

3.) In the Colors section, you should see a setting for the Header Image.

4.) Click the camera icon and browse to the location of the selected background image.

5.) Once the image is selected, click Done. You will also need to select “Tile Image” from the drop down box next to the header image.

6.) To complete the customization, you will need to scroll down to the bottom of the page and click Save. Please note that changes may take a few seconds to complete.

While using an existing background image can improve the look of your website, you can go one step further to get a more polished look.

Option 2: Modify an existing image to use as a header The second option involves modifying an existing image. This option is particularly useful when you want to use a header image from another website. The only problem with doing this is that usually the header image of the other website will need to be modified to fit your network website properly. For example, I recently wanted to use an image header that was not wide enough for the network I was customizing.

To solve this problem, I will have to make a copy of the image used on the other website and then modify it with a graphics editor. Since I already have a graphics editor, this was not a problem for me. If you don’t already have a graphics editor like Adobe Photoshop, I suggest you download a free version of Paint.NET to modify the copied image. Windows-based Paint.NET software is comparable to popular and expensive graphic editors like Photoshop. The biggest differences are that Paint.NET is free and easier to use.

The image I use on the social network website must be no more than 955 pixels wide. Unfortunately, the image on the other website was only 755 pixels wide. By the way, I know this because when I right-click the image in Internet Explorer and click Properties, a properties box pops up showing me the dimensions.

I will need to resize the image to make it wider. This can be done by following the steps below:

1.) Make a copy of the original image, so you can always come back to it if you make a mistake.

2.) Open the copied image in Paint.NET.

3.) Click Image & Resize.

4.) Change the width value to 955 and click OK (note that the height should be adjusted automatically).

In addition to resizing the image, I also need to remove some of the text currently appearing in it. I can also do this in Paint.Net by performing the following steps:

1.) Select the Color picker tool, which looks like a dropper from the Tools window.

2.) Click on the image area where the text appears. After doing this, the background color in this area should appear as the primary color in the Colors window.

3.) To delete the text, start by clicking on the Paint brush tool in the Tools window. Hold down the left mouse key as you carefully drag the Brush tool across the image surface.

4.) Repeat this movement until the text no longer appears on the image. If you make a mistake, you can use the Story window to go back to a previous change and start over.

5.) When you are satisfied with the result, click File and Save As.

6.) In the Save As dialog, click Save and when prompted to overwrite the file, click “Yes”. Click OK in the Save Settings dialog.

Once the copied image has been saved, you can return to the Ning social website and modify the appearance settings. Follow the steps detailed in Option 1: Use an existing background image as the header, to indicate the image to be used as the header.

In addition to specifying the header image, you can also change the color of the text used to display the network name and slogan. For example, if you wanted to use the exact color tone that was used in the original image, you could do so by performing the following steps:

1.) To determine which color code to use, open the image using Paint.NET and use the Color picker tool. To see the hex code associated with this color, you will need to click the More button in the Colors window.

2.) Copy the hex code by selecting it with the cursor and clicking Ctrl + c.

3.) Go back to the Appearance properties on Ning and click inside the box for Network Name. You can then paste the color code by clicking Ctrl-v.

4.) When I’m done with my changes, I just need to scroll down to the bottom of the Appearance settings page and click Save. After a few seconds, the new header will appear at the top of my social website.

Option 3: Create a new custom image as a header This is by far the most difficult option, and unless you are very comfortable working with graphics-based programs, you would hesitate to attempt this task yourself. If you are very lucky and your spouse or friend is a graphics expert, there may still be some hope. I interviewed other creators on the Ning network and asked how they came up with the beautiful headlines they have. In all cases, the creators of the network had the custom images created by an informed friend or spouse who did not charge them to produce the graphic.

There is no doubt that a professional looking header will help your social media website stand out more. However, if you’re not a graphics person and don’t know someone who can design it for you for free, I would just go for one of the first two options I listed, at least for now. Also, keep in mind that good content is often more important than good design. If your time is limited, it is best to focus most of your energy on the content.