Pinterest is a visual search engine, right? You’ve got to remember this every time you sit down to design a new pin for Pinterest. So not only do you have to make sure that you create a beautiful image that just begs to be clicked, you also have ensure that your pin is fully optimized for search. So what elements do you need to include on each and every pin you add to Pinterest?
Create a Powerful Pin- Every Time!
Image
Your image could arguably be the most important part of every pin. When you search on google, all you get is the title and a small description, but when you search on Pinterest the first thing your eyes will see is the picture. That image can make or break your posts popularity!
When choosing an image you should keep the following things in mind:
Choose bright, clear images. No one wants grainy or blurry images. So unless you are using a text overlay that will cover most of the image, make sure that the picture is clear when it is opened on desktop.
Historically images without faces do better than images with faces.
Warm tones do better than cool tones, so choose images with warm colors, and increase the saturation just a bit to show those off.
Title
Your title is super important to your pin images. In this instance I am not talking about the post title itself, but the text title you overlay onto your images. This title does not have to match your SEO title and you can play around with different titles to see which ones grab the readers attention more. A good title will have:
Hot words that make your article irresistible and click-worthy.
Speak directly to your audience. Take you out of the title and put them in.
Keywords your audience is searching for
Be specific in who and what you are targeting.
Learn more about How to Craft the Perfect Headline
Description
Don’t ever discount the description of your pins. Don’t just put the article title and leave it at that. You have 500 characters to deliver a promise to your audience- use them!
I talked about the description in my article on SEO on Pinterest, but to recap a little, your description is just one of the places you need to place keywords so you can be found via the search bar on Pinterest. When crafting your description be sure to include 2-4 keyword phrases.
Don’t forget to make it interesting! Try talking like a fan- “OMG this is the best chocolate cheesecake recipe ever! It’s so easy to make and best of all it’s no bake!”
Or telling the reader that they need to read what you have to say- “25 ways to save money on groceries that you can’t live without! Including tips for how to save money on healthy foods, staying on budget, and saving without coupons!”
Font
When it comes to most niches, images on their own won’t cut it. Your audience needs more information to encourage them to click through to your article. We’ve already talked about crafting a title, but what use is that title if it is virtually unreadable on your image?
When choosing your fonts, keep in mind that the majority of Pinterest users are viewing your pins on their mobile devices. That means your images needs to shine on a very small screen.
Stay away from thin fonts that don’t stand out. And please, please stay away from the small. curly script fonts! I know that you love them. I know you may use one as part of your branding on your website, but on Pinterest you need big and bold. Script fonts are not easily read on small screens and get lost among the other design elements.
Good basic font choices include Aileron Heavy, Bebas Neue. and Anton. These fonts are large and bold and look good in both lowercase and uppercase lettering.
If you must add a little flair to your text, use thicker, easy to read script or other handwritten fonts that are still easy to read.
A note about colors: When choosing font colors, choose ones that compliment the image and make sure their is enough contrast between the background and the text to make it legible. Stay away from pastels and don’t go overboard on colors- stick with neutrals and only one or two accent colors.
Layout
And finally we have the layout. This is where it all comes together- the image, the title, the fonts- and it becomes one beautiful Pinterest image.
There is no one optimum size for your pins, but it is generally known that you should make your images longer than they are wide. These vertical pins have a better chance of standing out on the Pinterest Smart Feed. I personally make mine 700 x 1500. Pinterest does crop images that are longer than about 1800 px.
I use Canva for all of my images- it a has a ton of free elements and it is super easy to insert pictures and text and create a powerful pin image in just a few minutes.
Popular layouts include 2 images separated by text in the center, one long image with text on top (with or without an overlay), or an even longer image collage.
One of the biggest mistakes I see bloggers make is not taking advantage of the space available for their text. Don’t be shy with your font sizes…increase their size or their spacing to take up the width of your pin. Remember this text needs to be legible from a small phone screen.
Do you need help designing Powerful Pins? Check out my Powerful Pin Design Bundle! With tips and tricks to creating amazing pin images AND 10 customizable templates to get you started!
If you look at your current Pinterest images, do they have each of these 5 elements? If not, go back to the drawing board and add them all in. Check out my free Powerful Pin Design Checklist to make sure each and every image your create makes the cut.
Great information! I’m putting this information to use right now! I think I need to redo some graphics!