Canva is the blogger’s favourite when it comes to making beautiful Pinterest pins for your site. Using this free tool, you can find gorgeous fonts, templates and images to make pins that your audience will want to click on. This is one of the key things when it comes to driving traffic to your blog from Pinterest.
Even if you’re new to the blogging world, you’ve probably heard a lot of other bloggers talk about how amazing Pinterest is. And if you use it correctly, it can drive a crazy amount of traffic to your blog. A good pinning method is key. But you could be pinning like a total champ and no one, or very few people, will be clicking through if your pins don’t look appealing.
When it comes to Pinterest, it’s all about the visual! And, of courses, you also need to have a good combination of words to draw attention to what your pin is all about.
IDEAL PINTEREST PIN DIMENSIONS
Pinterest is all about the vertical. This means your pins should look like a portrait rather than a landscape. The site likes you to work to the 2:3 ratio. This refers to the width of your pin compared to the height of your pin. Pinterest’s ideal pin size is 1,000 pixels by 1,500 pixels. However, it’s worth noting that many people like to make super long pins. The theory behind this is that they catch the eye more in the discover feed and you’ll be more likely to get repins.
For me, longer pins worked great, but it looks like Pinterest has started cropping these in the feed, so I would stick with the 2:3 ratio that Pinterest suggests. As you will see in Canva, they have a section full of ready-made and blank templates that are the optimal size ready for you to use, so it couldn’t be easier.
HOW TO CREATE BEAUTIFUL PINTEREST PINS WITH CANVA
First up you’ll need to create a profile with Canva. There is an option to login using your Facebook or Google details. Once you are in, you will see lots of template options under Create a design. These range from A4 documents and CVs to Facebook covers and YouTube thumbnails. There is also a specific template for Pinterest. When you click on the Pinterest template option, you will be taken to a new page with a blank white Pinterest pin.
To the left of the page will be a range of options, including a selection of templates. If you want to, you can choose one of these templates and just input your own text and images to customise it. You can also change the colours to fit with your brand. Alternatively, you can create your own unique design, which is what I like to do. This sounds much scarier than what it really is. Let me talk you through how I go about designing a pin from scratch in Canva …
First up, I upload an image to Canva that’s relevant to my post. This is so important. Pinterest’s search engine not only works on the actual words you use in pin descriptions and titles but also on the visual aspects of your pin. So if your pin is about the first few weeks with a newborn, make sure there is a picture of a baby on your pin – this ensures your pin shows up in searches for similar content.
If you’re looking for images to use in your pins, you can buy them super cheaply through Canva. I currently have a 123rf subscription which works well for me as they have millions of photos to use that you don’t see on every other blog. It costs me around 39p per image, which is incredible value for money. You can also get free ones through sites like Pexels or Pixabay.
Once you’ve chosen a relevant image, it’s time to place it. Most of the time I place it at the bottom of the pin but sometimes I pop it in the middle. Then it’s time to add some text! There are two great ways of doing this. The first one is to use the fonts in Canva like I did on the example above.
In the left-hand menu, you will see a text option, and under this, you can add plain text and headings, or you can add one of the ready-made combinations of fonts. You can change the sizes of these but it’s really up to you. When I use this option I like to have my text in several different boxes so that I can edit individual words to make them different sizes, colours and fonts. My advice would be to have a play around with the different and colours to see what combinations look best. I like to use plainer fonts for the most part, but I occasionally pair them with one or two words in a more italic and fancy font.
Alternatively, you can upload your own fonts to use on Canva. If I’m being honest, I much prefer to use fonts that I’ve uploaded myself so my pins don’t look the same as everyone else’s. As I mentioned before, I’m a big fan of script fonts, and often find myself buying bundles from fontbundles.net to use on my Pinterest pins. They’re super affordable and always look fab!
It’s super easy to upload fonts to Canva too – just go to the ‘Brand Kit’ on your dashboard. On the right-hand side of the screen, you’ll see a ‘Brand Fonts’ heading with a button to upload a new font. When clicked, a new window should pop up. Click on the location of the Fonts folder you saved your new font(s) in and double click the font you would like to add. A new message will then pop up in Canva, asking if you have the right to use the font. Check yes, click the green button and wait for the new font to upload.
Once it has, you should be able to see it in Canva! If you would like to make the font size smaller or larger then just click on the icon again and change the size. NOTE: You won’t be able to bold or italicise the font since you only uploaded the one style instead of the entire font family.
In terms of colours, try to stick to a relatively similar palette so that your pins are recognisable. But you don’t want every pin to look identical! It’s a bit of a balancing act. To finish off I make sure I put my web address somewhere visible in the pin. This brands the pin as mine. You could also use your logo if you want.
WHAT TITLES SHOULD I USE ON MY PINTEREST PINS?
When it comes to the visual title on pins, keep the volume of words down to a minimum. For example: The Secret To Breastfeeding Success, instead of My Honest Breastfeeding Story and Tips For Feeding Your Baby.
For a start, the first one has fewer words, but it’s also got that little bit of extra ‘appeal’. It’s straight to the point, and it’s got the word ‘secret’ in there. It’s just snappier and more inviting. I’m not saying the second one can’t be successful. I’m just saying that from experience, a shorter title will be easier to design and create in Canva.
If you want to experiment, then make a longer title version and a shorter title version and see which one appeals most to your audience. At the end of the day, it’s what works best for you that matters.
I’VE MADE SOME BEAUTIFUL PINS FOR MY BLOG, NOW WHAT DO I DO?
So, you’ve made yourself some gorgeous pins and now you want to get them out there for the world to see. Hopefully, you will already have your Pinterest profile set up and ready to go, but here’s a few key points that are worth checking that you have in place:
- Have rich pins enabled. You can check out how to enable rich pins here.
- Have keywords in your profile description. Set out who you are and what you do by using keywords that feature in your niche.
- Upgrade to a business profile. Find out more about how to set up your Pinterest account as a business profile here. It’s absolutely free to do, and gives you all sorts of fantastic analytics about each of your pins!
- Create some boards. Set up your boards with some crossover so that you can pin one pin to several of your own boards. For example, a post about helping kids to sleep could go in boards titled: Parenting tips, Parenting Toddlers, Baby’s First Year, Sleeping Tips etc.
And once this is all in place, what do you do next?
Part of my Pinterest strategy is Tailwind. It pins for me while I sleep and is an absolute must-have blogging tool for me. However, I make sure I go on to Pinterest every single day to pin content manually too.
With a new pin, I pin it to the most relevant board that I own. Then I go and repin that pin to my Best of With love from Lou Board. And after this, I schedule the pin from my blog to Tailwind, adding it to my Tailwind Tribes as well.
Have you ever used Canva to create beautiful Pinterest Pins before?
Let me know in the comments below.
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