When you consider that 85% of weekly U.S. Pinners have made a purchase after viewing a brand’s Pin, it’s evident that Pinterest is a gold mine for businesses looking to acquire quality leads.
Whether you want to boost sales or create brand awareness on Pinterest, it all starts with a stunning image design. After all, Pinterest is a visual-first platform, so the kind of images you feature on your page can either make or break your digital marketing efforts.
But how do you create images that convert?
We’ll answer that and more in this guide. You’ll learn how to create Pinterest images that set your brand apart and direct organic traffic to your website. You’ll also discover best practices for using Pinterest for your small business.
Why your business needs Pinterest
If you’re ready to take your business to the next level, it’s time to build a social presence on Pinterest. Here are three reasons why your business needs Pinterest:
- Increased brand exposure: With over 480 million monthly users, Pinterest is a marketing powerhouse for brands seeking more exposure. Regardless of your niche, you’re sure to find a high concentration of your target audience on this platform.
- Increased sales: Shoppers spend 2x more money per month on Pinterest than on other social media platforms. And 45% of people whose income exceeds $100,000 actively shop on Pinterest. By using Pinterest for your small business, you’re positioning your brand in front of high-income earners who are interested in your offerings.
- Lead generation: Pinterest can help you generate quality leads for your small business in several ways. For instance, since Pins encourage click-throughs, you can direct users to subscribe to your newsletter once they’re on your website. Optimizing your content for search engines also makes your brand more discoverable by your intended audience.
How to create Pinterest images for your small business
If you want to get the best results from your Pinterest marketing efforts, you need to follow the right steps when creating images.
Here’s a detailed tutorial to get you started:
1. Define your brand
Your Pinterest images should maintain a consistent style that your audience can instantly associate with your brand. This could mean using the same color scheme, fonts, overlays and layout for each image design. You could also feature your logo on every design.
Board covers are a great tool to help you develop a consistent brand. Pinterest boards are folders where you can organize your Pins. You can add your brand colors to them or include other design elements that spark brand recognition.
It’s a good idea to include the same branding elements across all platforms, whether it’s your website, other social media platforms or any other marketing channels you use. This helps you ensure brand consistency.
Sprout Social is a great example of a business that uses Pinterest marketing to its advantage. As shown in the image below, it consistently uses the same fonts, images and color scheme to ensure its Pins are easily recognized.
2. Choose a graphic design tool
There are various graphic design tools you can use to create Pinterest images, even if you’re a beginner. Popular options include Canva, PicMonkey and Adobe Express. These tools streamline the image creation process and help you save time while ensuring your images are as attractive as possible.
Canva, for instance, is easy to use and offers customizable templates to help you maintain brand consistency. You can also create your own Pinterest templates for future use.
Moreover, Canva has a library of free photos and graphics you can use in your design composition.
3. Set image dimensions and aspect ratio
When figuring out how to create Pinterest images, the size of your images shouldn’t be treated as an afterthought. That’s because it directly impacts how your images appear in users’ feeds.
Most Pinners will view your content using mobile devices, so it’s best to use vertical images. For optimal performance, Pinterest recommends a 2:3 aspect ratio of 1,000 x 1,500 pixels.
If you use an aspect ratio that exceeds 2:3, your images may be cut off in people’s feeds. In other words, people won’t get the chance to see the full image, and this could negatively impact your marketing efforts.
Stick with the recommended aspect ratio and dimensions to ensure Pinners have a positive user experience when viewing your content.
4. Add legible text
Text overlays can attract users’ attention to your Pinterest graphics. That being said, make sure to include text that’s easy to read and understand. After all, the goal is to get the viewer to click through to your website and not to struggle to understand the message you’re trying to convey.
You should also keep the text to a minimum so the image can be the main focus of your content.
Here are a few ways to ensure the text you add is legible:
- Use good color contrast. For instance, the text color should contrast with the background color.
- Choose legible typefaces and test them to see what works best for your brand and users.
- Check how your images display on mobile devices.
5. Optimize for Pinterest search
Optimizing your images for Pinterest search can increase visibility. Just like other search engines, Pinterest uses an algorithm that prioritizes engaging and relevant content. So, by using the right keywords, you can improve your visibility and reach more people.
When conducting keyword research, Pinterest itself can help you get the ball rolling. Type a relevant keyword or phrase in the search box, and you’ll see what users are actively searching for on the platform. For more keyword ideas, scroll down to find the Related searches section.
In the screenshot below, you can see the related searches for the keyword “hiking shorts.”
Once you’ve created a list of relevant keywords, incorporate them into different sections of your content, such as Pin descriptions, titles, board names and hashtags. Your bio is also a great place to add keywords.
Pinners often look for ideas and inspiration when scrolling through images on the platform. So, creating things like how-to guides and tutorials can help you generate organic traffic and improve your reach.
The Pinterest algorithm favors new and unique content, so keep this in mind when developing your SEO strategy.
6. Write a compelling call to action
Create compelling CTAs so your audience knows the next step to take after viewing your image. These include saving your post, clicking through to your website or buying your product. Without a clear CTA, Pinners might keep scrolling after viewing your content, and you’ll lose out on a potential sale.
You can place CTAs in strategic places, such as your Pin’s description and the image itself. Just make sure your CTAs are clear and concise to drive the desired results.
Strategies for promoting Pinterest images
Creating stunning graphics is the first step toward reaching your business goals on Pinterest. Next, you need to promote your images to drive traffic to your website and increase your reach.
Here are a few strategies to implement:
- Set up Pinterest ad campaigns: Whether you’re looking to build a loyal following or boost sales, Pinterest ad campaigns can help you reach more people. Pinterest offers different ad formats, including collections, carousels and videos. It also provides a reporting dashboard, so you can track the performance of your ads.
- Collaborate with influencers: Similar to influencer marketing on Instagram or any other social networking platform, collaborating with Pinterest influencers can help you grow your audience. But to succeed with this marketing strategy, you’ll need to choose influencers whose audience will be interested in your offerings. Therefore, do your due diligence to ensure you partner with the right people.
- Cross-promote on other social media platforms: Cross-promotion is an effective way to grow your Pinterest presence, especially if you’re already active on other social media channels like Facebook, LinkedIn and X (formerly Twitter). If users on these platforms have already shown interest in your business, invite them to join the Pinterest bandwagon.
How to add Pins to Pinterest
Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to create Pins so you can start Pinning in no time:
1. Sign in to your Pinterest account or create a new one.
2. Click Create at the top left corner of the page.
3. Drag and drop an image or upload one from your computer.
4. Once you’ve added your image, fill out the Pin creation form by providing your Pin title, description (up to 500 characters), a destination link and your board. Under More Options, you can turn comments and shopping recommendations on or off.
5. Once you’ve provided all the necessary information, select Publish at the top right corner of the page.
That’s it! You’ve just published your first image Pin on the platform.
It’s important to note that you can save a Pin as a draft. However, these drafts expire after 30 days. So, if you have any drafts, complete and publish them within this timeframe to avoid losing them.
Best practices for using Pinterest images for business
If you want to make the most of your Pinterest account, here are some best practices to implement when using Pinterest images for business.
Double-check your links for speed and accuracy
When adding a link to your image, ensure it leads to a live page and loads quickly, ideally within three seconds or less. The last thing you need is for a potential customer to click through to your website only to be met with a 404 error or a slow-loading page. This can result in a poor user experience and harm the reputation you’ve worked so hard to build.
Choosing a reliable web host like Bluehost is one way to ensure your website loads quickly.
Keep it simple
When it comes to Pinterest graphics, less is more. Consider adopting a minimalist approach to graphic design. This eliminates distractions, enabling your audience to focus on your message.
One way to create a minimalist design is by applying the principles of visual hierarchy — organize your design elements based on their importance. Visual hierarchy influences the order in which users view each element in your image. If you clutter your image with too many elements, your audience will probably miss the main point you’re trying to convey.
Use rich Pins
Rich Pins are pins that automatically reflect any changes you make on your website. There are three types of rich Pins:
- Article rich Pins display information about an article from your website.
- Product rich Pins simplify the purchase process by displaying product information and a “Buy Now” button.
- Recipe rich Pins display information about recipes from your website.
By using rich Pins, you’ll provide your audience with additional context that can potentially increase clicks and conversions.
Add the “Save” button to your website
One of the best ways to gain exposure for your small business is by adding the “Save” button (formerly “Pin-It” button) to your website. This button appears on your website’s images, so visitors can save any image to their Pinterest account just by clicking on it.
Schedule your Pins
Scheduling your Pins is another way to get the most out of Pinterest. However, scheduling and publishing your Pins manually can consume a huge chunk of your time that could have been spent on other business activities.
A social media scheduling tool like Tailwind can help you post regularly, saving you time as you manage your content calendar without any hassle. The result? A more engaged audience and better brand positioning.
Use high-quality visuals
Using high-quality images on Pinterest is vital to success. Ensure the images you upload are clear, crisp and match your brand’s aesthetics. Pixelated or poorly lit image designs won’t get you the results you want on the platform.
Design your own images when possible. You can opt to use stock photos, but custom pictures are more effective at grabbing attention. In addition, designing your own images ensures you have the legal right to use them, which can help you avoid copyright issues.
Track your performance metrics
One of the perks of having a Pinterest business account is that it offers an analytics suite to help you track performance. By monitoring the performance of your Pins, boards and ad campaigns, you can gain valuable insights into your target audience. This data can help you adjust your marketing strategy based on what works and what doesn’t.
Here are a few metrics to track on Pinterest:
- Saves: Formerly repins, this shows you the number of times people save your Pins for future reference.
- Engaged audience: This is simply the number of Pinterest users who have interacted with your content. For instance, they may have saved your Pin, clicked on it or clicked through to your website.
- Outbound clicks: This metric measures the number of times people click through to the destination URL.
Final thoughts: How to create Pinterest images: A beginner’s guide
Increasing conversion rates with Pinterest images isn’t rocket science. With the right tools and strategies, you can design eye-catching images that drive organic traffic from Pinterest to your website.
Whether you link your Pinterest images to your blog posts, eCommerce store or sales page, you’ll need a reliable hosting service that can help you accelerate your growth.
At Bluehost, we offer various WordPress hosting plans so you can find the option that best meets your needs. All plans come with automatic WordPress installation and a free domain name for one year. Plus, our support team is available 24/7 to render assistance whenever you need it.
Contact us today to learn more about our offerings.
How to create Pinterest images: FAQs
While Pinterest is popularly known as a source of inspiration, you can still make money on the platform by joining the Verified Merchant Program to grow your brand and enhance sales.
You can integrate your existing storefront with a Pinterest business account that’ll turn your entire product catalog into Pins. And, to increase your earning potential, use rich Pins that sync information from your website.
No. Unless you have permission, you can’t use Pinterest images for free. If you want to use an image or video you found on Pinterest, you must first seek permission from its copyright holder. You can face huge fines or legal issues if you violate the rights granted in the Copyright Act.
Since Pinners enjoy discovering new ideas and products, creating content such as how-to guides, blog articles, tutorials and infographics can help you increase engagement and visibility on Pinterest. Add keywords your ideal audience is searching for, and you’ve got a winning formula for success.
A good Pinterest Pin should include high-quality images, a descriptive title, minimal text and a clear CTA. In addition, the Pin design should match your brand’s aesthetics and contain relevant hashtags to help you reach a wider audience.
