You’ve all heard that Pinterest is the way to go when it comes to blog page view referrals. I’ve heard so many bloggers say that they “need to do more on Pinterest,” but who has the time? There’s a million little things you have to do as a blogger. If Pinterest isn’t already part of your routine, it’s hard to know what to do.
If you’ve read my blog post on 6 ways I use Pinterest to get pageviews, you know that Pinterest is responsible for a good amount of my page views. This is a general rule for bloggers. So if you’re looking to increase your page views, a small investment into Pinterest is worth your time.
Here’s a quick checklist to help you create a pin that’s so awesome, it’ll get repinned again and again, sending tons of visitors to your site.
1. Long and skinny pins
You’ve probably heard that the long pins are the way to go. You’ve also probably been told that Canva is the app to use. I blog entirely from my phone, and I’ve not seen a real good template for a pin from the app. Maybe the website has a better one.
Here’s my suggestion: I use Adobe’s Spark Post app. This app lets you keep the original dimensions of your original photo. Download the image of a nice skinny pin from Pinterest. Here’s one of my favorites.
2. A good design app
I already mentioned Adobe Spark Post is what I use. Most bloggers use Canva. Here’s the thing: there’s thousands of bloggers using Canva, mostly from templates! Hundreds of thousands of pins that look THE SAME. I wish Adobe was paying me for this, but they’re not; this is just my honest suggestion: stand out from the crowd. Use a different app/template.
3. A good title
You just can’t pick a title you like. Headlines six words long earn the most click-throughs. You need to ask yourself, will Pinners save this pin? If you’re not sure, check out the strength of your headline using this headline analyzer. Also certain types of headlines do well. For example, How To’s and lists are popular. Check out a full list of popular headline formats I found at this site.
4. Visibility/legibility
I’ve seen pins that use a very light color for the font, and against the picture background the words aren’t visible.
If I can’t read your title, I’m not saving your pin.
If in doubt, add color behind the font in the form of a highlight or a box. Legibility is super-important. Another point I’m adding after I published this post is this: make sure if it’s a real long pin that your title is in the middle so it shows. I put mine and had to change it as I realized you couldn’t see the title until you expanded it. Not good!
I used to take my own pictures, but I’m a really poor photographer. My two pins that have done the best feature stock photography. Look for a picture that is striking and will capture the attention of users scrolling through the feed.
If this post was helpful to you, you might be interested in 6 Ways I Use Pinterest to Get Page Views.
If you’re interested in growing your Pinterest influence, sign up for my free Pinterest growth challenge:
Want to up your Pinterest game? Let me analyze your Pinterest account including your pins, profile, blog, and pinning behavior, and I will provide an evaluation and recommendations to start expanding your influence on Pinterest. Click here or on the image to get yours.
Great tips and I will have to check out that app since I love editing pics on my phone
It’s way easier, isn’t it? I think they do a better job designing than me, anyway
Great tips and they will come in useful at the beginning of the year when I go back through my blog posts and update the pictures for pinterest =)
That’s a great idea!
As a blogger this was very helpful! I typically use PicMonkey or Canva, I will have to check out Adobe Spark.
Yeah, check it out! I think it’s called Spark Post in the App Store and it’s free
Great tips. A strong image makes a big difference on Pinterest.
Thanks! Agreed!
These are great tips and I am totally with you on using something else besides canva. Way to many pins are looking similar these days.
Right? Gotta make your pins stand out!
All of these tips are so key yet so many people overlook them! Thanks for writing this post to educate new (and perhaps seasoned) bloggers out there! 🙂
xo Kathryn
http://www.fashionablyfrank.com
Thanks! Yeah, I didn’t find too much of this out there which is why I wanted to share.
So interesting the difference between Instagram and Pinterest. Still trying to fully grasp the Instagram world but people seem to love faces (especially kids) on Instagram…so it’s interesting you said it’s not popular on Pinterest. Probably because people are looking for information and not just pretty or cute images of kids. I haven’t used Pinterest at all except for my own personal stuff but I use Canva ALL.THE.TIME. I absolutely love them. (They once sent me an email saying I was one of their top users…I don’t know why I find that funny) I always use my own images with Canva – never theirs. I do wish they had a good app to work with on my phone though. Would you recommend a separate account on pinterest from your own personal pinterest account?…I set mine up before I started my business…so it’s name doesn’t reflect my business…but maybe that’s ok?
That’s hilarious they contacted you! I think it depends on if your boards reflect your blogging niche. But then you can always just make the ones that don’t Secret.
This has been a VERY educational post. Thanks so much. I will use ALL your suggestions.
Awesome! So glad!
Just found this post. It was another extremely informative one! I have never heard anyone else talking about coschedule headline analysis before. It is going to be a game changer for me!
Yay! Hope it helps!
[…] If this post was helpful to you, you might be interested in 5 Steps to the Perfect Pin. […]
[…] Your blog is going to have more than one image, so why not have more than one pin? The long ones will be the popular ones, but you never know. For 5 steps to the perfect pin, click here. […]
click here
I love reading an article that can make people think. Also, thank you for permitting me to comment!
[…] any free ones yet. Read my Pinterest post about rocking Pinterest here, creating a great pin here, and more tips […]