Designing Pinterest Pins is an art and a science. There’s no one right way to do it, but let’s be honest; there are plenty of wrong ways to do it!
If you want to catch the eye of your target audience while they’re scrolling through hundreds of Pins per minute, it really helps to know a little something about aesthetics and design.
But don’t worry, you won’t have to go to art or design school to learn the tricks you need to know!
Take a look at a few of our Do’s and Don’ts of Pinterest Pin design to help you find the most success when creating Pinterest Pins.
Pinterest Design Do’s:
1. Pay Attention to What Colors Go Together
If you’re unfamiliar with the color wheel, it’s time you get acquainted. The color wheel can help you when designing pretty much anything by showing you which colors go best together, and the different combinations you can use to make your own color palette.
Having this handy whenever you’re designing Pinterest Pins can help you decide which colors to use for your Pin (and avoid colors that don’t quite mesh well together).
2. Choose Fonts That Go Well Together
Just like colors, fonts have pairings that go very well with one another. You’ve just got to know which font pairings work well on Pinterest Pins, and which ones don’t!
But don’t worry, it’s not rocket science. In fact, here are a few to get you started! (And if you have a little extra time, check out our post on Font Psychology to learn more about each font family and what effect they can have on your viewer!)
Fonts that Go Well Together
Usually it’s better to pair San-Serif fonts with Serif fonts. The contrast makes the Pin look fresh and modern without distracting the viewer!
- Open Sans Extra Bold and Libre Baskerville
- Ubuntu and Lora
- Playfair and Josefin Sans
- Oswald Heavy and Merriweather
- Montserrat and Cardo
- Nunito Black and Lora
- Oswald Heavy and Old Standard TT
- League Spartan and Libre Baskerville
- Open Sans Extra Bold and Lora
- PT Sans Bold and PT Serif
- Lato Heavy and Merriweather
- Montserrat and Playfair Display
- Raleway Extra Bold and Merriweather
Of course, you can always go the Serif/Sans-Serif Route, too. Take a look at some suggestions.
- Cardo Bold and Josefin Sans
- Merriweather and Source Sans Pro
- Roboto Slab Bold and Open Sans
- Lora and Source Sans Pro
- Libre Baskerville and Montserrat
- Roboto Slab Bold and Roboto
- Playfair Display and Open Sans
- Merriweather and Open Sans
- PT Serif and Open Sans
- Source Serif Pro and Source Sans Pro
Perhaps you want to use a script font, which is a popular choice for a lot of bloggers.
- Yellowtail and Open Sans
- Abril Fatface and Josefin Sans
- Lobster and Arimo
- Shadows and Roboto
- Pacifico and Arimo
- Sacramento and Montserrat Light
- Lobster and Open Sans
- Pacifico and Josefin Sans
3. Use High-Quality Images
One major aspect of Pinterest Pin design is the image. It’s all about the image on Pinterest. If your Pinterest images aren’t up to par, you won’t get nearly as much traffic as you could be getting.
Because Pinterest is all about images, you need to step your image game up and either take your own stunning high-resolution photos, or get some professional stock photos.
The best option is, of course, to take your own photos so that they’ll be unique and you know no one will have the same Pin image as you. You can even take amazing Pinterest photos on your phone!
But if that’s not an option, the stock photos are a great option. If you want images that not everyone has access to, consider using photos that require a license.
Just be careful about the ways you can use the photo. Make sure to read all of the requirements (like attribution requirements it might have) before you use it in anything. Otherwise, you could get fined or be forced to suddenly stop using the photo.
4. Use a Pinterest Template
If you know absolutely nothing about Pinterest Pin design, take a few pointers from the pros and use a template designed by an actual graphic designer. With design tools like Tailwind Create, you can find dozens of Pinterest templates that you can use to get you started.
Pick a few you like and play around with them until you’re satisfied with the way they look! You can filter templates by content type, industry and even number of photos!
Pinterest Design Don’ts:
1. Ignore the Description
While it might not seem like a part of the design, your Pin description is still crucial to your success on Pinterest. The best descriptions use keywords (think Pinterest SEO) and describe accurately what the Pin is about and what people will learn about or what they can get if they click on it.
Make it juicy, though. Hold nothing back because you’ve got a lot of competition. So bring your A game when it comes to writing the description!
Be descriptive, but playful. Let your personality come alive through the words you write.
2. Forget About Branding
Branding on Pinterest is just as important as branding on your website. Remember to add something that shows off who your brand is and gives people something to remember.
There are a few ways to incorporate branding into every Pin design without limiting the actual creative style of the Pin.
The easiest ways are to use your brand colors, and add your brand logo to your Pin. If you don’t have a logo, add your website somewhere on your Pin.
3. Be Afraid to Experiment
Pinterest Pin designs are going to evolve over time as new design elements become more popular and other ones fall out of fashion. For example, minimalist Pin design is a current trend!
So, don’t be afraid to experiment with design elements and ideas you think might be making their way to the forefront of things. That way, you’ll already be ahead of the curve and people will look to you for inspiration. If you need inspiration, check out our 2021 Pinterest Trends Report!
How cool would it be to be featured on a list of Pinterest Pin designs that did it right?
4. Forget the Call to Action
Speaking of calls to action, don’t forget that either. Otherwise, what’s the point of Pinning on Pinterest? The goal is to get people to buy something, download something, or try something. So make sure you let them know exactly what it is you want them to do.
Some call to action ideas include:
- Leave a comment if…
- Share this with your friends
- Pin this now
- Make this
- Click here to become a…
- Sign up and discover how
- Does this happen to you? Find the answers by clicking here…
- Not getting the results you want? This can help…
If you want to create scarcity and urgency, here are a few more for you.
- Hurry
- Today only
- While supplies last
- Time’s running out
- Are you doing this wrong? Click here to find out.
- Last chance to get this
- Only X days left
- Don’t make this huge mistake – fix it by…
- Act now
- Fast
- Immediately
5. Forget About Cool Design Elements That Boost Engagement
One design element that can boost engagement is an arrow that points to your call to action (CTA). Using one of these can drive up your click through rates.
Not only should you include a CTA in your Pin design, like “Get This Look!” or “Shop Now!”, you can also add design elements like arrows to draw the eye to the CTA.
Creating Stunning Pinterest Pins with Ease
Creating beautiful Pins doesn’t have to be quite the headache you imagine. In fact, it can be pretty fun and easy with the right tools, like, say, Tailwind Create. With Tailwind Create, you can create gorgeous Pinterest Pins that really pop. Go preview dozens of design ideas you can personalize and brand to make your own!
