How to Use Pinterest for Blogging

Want to know how to use Pinterest for blogging? It’s a great source of traffic for bloggers even in 2023, if you know how to use it properly, in this article you will learn how.

If you spend time in any blogging group you will see people complaining about Pinterest and how they don’t get traffic from it anymore. While Pinterest has changed a lot over the years, if you make sure to use it properly it still can be a huge traffic driver for blogs.

Pinterest has 450 million active users and that number is only growing. You want your content in front of those users and Pinterest needs content from bloggers or there is nothing for anyone to pin.

A lot of bloggers will think you can just do the same thing year after year and that’s why they stop getting traffic from Pinterest. As the site and users change you have to as well. So even if you are already using Pinterest for your blog a quick look at what things are working now can help.

Be sure to follow me on Pinterest for more blogging tips!

How to Use Pinterest for Blogging

This isn’t a guide to starting your Pinterest page or how to start a blog. You need to have a blog and a business Pinterest account started before following these tips. Once you have gotten started these tips will help you grow.

Pinterest also involves some trial and error. These are tips for how I pin but not all tips will work for you. Try different things until you find what works for you. I’m always trying new things to make sure I’m using Pinterest in the best way possible. Testing different strategies is the best way to grow.

Create Great Graphics

Because Pinterest is a visual platform it’s essential to make great graphics. These graphics can be made using photos you take or stock photos. I use a mix of my photos and stock photos on all of my sites. On this one, you will find mostly stock images.

Using Stock Photos

You can find free stock photos but even on sites that say they are free to use without credit they are sometimes stolen and you can still run into issues. I have seen several bloggers end up with legal issues for using a stock photo from a free site. Because of this I always recommend you buy your stock photos so you know you have the right to use them.

The main place I use to buy stock photos is Depositphotos. They have photos for basically anything and they are high quality. I like to purchase credits to use and just add more as needed.

Adding Text to Your Graphics

Having text on the photo is also important on Pinterest because people rarely read the description they just look at the pin. You want the text to be very readable and large because most people view Pinterest on mobile.

Pinterest also reads the text on your image to help index it so the right people find it. If you have a hard-to-read font that can make it hard for Pinterest to index the pin. Also for accessibility reasons, it’s a good idea to use a highly readable font.

Pin Size Suggestions

Pinterest recommendations for pin sizing do change from time to time so it’s a good idea to keep on top of that but the current size recommendations are-

• Standard Pins 2:3
• Square Pins 1:1
• Long Pins 1:2.1
• Infographic Pins 1:3
• Carousel Pins 2:3 or 1:1
• Collections Pins: 2:3 for first image, 1:1 for additional
• Story Pins: 9:16

For just your standard pin Pinterest says 1000×1500 which is 2:3. This is the size I use most of the time. Keep in mind that if you use a longer pin it may not all show up in the feed and if you use a smaller size the image quality may not be as good.

Learn more about Pintest image sizing from Tailwind.

How to Create Pins

Creating the actual pins doesn’t have to involve a lot of graphic design skills. There are easy, free options for creating your pins. My favorite option is Canva but I also often use PicMonkey. You can try both for free and see which you prefer.

I personally have paid accounts for both as I see value in them and use a lot of the paid features. Both are very affordable if you do want to get the pro versions. While I have both you really only need one.

You can use a blank template to create your pin or you can search the pre-made templates on both sites and choose your favorite. I like to create my own templates for each of my sites so that they have a similar look so that people can spot my pins when they are scrolling.

You can also buy Pinterest templates, which is something I have done from time to time to save myself some work. I like to buy them on Etsy. You can find a lot of great options. I find that you will usually find them for Canva and less often for PicMonkey.

You can also create pins with Tailwind Create, I share how to do that in How to Create Pinterest Pins with No Design Skills.

Create Multiple Pins Per Post

Pinterest has made it clear they don’t want us just pinning the same pins over and over again. This creates a poor user experience when they see the same image all of the time. It won’t make them want to click on your pin, it will make them want to leave Pinterest.

That doesn’t mean. you don’t want to pin the same content more than once, you want to get your content on all of your relevant boards, it does mean you want to create fresh pins and spread out your pinning.

Everyone has different opinions on how often you should pin the same content (with a fresh pin!) so I can only share what has worked for me and what I’ve seen work for others.

I wait at least one month before pinning the same content again. Now if you have a new site without much content you can consider it a bit sooner, I wouldn’t post sooner than 2 weeks though.

So what is a fresh pin?

A fresh pin is a new image, title, and description. The link can be the same as the content you already pinned. When this first came out as something Pinterest wanted bloggers were upset and rushing to change their pinning but now we know some tips and tricks to make it easier and we know it’s best for user experience.

Use a Scheduling Tool

Using a scheduling tool can help you schedule your pins in advance and prevents all of your pins from going out at once which helps your account stay more active.

I use Tailwind because it’s a great scheduler, affordable, and it’s an approved partner with Pinterest so you know it’s safe to use. There are some schedulers that are not approved and can get your account banned.

You can schedule on Pinterest but I find this much harder to use and you can’t schedule as far out using Pinterest’s scheduler. This is an option though if you want to start scheduling for free.

If you haven’t tried Tailwind yet you can get $15 off and see what you think.