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This article is the first in a dedicated series that will help you understand what makes a viral pin, how to design it and where to find the best creative resources for it. Subscribe at the end of this page to make sure you get notified when the next article goes live.

If you’re on Pinterest and Instagram then you know how important your graphics, imagery and overall aesthetics can be. Pictures, colors, fonts, subtle elements, logos, composition and all are ever more important to make your brand stand out from the crowd and make a powerful impression on your viewers.

An infographic from Wyzowl shows that only 10% of people remember what they hear and only 20% of people remember what they read. But a whopping 80% of people remember what they see and do. The study indicates that visuals are being processed 60,000X faster than text.

When it comes to visual marketing, it goes without saying –  good photography and composition will skyrocket your brand. So the next time you’re designing pins for your blog, remember that Pinners look for beautifully curated content. This means that your pins need to appeal to their aesthetic sense and to support their dream or needs in some way.

Your pins need to be useful and enticing enough for Pinners to save your content.

This is big, don’t underestimate the Pin design stage, because over 80% of pins on Pinterest are actually repins. There’s a lot that goes into creating pins that actually get repins.

In today’s post, I will be focusing on two important aspects of creating beautiful pins. After reading this post you will learn where to get quality images and how to create and edit pin templates.

Pinterest is all about visual appeal

Long gone are the days when you could get away with low-quality imagery in your marketing campaigns. If you’re still doing that, it’s time to change your ways, especially if Pinterest is part of your marketing mix. No, really. I can’t stress enough how important it is to have beautiful images on your Pinterest and website. It’s one of the things that will make or break your growth.

This is what a Pinterest partner found about images after studying 50,000 Promoted Pins:

• “Images that stand out and say something about what you offer will give you an edge”

• “Lifestyle images are often more effective than product shots”

• “High-resolution, high-quality images will always look best”

• “Steer clear of images that are busy”

So you might be asking now “OK, OK – I got it. I need awesome, high-resolution images. Where do I find those?” Well, the answer is simple – the internet. And the good news is that you don’t have to pay big money for beautiful imagery.

Here’s a list of websites where you can find stock photos for your Pinterest images and more:

1. www.pexels.com (free)

2. www.canva.com (partly free, starts at $1 per image)

3. www.freepik.com (free)

4. www.stocksnap.io (free)

5. www.burst.shopify.com (free)

6. www.pixabay.com (free)

7. www.shutterstock.com (paid)

Personally, when I’m not using my own imagery, I find all the images I need for my content marketing on Pexels, Canva, and FreePik.

One image with a bit of text, multiple images or text overlays?

Sometimes, keeping your pins simple is good enough to drive traffic. However, when your pin image isn’t clear enough to convey your message, it’s time to get creative with Pinterest templates, text overlays, colors, and buttons.

The main guidelines for designing Pinterest templates are:

• Keep your collages under 4 images

• Make sure your text overlays are short, simple and easy to read

• Your text overlays should entice people to click and visit the website

• When the image isn’t clear enough “add copy to the image to help and your message”

• “Try headers, subheads or annotations”

• “Avoid logo placement in the corners of the Pin, or it’ll get covered up by our visual search icon”

• Avoid using a logo, product and packaging in the same image (“Either include your product or packaging in your image or your logo”)

There is no secret recipe for success so the best advice when it comes to using Pinterest templates is to create A/B versions for every post you have and see what works best over time.  

Where to find pre-made easy-to-edit Pinterest templates

If you don’t know where to start creating your own Pinterest templates, you will be happy to learn there are websites where you can create and edit such layouts for free, online.

My go-to place for pre-made easy-to-edit Pinterest templates is Canva.com. I find it is super easy to edit one of its built-in templates and branding it to my needs. It’s also just as easy to create new Pinterest layouts from scratch.

If Canva isn’t right up your alley, Fotor.com and DesignBold.com are two other alternatives you can check out. Both are free and web-based.

If you’re looking for more advanced Pinterest templates you can also check out Creative Market (affiliate link). There are dozens of different Pinterest template collections to match your brand’s needs, professionally made and super easy to use and edit. Some involve the use of Photoshop, others of more basic programs, like Canva.

You can find more sets and ideas for Pinterest templates in the board below:

Branding your Pins is important, but don’t overdo it.

Used properly, creative elements can make your pins and branding stand out from the crowd.

Luckily, there are tons of vectors, icons, patterns and other creative elements you can use to customize your pins and give them an extra kick. Surely enough, they look pretty but remember to avoid stuffing your pins with too many cutesy elements.

Pins enhanced with design and creative elements work best when it comes to tutorials, guides, opt-ins and content upgrades. A clean background in an eye-catching color populated with strategic icons to convey your message and a strong call to action text could appeal more to Pinners than a simple image. Remember the A/B version testing? This is the moment to try it out.

There are websites where you can find beautiful mockups for magazines, ebooks, flyers, digital presentations and the best part is that you can also get them for free. I use websites like Freepik.com or CreativeMarket.com* to score free digital elements.

While on Freepik.com you don’t need to create an account, on Creative Market* you should make one and there are 6 good reasons why. You get access to their 6 free weekly goods (* affiliate link and full disclaimer: I’m obsessed with those).

My favorite websites to get creative elements for content marketing purposes:

1. Canva.com (free and paid)

2. Creativemarket.com (affiliate link – free and paid)

3. Freepik.com (free and paid)

4. Graphicriver.net (free and paid)

5. Shutterstock.com (paid)

6. 1001freefonts.com (free)

This was it for the first article in my new series dedicated to creating beautiful pins that get repins. Thank you for reading and if you have a favorite resource for stock photos, Pinterest templates or digital elements, leave yours in a comment below. Don’t forget to subscribe to my list to make sure you get notified when the next post in this series goes live.

Need help starting with Pinterest?

There are so many fun ways to integrate Pinterest in your content marketing. If you need help planning your strategy for Pinterest, I can show you how to make this new marketing channel work for your brand. Contact me here and let’s talk.

Hi there! My name is Monica and I am a content marketing specialist who creates blog & Pinterest strategies to generate website traffic and leads.

To learn more about using Pinterest for your brand, read below: