How To Create Profitable Pinterest Images for Free

Pinterest is one of the fastest growing platforms to build an audience to your blog. Studies show that there are about 40 million monthly active users on Pinterest.

That is a lot of people!

If you aren't already using Pinterest for your blog and business, then you need to start today.

Seriously, stop now and go create a Pinterest Business Account.

Now that you have it out of the way let's move on.

This post may contain affiliate links.

Last week, I shared my Viral Pin Blueprint for Entrepreneurs to help you learn how to create beautiful, pinnable images for free.

Now that you know the blueprint of the perfect pin, it is time to start creating these images for your blog posts.

Today, I am going to show you how to create Pinterest pictures using Canva. This is one of my favorite blogging tools. Get a behind-the-scenes look at all of my top blogging tools and resources.

Canva is a free online design program that makes it extremely simple to create images for your blog.

I made a quick tutorial video on how to make Pinterest Pictures using Canva, or you can follow the step-by-step tutorial below.

Creating Pinterest Pictures Using Canva:

Step 1:

Create a Canva account, or if you already have one setup, then log in into Canva.

Step 2:

Once you are signed in, you will see the different pre-loaded image templates that Canva has to offer. Since this tutorial is focusing on creating Pinterest pictures, you want to choose the option that says ‘Pinterest Graphic.’

This template is pre-set to be 735 x 1102 pixels, which is a size that does the best on Pinterest.

Step 3:

You will now see a blank image for you to create your Pinterest picture on. If you already have your own image you want to use for your pin, you can upload it here:

If you have not used this design program, take a few minutes to check out everything they have to offer. Play around with the options to see what you like best.

If you are completely new to Canva, you will see it has a main navigation bar on the left-hand side. This is what you will use to design your Pinterest picture.

Canva offers:

• Different layout options. There are free and paid options available.

• Design elements, including frames, grids, illustrations and shapes.

• Background choices to easily change the background of your image.

• Text samples and headings.

• Upload your own images.

Canva has a big selection of free photos you can choose from. Scroll through the options and choose an image that compliments your blog post. You can just drag and drop the image into the blank canvas you have.

Make sure you drag the corners of the image to enlarge it so that it fits into the rectangle.

Step 4:

The next step is adding the text overlay. If you haven’t read my Viral Pin Blueprint, then head over and check it out so that you can see why this text is important to have with your Pinterest picture and what you should choose.

To add the text, you will need to click ‘Text’ in the navigation menu to the left.

You will then want to click ‘Add heading,’ and it will insert a text box onto your image. Canva offers a bunch of different editing options for the text. You can change the font, size, color, transparency, alignment, etc.

Try to keep these design elements consistent with your brand. Again, refer to my Viral Pin Blueprint.

Step 5:

You want the text to be easy to read and to stand out on the image. An easy way to do this with Canva is by adding a square behind your text.

You will need to go to the navigation menu and choose ‘Shapes.’

I always choose a square and it will automatically add it to your image when you click on it. Just resize it, choose the color you want, and click on ’back,’ so that it goes behind your text.

I like to adjust the transparency of this rectangle so that you can still see my image behind it. Don’t forget to add your blog’s URL or watermark to the image to brand your Pinterest picture.

Step 6:

Add in any extra design elements that are consistent with your brand. For Simply Blogging Along, I always use this triangle:

If you do not have any specific design elements, then you can move on to saving your image.

Step 7:

At the top of your screen you will see a place to write in the title of this image so that you can save it.

Type in the name of the image using the keyword for your post. Then, click on the ‘Download’ button and choose the format you want to save it as.

Canva gives you these options:

• JPG

• PNG

• PDF Standard

• PDF for Print

Since you just designed a Pinterest picture, you want to choose JPG or PNG. Once you have clicked on the format, you want it will automatically download the image to your computer.

A cool feature that Canva offers is saving this Pinterest picture to your Canva account. This means you can come back at any time and edit the photo.

This is honestly one of my favorite things about using Canva. I used to use PicMonkey to edit all of my photos, but once I saved it and left their site, I could never go back and edit the font or make any kind of adjustments without completely recreating the image.

ACTION STEP: Head over to Canva and create your own beautiful Pinterest pin now.

Even though I broke this down into seven steps, it is honestly extremely easy to design your own Pinterest pictures with Canva.

You can even create image templates that are consistent with your brand so that you can just pop in a new image when it is time to create the pictures for a blog post.

What do you use to create your Pinterest pictures?