Pinterest is one of the fastest growing platforms out there today! With over 460 million users and growing, I can almost guarantee you that your audience is on Pinterest. That’s a blog post for a different day though.
Today, I want to talk to you about the 3 types of pins you should be creating as part of your Pinterest marketing strategy. There are actually 4 types but were going to stick to the 3 that matter most.
Static Pins
Static pins are the real OG on Pinterest. They are the meat and potatoes to your Pinterest marketing strategy plan. Static pins are the most important type of pin in my opinion you should be using in your Pinterest marketing strategy.
Static pins are what we are all used to seeing and I have found them to be the traffic drivers for all of my clients.
I will say that it is taking Pinterest a little longer to index static pins but over time they hold their own and rank month after month. Who doesn’t love that?
So what does a good static pin include? I’m so glad you asked! A static pin should include an image, text overlay, and a call to action. The image can be a stock photo or one of your own. Pinterest technology is super smart these days and does recognize stock photos that have been used over and over again so I do recommend investing in some high quality photos of your products and/or purchasing a subscription to stock photos that aren’t already all over the web.
You want to create pins that have a 2:3 ratio, are easy to read, and solve your ideal clients problems. Make sure the colors pop and you aren’t using a ton of script fonts that are tricky to read.
Video Pins
Video pins have been around for a while but people are just starting to use them more and more. Video pins rank really well on Pinterest and Pinterest seems to be favoring this type of content and are a great addition to your Pinterest marketing strategy.
Video pins should also have a 2:3 ratio, text overlay, and a call to action. You can create video pins where the entire image is a video or you can add in animations from Canva. Either way, people love movement. They like to see things in real life and will take action on things that they have a better understanding of how they work.
I recommend keeping your videos under a minute; although, I have seen video pins that were over 15 minutes long but who has time for that?? I would stick with 15-30 seconds and remember most people on Pinterest are viewing with the sound off.
Idea Pins
Idea pins have been around for almost 2 years now but Pinterest is still figuring out how they want to distribute them. For a while, they were pushing them like crazy but now things have slowly settled as Pinterest users still aren’t crazy about them.
As of now, idea pins do not link like static and video pins. Their goal is to keep users on the platform. They want that same user to view your idea pin then head to your account to checkout your static or video pins that will then allow them to link out.
Idea pins do take some extra time but they don’t have to. You can repurpose content from other platforms. You can use a story or reel you created over on IG or you can use video content you have created for TikTok, FB, or YouTube.
You know a pin is an idea pin when you see two little boxes in the upper left corner as seen below. A user clicks on the idea pin and is taken through a series of slides.
Idea pins are a series of slides that are intended to teach or entertain your audience. You have to use a 9:16 ratio (same as IG stories) and you can use up to 20 slides. I recommend keeping each slide between 7-18 seconds and creating between 5-10 slides.
You can create your slides with a mix of static and video pins but remember many people are viewing idea pins with the sound off so keep that in mind as you are creating content. You can find more information on creating idea pins directly from Pinterest here.
Yes, I know they don’t link out but as people engage with your content, Pinterest is going to take note of that and then start to show your other content in this audience’s feeds. So as they view, like or comment on an idea pin, Pinterest will observe that and then will also push your video and static pins on them as well.
Carousel Pins
This is the 4th type of pin that I said we wouldn’t focus on. Basically it is the same as a carousel post on IG, a series of pins in one. I don’t see these ranking any higher than a static pin and they take twice as long so I wouldn’t worry too much about this type of pin.
No matter what type of pin you create, don’t forget about the importance of keywords when it comes to your text overlay, pin title, and description. Pinterest is a search engine after all so you absolutely need to do your research. You can learn more on my Pinterest Keywords for Beginners: What are they and how to find them? post.
So there you have it, the 3 types of pins you should be creating on Pinterest. If you are still feeling confused and overwhelmed be sure to check out my strategy calls where I can walk you through step by step how to create all 3 types of pins and what will speak directly to you audience.
Happy pinning,
Chelsea