I’m still finding my way around Pinterest. I have no idea whether creating custom board covers has any tangible benefit.
But…I wanted them.
In 2016, Kate Ahl had this to say about Pinterest Board Covers:
This is not business building, it’s a way to step up your game after you’ve honed in on your audience, tightened up your boards, and you’re firm on strategy. If those things are not in place, this is just a way to avoid doing those tasks first.
Kate Ahl – Simple Pin Media
It’s like she’s met me…
Anyway – so many pin images are created with screaming loud colors and fonts. When I navigated to my boards it was like getting dumped into a carnival in full swing.
I wanted to clearly label my boards with something simple, quiet and with a little bit of branding. That’s because I think there’s some truth in the idea that people begin to recognize you once you get consistent about your style.
Even amidst the chaos that is Pinterest.
How Pinterest board covers are like regular pins
Board covers are similar to other images on Pinterest in that they’re pinnable and can come up in people’s feeds.
You wouldn’t want something completely devoid of meaning when it appears away from the board it’s pinned to.
Like other pins, they’re meant to be linked to something. If you don’t include a link, Pinterest will link to the pin image itself.
How board covers are not like regular Pinterest Pins
Since the purpose of the board cover image (at least, the way I’m using it) isn’t to get people to a post somewhere out on the web, what do you link to?
I think it makes the most sense to link to the board itself. Hopefully that’s not some crazy ToS violation.
The biggest difference is how they show up on your boards list. See how they’re displayed in a square format, to the left of any other pins?
I made my board cover images 800px square, because that’s what I’m hearing is optimal today. Next week – who knows?
When I pulled up my Pinterest profile without signing in, I got something different. It works for the covers I created, but YMMV.
Should we care about looking nice for people who aren’t logged in?
If you want to hedge against a future change of direction by Pinterest, you could make your board cover images the same size as your other pin images. If you do that, I suggest making sure the important part of the image is confined to a square area at its center.
Ready to step up your Pinterest game with custom board covers?
Or, if your game is weak like mine, maybe you just feel like getting creative (or as Kate suggests, avoiding some other more-important task).
The process is easy, if a bit tedious for multiple boards. Below you’ll find slides to step you through it.
I’ve also packaged the slides into a PDF. If that works better for you, here’s the link to download it:
How to Set Up Custom Board Covers for Pinterest
