How to Sell Art on Pinterest

Selling your artwork on Pinterest is one of the most effective ways to connect with people actively looking to buy art for their homes and spaces. Forget what you know about social media feeds and followers - this is a visual search engine where your art can be discovered for months and years. This guide breaks down exactly how to set up your profile, create content that attracts buyers, and build a strategy that turns pinners into collectors.

Start with a Strong Foundation: Set Up Your Pinterest Profile for Sales

Before you start pinning, you need to make sure your profile is a welcoming and professional storefront. An incomplete page can turn away potential buyers before they even see your work. A few small tweaks can make a massive difference.

1. Switch to a Business Account (It's Free)

If you have a personal account, the first step is converting it to a Business Account. This is non-negotiable. A business account gives you access to a suite of essential tools, including Analytics (to see what's working), Idea Pins, and the ability to claim your website, which builds an incredible amount of authority and trust.

If you don't have an account, just sign up for a business account from the start.

2. Claim Your Website or Shop

After setting up your business account, you must "claim" your website. This could be your Shopify store, Etsy shop, or your personal artist website. Claiming your site does two very important things:

• It adds your profile photo and a "follow" button to any pin ever saved from your site, even if someone else saved it.
• It unlocks detailed analytics for your website, showing you what art people are pinning the most.

Pinterest provides simple instructions for this, often involving adding a small piece of code or uploading a file to your website. It’s a one-time setup that pays off forever.

3. Optimize Your Profile to Attract Buyers

Your profile is your first impression. Treat it like a digital storefront's welcome sign.

• Your Name: Use your artist name followed by a clear descriptor of your art. For example: "Jane Smith | Original Abstract Paintings" or "Oakhill Pottery | Handmade Ceramics." This instantly tells visitors what you offer.
• Your Bio: You have a small space to tell people who you are and what you do. Use keywords naturally. Instead of "I am a creator," try "Creating vibrant, textured abstract paintings for the modern home decor collector. Shop original art and fine art prints at my website." Make sure to include a clear call-to-action directing them to your shop.
• Your Profile Photo: A clear, high-quality headshot works wonders for building a personal connection. If you're a brand or studio, a clean logo is a great alternative.

The Core of Your Strategy: Pinterest SEO for Artists

To succeed on Pinterest, you have to stop thinking of it as social media and start thinking of it as a search engine. People don't scroll a feed to see what their friends are up to, they search with intent, using terms like "large canvas art for living room" or "minimalist nature art print." Your job is to make sure your art shows up in those search results. This is done with keywords.

How to Find the Right Keywords

Keywords are the bridge between a collector's search and your artwork. Finding them is straightforward.

• Brainstorm Like a Buyer: How would someone describe the art they want? Think about style ("impressionist landscape painting"), color ("neutral toned wall art"), mood ("calm ocean artwork"), medium ("alcohol ink art"), and room ("kitchen wall decor").
• Use the Pinterest Search Bar: Type in a general term like "abstract art." Pinterest's auto-fill suggestions will show you what people are actually searching for. You’ll see variations like "abstract art on canvas," "abstract art colorful," and "abstract art gold leaf." These are goldmines for content ideas and keywords.
• Look at Your Competitors: See what keywords other artists in your niche are using in their pin titles, descriptions, and on their boards. Don’t copy them, but use their choices for inspiration.

Where to Put Your Keywords

Once you have a list of core keywords, you need to place them where the Pinterest algorithm can find them. Be consistent and weave them in naturally.

• Profile Bio: As mentioned above.
• Board Titles: Be descriptive. Instead of "Pottery," use "Handmade Ceramic Mugs & Dinnerware." Instead of just "Paintings," try "Minimalist Abstract Canvas Art."
• Board Descriptions: Each board has a description area. Use it! Write a sentence or two describing the board's theme, and be sure to include your main keywords.
• Pin Titles: Every single pin needs a clear, keyword-rich title. A title like "New Painting" does nothing for you. A title like "Textured Navy Gold Coastline Abstract Painting" is searchable.
• Pin Descriptions: Use this space to tell a story while using your keywords. Describe the inspiration behind the piece, the materials used, and where someone might hang it. Write a few complete sentences. Use relevant hashtags at the end if you'd like, but the written sentences have the biggest impact.

Creating Pins That Actually Sell Your Art

Not all Pins are created equal. To move someone from browsing to buying, your pins need to be compelling, informative, and inspiring. It’s also important to create different types of pins for each piece of artwork to maximize visibility.

Pro Tip: Create at least 3-5 different Pin designs for every single piece of art you want to sell. A single piece can become a static pin, a detail-shot pin, a lifestyle mockup pin, a video pin, and an idea pin.

Types of Pins Every Artist Should Create

1. Clean Product Pins

These are straightforward, high-quality images of your art against a clean, uncluttered background. Think of them as the classic product shots you'd see on a professional retail website. Capture the colors and details as accurately as possible.

2. Lifestyle Mockup Pins

This is arguably the most powerful type of pin for selling art. People need help visualizing your art in their own space. Use high-quality mockup images placing your art in beautifully styled rooms. A large abstract painting above a modern sofa, a set of small prints above a bed, or a ceramic vase on a bookshelf helps potential buyers connect with the art on an emotional level. It answers the question, "How would this look in my home?"

3. Detail and Texture Shots

Art is tactile. A computer screen can flatten the experience. Use detail shots to highlight thick paint textures, delicate brushstrokes, the weave of the canvas, or the glossy finish of a glaze. This creates desire and shows the craftsmanship involved.

4. Process Pictures

Show your art in progress on an easel, your messy studio desk, or just your hands at work. This kind of "behind the scenes" content builds a personal connection and tells the story of your brand. It reminds people that a real person is hand-making this work.

5. Video Pins

Video is huge on Pinterest and gets a lot of engagement. It’s the perfect medium for showing off your art dynamically.

• Process Time-Lapses: A short, sped-up video of you creating a piece is fascinating to watch.
• Panning Shots: A slow pan across a large, textured piece can be mesmerizing. You can catch the light hitting it just right, showing off details an image could never capture.
• Studio Tours: Give a quick video tour of your creative space. This builds authenticity and lets people into your world.
• Packaging Videos: The "unboxing" and packaging trend is powerful. Seeing the care you put into packing and shipping an order builds trust and excitement.

Best Practices for Pin Design

• Always Use a Vertical Format: Pinterest is a vertical platform. Horizontal images get lost. Stick to a 2:3 aspect ratio (e.g., 1000 x 1500 pixels).
• Use High-Quality Assets: Blurry or poorly lit photos will get scrolled right past. Your images and videos need to be crisp and professional.
• Add a Subtle Watermark or Logo: Protect your work and build brand recognition by adding your logo or website name discreetly at the bottom of your Pins.
• Link Directly to the Product Page: This is profoundly important. Every single Pin should link directly to the page where a customer can buy that specific product. If you pin a painting, the link should go right to that painting's listing on your Shopify or Etsy store. Do not link to your homepage. Sending a potential customer on a scavenger hunt is the fastest way to lose a sale.

Your Pinning Strategy: Putting It All Together

Having a great-looking profile and beautiful pins is just the start. You need a consistent strategy to get your content in front of buyers.

How to Organize Your Boards

Don't just create one board called "My Art." Curate your boards like you're creating collections in a gallery. This helps users and the Pinterest algorithm understand what you're about.

• Boards by Art Style: "Modern Abstract Paintings," "Minimalist Line Art," "Bohemian Wall Decor."
• Boards by Color Palette: "Neutral Toned Artwork," "Blue and Green Coastal Art."
• Boards by Room: "Living Room Art & Decor," "Bedroom Wall Art Ideas," "Nursery Art Prints."
• Boards by Theme: "Landscape Paintings," "Floral Artworks," "Figurative Art."

Also, create boards that are relevant to your target audience but aren't just your work. For example, if you sell coastal art, create boards like "Coastal Home Decor Inspiration" or "Beach House Style." You can save inspirational content from others here. This positions you as a tastemaker and attracts your ideal customer, even if they aren’t actively looking for art at that moment.

Be Consistent with Your Pinning

The Pinterest algorithm loves fresh content. This doesn't mean you need to burn yourself out by creating a new masterpiece every day. It means consistently publishing new Pins, which is different. Remember, a single piece of art can be repurposed into tons of different Pins.

Aim to publish 3-5 new Pins per day. This might sound like a lot, but once you get a system down with templates, it's very manageable. You can take one piece of art, and over a week, publish a simple product Pin, a lifestyle mockup Pin, a detail shot Pin, and a video pan of it. Consistency is more important than volume.

Final Thoughts

Selling your artwork on Pinterest is completely achievable when you shift your mindset. Treat it as a visual discovery tool that connects your art with an audience that is actively looking for it. By building a keyword-optimized profile and creating a mix of beautiful, inspiring pins that all lead directly to your shop, you create a powerful and evergreen system for driving sales.

Keeping up with a consistent content schedule across Pinterest, Instagram, and TikTok can feel like a full-time job on its own. It's actually the challenge we faced that led us to build Postbase. We needed a clean, simple tool for planning all our social content in one visual calendar, especially the short-form videos so important for all three platforms. With Postbase, we can upload content once, tailor it for each platform, and get a clear bird’s-eye view of everything we have scheduled, which removes so much of the weekly chaos. It allows us to focus on creating great art and content instead of just managing it.