Printable PilotGuides · Promotion
How to promote Etsy printables on Pinterest
Published 4 November 2026 · Last checked 4 November 2026 · 5 minute read
Your Christmas listings are live and you've read the advice: stop making, start promoting. If you've never used Pinterest for your shop, this guide covers the set-up, the boards, three pin types for printables and a half-hour weekly routine.
The short version
- Set up a free Pinterest business account. You need one to see Pinterest Analytics.
- Make five to eight boards named the way buyers search, each with a few relevant keywords.
- Make two or three tall pins per listing (1000 x 1500 pixels) that show what the buyer gets, and link each one to that listing.
- Pin Christmas now. Switch to New Year and planning products from 26 December.
Set up your Pinterest account for your Etsy shop
Pinterest offers a free business account. You can create a new one, or convert a personal account from Settings, then Account management. Pinterest says new business accounts can only be created on a desktop for now.
Use a profile name that says what you sell, such as "Budget Planner Printables by [shop name]". Add your Etsy shop link to your profile.
You may read elsewhere that you should "claim" your Etsy shop. Pinterest's own page on claiming a website says you can't claim most online shops hosted on marketplaces such as Etsy, eBay and Amazon. If you have your own website, you can claim that.
On the Etsy side, Shop Manager lets you share a listing: go to Listings, select the gear icon on the listing, choose Share, then pick a platform or copy the link. Etsy's Social Media tool can also share shop updates to Pinterest once you link your accounts in the Marketing section.
If you've joined Etsy's Share & Save programme, use the listing links Shop Manager gives you. Etsy refunds 4% of the eligible order total when a buyer orders within 30 days of clicking a link you shared. You have to be enrolled when the click happens. From 20 October 2026 to 4 January 2027, Etsy's help page says enrolled sellers get 6.5%, but the promotion terms limit it to sellers Etsy invites, so check your Share & Save page.
Name your boards the way buyers search
Pinterest's best practice page asks for short board titles with relevant keywords, so they aren't cut off, and keyword-rich board descriptions. It suggests 20 to 100 pins per board. Start with five to eight boards and add your own pins to them, plus pins from others that fit the theme.
Etsy's older Seller Handbook article on Pinterest gives a firmer number: keep board names to 20 characters or fewer so they don't get cut off. It also suggests pinning at least once a day. The article has no date, so treat both as rough targets. Our example names run a little longer to fit search keywords, so check how yours look on your profile. The weekly routine below is a realistic start if you can't manage daily.
| Example board name | What goes on it |
|---|---|
| Budget Planner Printables | Budget sheets, bill trackers, sinking funds |
| Christmas Planner Printables | Gift lists, card lists, hosting menus |
| Christmas Party Games | Bingo, quizzes, scavenger hunts |
| 2027 Calendar Printables | Wall planners, monthly calendars |
| Habit Tracker Printables | Monthly and 90-day trackers |
| Kids Activity Sheets | Colouring, puzzles, reward charts |
Use the words a buyer would type into Pinterest search. A name like "Cosy Season Vibes" tells a searcher nothing about what's on the board.
Three pins that work for printables
Pinterest recommends a 2:3 ratio, or 1000 x 1500 pixels, as a PNG or JPEG. Taller pins may get cut off in the feed. Keep any text large enough to read on a phone, and show the product.
1. The mockup pin. The printable in use: a planner on a desk, wall art in a frame, a game on a party table. It shows the buyer the end result.
2. The "what's included" pin. A grid of every page in the download, with a short heading such as "12 pages, A4 and US Letter". Etsy wants printable listings to preview the content buyers receive, and this pin does the same job. See Etsy's photo rules for printables.
3. The problem pin. Lead with the buyer's problem, such as "Lost track of who you've bought for?", and show the page that solves it.
Link every pin to the exact listing it shows, and use the Share link from Shop Manager. Only Share & Save tracked links earn credit, so a plain etsy.com/listing link earns nothing. Pinterest's guidance suggests adding a clear call to action and a link on each pin.
Writing pin titles and descriptions
Pinterest allows up to 100 characters for a title and 800 for a description. It says only the first 40 characters of a title may show in feeds, and descriptions don't show in the home or search feed. So put the buyer's search phrase at the start of the title, and use the description for detail and other keywords.
Worked example
Example title: Christmas planner printable: gift list, budget and card tracker
Example description: Plan Christmas on paper this year. This printable Christmas planner has a gift list, a holiday budget, a card list and a hosting menu. Instant download in A4 and US Letter. Print at home and start today.
The tag thinking from our Etsy tags guide works here too: say what it is, who it's for and what it helps with.
A 30-minute weekly routine
- 10 minutes: make two new pins for one listing, using a different pin type each time.
- 10 minutes: publish your new pins and save them to the right boards. Space them through the week if you can.
- 5 minutes: save a few pins from others to your boards so they stay full and on theme.
- 5 minutes: look at last week's numbers (see below) and note which pin to remake.
Pinterest doesn't give a set number of pins per week. It recommends a consistent posting pattern and planning content 45 to 60 days ahead. For Christmas, that means you're already late, so start this week.
What to pin from November to January
This follows the seasonal calendar in Printable Pilot Trends and our Christmas niches guide.
| When | What to pin |
|---|---|
| November | Christmas planning kits, party games and gift tags. Start pinning your Hogmanay games and 2027 calendars too. |
| 1 to 24 December | Keep pinning Christmas. Instant downloads sell until 24 December, so last-minute wording such as "print at home tonight" fits. |
| From 26 December | Vision board kits, 2027 planners and Hogmanay games. |
| January | Habit trackers, sinking funds and savings challenges, plus Burns Night printables before 25 January. |
Leave your Christmas pins on their boards when the season ends. You can repin them next November.
Check what's working
Pinterest Analytics needs a business account. On the web, open the menu, then choose Overview under Pinterest Analytics. Four numbers matter most:
- Impressions: how often your pins were on screen.
- Saves: how often people saved a pin to a board.
- Pin clicks: clicks that open the pin in close-up.
- Outbound clicks: actions that take people off Pinterest, in your case to your Etsy listing.
Outbound clicks are the ones that can turn into sales. When a pin gets more than the rest, make a new version with a fresh headline or image and link it to the same listing. Then check your Etsy Stats to see which listings get visits from Pinterest.
Write your pins faster
Printable Pilot, the site you're reading, has a Pin Writer as part of its paid app. Give it a product and it drafts three pins from different angles, each with an image brief, a title and a description. You still make the image and check the wording. It costs £9.99 a month, with a 3-day free trial.
Something you can do today
Pick your best-selling Christmas listing. Make one "what's included" pin at 1000 x 1500 pixels, give it a title that starts with the buyer's search phrase, and link it to that listing using the Share link from Shop Manager. Want help with the words?
FAQ
Do I need a Pinterest business account?
You need one to see Pinterest Analytics, and Pinterest says it's free. You can create a new one or convert a personal account.
Can I claim my Etsy shop on Pinterest?
Pinterest says you can't claim most online shops hosted on marketplaces such as Etsy. You can claim a website you own.
What size should a Pinterest pin be?
Pinterest recommends a 2:3 ratio, or 1000 x 1500 pixels, as a PNG or JPEG.
Sources, all checked 4 November 2026: Pinterest Business help, Get a business account, Claim your website, Review ad specs, Review Pin specs and Review Pinterest Analytics; Pinterest Create, Fundamentals and best practices; Etsy Help, How to Promote Your Etsy Shop, How to Save on Etsy Fees with the Share & Save Programme and the Festive Season Promo Terms; Etsy Seller Handbook, How to Market Your Business on Pinterest. Printable Pilot isn't affiliated with or endorsed by Pinterest or Etsy.