Are you trying to gain some traffic from Pinterest to your blog? Earlier I had written about How To Get Your Blog Post Pinned! One of the most important tips I could give you is to make sure you create a Pinterest Perfect Picture for your blog post.

4 Quick Reasons to Create a Pinterest Perfect Picture

• Encourage your readers to pin your post
• Remind the original pinner why they pinned your post
• Let others know why they should click through to your post
• Encourage repins!

Why PicMonkey?

Ready to Create your Picture?

Step 1 Go to PicMonkey.com

Step 2 Upload your Image

Step 3 Click “Auto Adjust” to brighten and clean up your picture

Step 4 Click the little beaker (second icon from the top) on the far left to get the Adjustments Menu

Step 5 Click “Exposure” and then “Auto Adjust”. For the example picture I brightened it even more and added more highlight and shadows. Brighter picture will more likely catch someone’s eye on a board full of pins.

Step 6 Click “Color” and then either click “Auto Adjust” or Click “Neutral Picker” and click on a white section of your picture.

Step 7 Click the icon on the left that looks like a frame around a box.

Step 8 Select a frame for your picture. This is an optional step. I used it because the composition of the picture I was using was a little boring and the Polaroid frame made it pop more.

Step 9 Add your text:

1. Click the P icon on the far left
2. Choose your font
3. Enter the title of your post (or what your post is about), click apply
4. Adjust the size and angle of the text
5. Adjust the color, alignment, and blend mode of your text

Step 10 Save at the highest quality (10)

Before and After:

Which would you be more likely to repin?

3 Quick Tips on your Picture & Pinterest

• Take lots of pictures for your post. Then when you are ready to edit you have a few options for the perfect one.
• Lots and lots of light. Direct light is not good, but it’s better than low light. Sit your items next to a window or outside on a cloudy day to get better lighting.
• Ask your blogging buddies to pin your blog post and offer to do the same for them.

I would love to hear if you try creating a Pinterest Perfect Picture and what your results were.

How do you get great hits from Pinterest? How do you make your blog posts more pinnable?

These are just a sample of questions that I have received in the last couple weeks from fellow bloggers. This has been a big question for a lot of companies and bloggers as they are watching Pinterest become more and more popular.

Pin-Worthy Content

First make sure your blog post content is pin-worthy.

Start learning what posts on your blog may be popular on Pinterest. Research popular categories and subjects on Pinterest. What Pinners are looking for, what  is being pinned, and what is popular.

Now take a look at your blog. What are you posting about that matches what is being pinned and what is popular on Pinterest. Do you have categories on your blog that match categories on Pinterest?

Examples of Great Popular Posts: Recipes, Crafts, Tutorials, Inspiring Quotes, Fashion … and more.

Have a Pin Button

Make sure you have a Pin Button on your blog posts to make Pinning even easier for your readers. If you give it to them, they will use it!

4 WordPress Plugins I recommend:

Sharebar - This is the my favorite social media toolbar and you can see a great example of it on the right of this blog post! I did have to install the Pin button myself, but I  promise it is easy!

Sexy Bookmarks - This is the plugin that I used before Sharebar and I really like the options in buttons and it is one of the easiest tools to use.

Pin it on Pinterest - What I like about this plugin is that it adds a section in your post editor that you can control the picture that will be pinned and suggest what to say in the pin. But you can’t control the button on your post.

Pin It Button – One of the easiest plugins to install and you have control over where the button shows up, how it looks, and what pages it will be on.

Make Pin Perfect Pictures

The most important things you can do to make your post more pinnable is to create a “Pin Perfect Picture”!

I realized how much bloggers are missing out on this when I saw this great post by Bernita about how to care for your stamps! This post had great content, is a great example of a good how to post and fits perfectly under the crafting category on Pinterest! But when I pinned it I knew that most people would miss out on how great of a pin it was because the picture really didn’t say much.

Notice on her post all you can really pin is a picture of stamping products. As the blogger you have to hope the person pinning gives the perfect description for others to be interested and you have to hope others read the description.

To make a Pin Perfect Picture you really only need a picture, a good description and either Photoshop or a tool like PicMonkey. For the examples below I used PicMonkey just to show you don’t need to go out and buy Photoshop to do this.

Before and After:

Which would you be more likely to repin?

Subscribe to Pepper Scraps because I will be showing you exactly how I made the image above in PicMonkey! You don’t want to miss it!

These are very basic instructions on how to install a plugin on your self-hosted WordPress blog or website.

Step 1: Click “Plugins”
Step 2: Click “Add New”
Step 3: Search for the plugin or kind of plugin you are looking for
Step 4: Look for a plugin with a good rating
Step 5: Click “Details” under the plugin you are looking at and read about the plugin
Step 6: Click “Install Now”
Step 7: Click “Ok” in the pop up prompt
Step 8: You may need to login to install the plugin*
Step 9: You will see the installation process run (can take a minute)
Step 10: Click “Activate Plugin”

*Login info you may need for installing:

Hostname (usually localhost)
FTP Username
FTP Password

You can get this information in your hosting control panel or contact your host.

Additional Setup

Some plugins will need additional setup once you have installed them. You can look through your side menu in your WordPress Control Panel for the plugin and you will find the additional setup. Most good plugins will walk you through this setup.

Questions?

Please add your questions in the comments! I will answer you in the comments or via email.

When you are starting the investigation for designing or redesigning of your site you can be faced with a lot of questions. One of the first questions you should ask is how much to invest into the design. You have four main options for choosing your design a free prefab theme, a premium prefab theme, a customized prefab theme, or a customized design. We will be exploring the pros and cons of each of these to help you decide how much your site is worth to you and how your investment will benefit you.

By mccheek

Free Prefab Theme

Just like a mobile home you can find a Free Theme where the colors and style may not match you and your style. Plus hundreds of the exact same home are out there due to it being pre-constructed. But you can live in it for a time until you run out of room and you are tired of that one cupboard that just won’t stay closed. Especially since it was offered to you free from a relative.

Pros:

• Free
• A free theme is better than a default theme
• You can find lots of free themes to choose from
• If you look long and hard enough you can find some free professional themes

Cons:

• Doesn’t really represent you and your brand
• You will not have as many options for customization
• Attempting to customize the theme yourself may make it look cheezy
• Your images and style may end up feeling mismatched and disjointed
• You may see other’s using the same theme
• The theme may not fit your needs exactly (ei. menus don’t fit, colors don’t match, etc)
• You can feel overwhelmed sifting through all the themes out there

Conclusion: A Free Theme doesn’t represent you and your brand but you can live with it.

ByMartin Pettitt

Premium Prefab Theme

Just like a manufactured home you can find a Premium Theme that is very inexpensive and you can choose the siding, the carpet and counter tops, but once you get it into the mobile home court you realize your home looks just like some of the neighbors homes. But you at least you have a home that has new appliances and keeps you dry. This may work for a time until you realize that you are tired of your friends getting lost every time they try and find your house and it becomes time to upgrade your fridge.

Pros:

• Very Low Cost
• You will find more features than a free theme
• Premium themes tend to have a more professional look
• You will have more options for customization

Cons:

• Doesn’t represent you and your brand
• You still may have troubles with customizing the theme beyond the basics
• Attempting to customize the theme yourself may make it loose it’s professionalism
• You may still run into other’s using the same theme
• You can still feel limited by the options

Conclusion: A Premium Theme doesn’t represent you and your brand but it functions.

My favorite company to purchase themes from is Woothemes. I am affiliated with them, but that is only because I love them. There themes are amazing and the control panels for their themes are easy to work with and well made.

By LancerE

Customized Prefab Theme

Just like a modern stick built home you can have a Customized Theme built for you.  A builder will give you multiple floor plans to choose from to create your new home. Then you get to pick the flooring, the wall color, the counter tops and the appliances. You get to have a home that really showcases your style and gives you some special functions you have been really wanting.

Even though you live in a house that may be the same floor plan as your neighbors your friends will still know which house is your house. Plus now you will not be embarrassed to invite your boss over for dinner.

Pros:

• Low Cost
• No one else will have the exact same design
• Represents you and your brand
• Professional customization makes your brand more recognizable
• A Professional does the customization so the images fit and coordinates
• Brands and readers can see that you have invested in your blog or site
• Professional help cleaning up your layout and making it easier for your readers to navigate
• You will have more options and functions that a professional can install

Cons:

• More of an investment
• You may have to wait on a waiting list for your design
• Still may feel cookie cutter as you see the same layouts at other sites
• May take some time to find a professional that you feel matches you and your style

Conclusion: A Customized Theme starts building brand recognition and makes your site more professional.

By Omaha Homes For Sale

Custom Design

Just like a custom built home you can invest in a Custom Design. Your imagination is the limit. You can have any flooring, walling, appliance, and more that you could possibly want. You can change the floor plan to fit better with your needs and wants. You could even have a swimming pool built into your dinning room for swim-dining!

You can create a place that is all about you and your style. Your friends will know your home instantly even on the first visit and you will be inviting you boss over for monthly dinners just so you can show off your beautiful home and brag.

Pros:

• The Design is all yours, you will not see anyone with the same design or layout
• It is obvious you are invested in your blog or site, so users and brands will invest in you
• You will find you will have unlimited customization and options
• Everything coordinates and functions just as you wish

Cons:

• Large investment
• Have to do some homework to find the right designer that fits your style
• Takes some time to create

Conclusion: A Complete Custom Design represents you with a unique layout and images and functioning.

I hope this gave you some things to consider as you are choosing the level of investment you want to make into your blog.

More Questions?

I’m always happy to help with questions so feel free and ask here in the comments or email me at (unicornbeauty (@) gmail.com)

WordPress is one of the largest self-hosted blogging systems out there. One of the best things about WordPress is the ability to personalize it. You can create a beautiful site with little HTML, CSS, and/or PHP knowledge. And if you have a little skill with these coding languages you can make an amazing site.

It’s amazing how many people think that it is hard or expensive to have a self-hosted wordpress blog. I had one person that said they didn’t want to get into the expense of paying for a host yet they already had a domain name they had purchased and were just redirecting to a blog site. (Domain names usually cost around $5-10/yr to give you an idea of overall cost.)

Hosting

Hosting doesn’t cost very much the company I use, ComfortHost, only charges $32 a year for a blogging account. I use them because I knew the lady who started the business, I know they are reliable, and they treat me well. I know that there is a current small company, VoNetwork, that is only charging $12 a year for a blogging account. Only $12!!!

Loading WordPress

But then you may say you don’t  know how to load wordpress onto the server or how to do any coding. What you may not realize is that a lot of places you may purchase your hosting have these amazing things that just load the code for you and you are ready to get started. It’s usually just a press of the button and fill in your name, email, and name of your blog and you are set. (I will let you know you can upload and install wp in 5 minutes with there step by step instructions also.)

Making WordPress Beautiful

Making your wordpress your own is not that hard. It is all setup for you to just log in and be able to load and change your themes (templates) straight from the control panel. You don’t need to know anything about coding or ftp. You just go into themes and browse till you find what you want tell it you want to install the theme and it does it for you. (You do  need to know your ft log in information which you can ask your host to help you are just email me and I can give you pretty easy step by step instructions.)

I have actually worked with both wordpress.com and blogger and I will tell you self-hosted wordpress is so much easier you would be amazed and probably fall in love with it.

Making WordPress Work for You

One of the other benefits of WordPress is two special items they have. Widgets and Plugins. Both of these can help you personalize your wordpress and make it do the most spectacular things.

Widgets are used to setup your sidebar. They have a widget for recent posts, categories, archives, pages, your own text, etc. You just drag and drop them into the places you want them on your sidebar and then customize them filling in a few fields to make them perfect just for you and your blog.

Plugins make wordpress work so hard for you you would be shocked at the things it can do. There are plugins for ads, comments, stats, images, new widgets, slideshows, spam, and so much more. Some of the plugins can make your wordpress work as a photolog, can make it work as a shopping cart, or even a vlog.

You can upload Plugins just like you do themes into your wordpress with just a click of a button and your ftp log in.

Why should I change?

You may be doing great with your blog on blogger, wordpress.com or blogspot or any of these, but I will let you know that you are loosing visitors by being on a non-self-hosted website. You have people who may be interested in what you would have to say but you have to remember that people will make an opinion about your blog within the first few seconds. And you will have people see that you are on blogger, wordpress.org, etc (even if you have your own domain it is obvious) and just leave.

I will admit half the time I just leave a blogger site because it is so annoying to leave a comment and try to link to my site it’s not worth my time to read the blog. And if you have it set up so that I can’t enter my name and URL then you will probably never see me again no matter how much I love your blog.

What if I run into a problem?

There are so many resources out there for wordpress blogs! Just google “help wordpress” and see how many hits you get (I got 196,000,000 when I did the search). If you run into a problem or are wanting wordpress to do something special for you just google wordpress _____ and you will most likely get a few tutorials on how to do it and/or a few articles on the subject.

Or if you need even more help you can visit wordpress’ forums and ask for help. The wordpress community is all about helping each other out and they love to help newbies. Plus you can just search the forums and find your answer most likely.

Or if you want more one on one help email me, I’m always happy to help someone out. I enjoy meeting new people and being a help to them so don’t be afraid to ask. And if you need some major help or are just afraid to get started or if you want a personalized design contact me. I try to make my prices reasonable and if you are in real need you can just let me know what you can spare and I will work with you. I always am happy to offer help and/or a discount to a fellow mommy blogger.

WordPress is What Works for Me, what do you think of WordPress now?