There’s been a lot of talk going around in the blogosphere about Rich Pins.
Rich Pins are pins on Pinterest that contain additional information about the pin.This info makes your pins more useful to other pinners.
With Rich Pins enabled, whenever something is pinned from your website, Pinterest pulls additional information from your site and adds this information to the pin.
This information includes the name of your website, a picture of your favicon, and the headline.
If you take a look at the images below, you can see how my pin looks both with and without rich pins enabled.
Here’s my pin without Rich Pins:
Here’s my pin with Rich Pins:
Recommended Resource: I used the MiloTree pop-up to increase my Pinterest account to over 10,000 followers.
Notice how the image with Rich Pins enabled stands out? See how it includes my favicon, website name, and the post title? Pretty cool, huh?
Currently, there are six types of rich pins. The pin types are:
- App Pins – includes an install button that allows pinners to download your app.
- Article Pins – includes your name, the articles headline, and a short description of the article.
- Place Pins – includes an address, phone number, and map of the location.
- Recipe Pins – includes ingredients, how long it takes to cook, and the number of servings.
- Product Pins – includes automatically updated pricing, product availability, and where to buy.
- Movie Pins – includes reviews, ratings, and cast members.
Pinterest is pretty good at determining which pin category best suits your content.
When I verified my website for Rich Pins, Pinterest determined that my posts are article pins.
This means whenever a post is pinned from my website, Pinterest will automatically place a post description within the pin.
This description is taken from your post meta description. I create all of my meta descriptions using the WordPress SEO by Yoast plugin.
Once the meta description is added to your post, your pin will look something like this:
As you can see, Rich Pins are a great way to brand your pins, make your pins stand out, and help inform other pinners about your pin.
How to Set Up Rich Pins on Pinterest: Part One
Before we begin, to enable Rich Pins, you must have a Business Pinterest account. If you don’t have a business account, you can convert your personal account to a business account.
1. If you have a self-hosted WordPress site, the easiest way to set up Rich Pins is by using the WordPress SEO by Yoast plugin.
This is because it allows you to activate Open Graph metadata. Pinterest uses Open Graph metadata to optimize your site for Pinterest.
Go ahead and install and activate the WordPress SEO by Yoast plugin.
2. Once you’ve installed WordPress SEO by Yoast, in your wp-admin, go to SEO > Social and click on the Facebook tab. Now, make sure the “Add Open Graph metadata” box is checked, and save your changes.
How to Set Up Rich Pins on Pinterest: Part Two
1. To apply for Rich Pins, head over to the Rich Pins Validator.
2. Pick one post from your site (it can be any post), and enter the URL into the validator box and click “validate.” You’ll see a message letting your know your pin has been validated.
3. Click on the “Apply Now” link located beneath the validator box.
You will receive an email from Pinterest once your application is approved. I was instantly approved for Rich Pins; however, I’ve heard it can take up to a week to be approved.
Helpful Tip: Make sure you add a Pinterest “Pin It” button to your site so that your readers can pin your content easily!