How I Plan & Create Pinterest Pins Using Notion, Canva, and ChatGPT
A step-by-step walkthrough of my process for designing, organizing, and publishing pins that drive traffic.
Why Pinterest Still Matters
Pinterest isn’t just another social media platform—it’s a visual search engine . That means pins don’t disappear in 24 hours like Stories or get buried in endless feeds like Instagram. A single pin can drive traffic for years.
I’ve been on Pinterest since 2011 (back in beta!) and still have pins from early 2020 that bring me thousands of impressions every month . That’s the power of search-based content.
And now with video pins and cross-posting options, you can even repurpose TikToks, Reels, or YouTube Shorts onto Pinterest .
Step 1: Decide What You’re Pinning
Most people pin blog posts, but since I focus on YouTube, I create pins that link directly to my videos, freebies, or courses .
👉 Example: A pin titled “Notion 101 Beginner’s Guide” links straight to my YouTube tutorial .
Other options:
Blog posts
Lead magnets / freebies
Product pages
TikTok or Reel uploads
Step 2: Organize Your Pinterest Account
A few quick tips for setup :
Optimize your profile → Add keywords like “Notion,” “Marketing,” “Productivity,” or “ADHD.”
Create branded board covers → I designed mine in Canva with my brand colors.
Curate your boards → Keep a mix of your own pins + others’.
I’ve recently rebranded to red, so my pins now follow that palette to stay consistent and stand out .
Step 3: Design Pins in Canva
Here’s my Canva workflow :
Open Canva → search “Pinterest pin” → choose a template.
Swap in your colors & fonts (save your brand kit inside Canva).
Add your YouTube thumbnail (or blog image).
Layer in logos (Notion, YouTube, your brand mark).
Make 3 variations per video—you never know which design will take off.
💡 Pro tip: Batch-create templates. I have hundreds of pins now because I just duplicate and swap out text/images .
🔗 Try Canva here: canva.com
Step 4: Write Descriptions with ChatGPT
Here’s where AI comes in :
Copy your video/blog title.
Paste it into ChatGPT.
Prompt: “Write a Pinterest description for this.”
Boom—instant keyword-rich description. Paste it into Pinterest (you can tweak if needed).
Step 5: Keep Everything Organized in Notion
I use Notion as my master content hub.
Inside my “Past YouTube Videos” database, I store :
Video title
Published URL
Pinterest description (from ChatGPT)
Pin variations
This way, when I want to make new pins, I can quickly grab the link + description without digging through old posts.
Step 6: Upload & Schedule on Pinterest
Go to Pinterest Pin Creator and :
Upload your pin design.
Add your title + ChatGPT description.
Paste your Notion-stored URL.
Choose your board.
(Optional) Schedule the pin inside Pinterest or through tools like Tailwind or Metricool.
Note: Pinterest pins often take 3 months to rank in search . Consistency is key.
Step 7: Track What’s Working
Inside Pinterest analytics, check:
Impressions → Visibility.
Engagements → Saves & clicks.
Outbound clicks → The real metric that drives people to your business .
For me, the highest-performing recent pin was “7 Steps to Make & Sell Notion Templates” .
🔗 Tools & Links Mentioned
💡 Final Thoughts
Pinterest is a long-term traffic machine. Unlike social platforms, your content keeps working for you months (or years) later.
My system—Notion for tracking, Canva for design, ChatGPT for copywriting, and Pinterest for publishing—makes the process efficient and repeatable.
👉 If you want the exact templates I use to plan my YouTube + Pinterest workflow, check out my Notion Foundations Course.