Mastering the Sync: A Guide to Collaborative Moodboarding

In a traditional workflow, a moodboard is outdated the moment it’s created. A teammate finds a brilliant new pin, and suddenly your meticulously organized Figma file is no longer the single source of truth. This disconnect is a major source of friction for modern, collaborative teams.

This guide is a deep dive into the feature that solves this problem: Pinner’s sync capability. We’ll cover the best practices that transform your static design file into a living, breathing document that evolves in real-time with your team’s ideas.

For a deeper look at the challenges of remote collaboration, see our guide: Why Sync is a Must-Have for Remote Design Teams.

Why Sync is a Game-Changer for Teams

A live-syncing moodboard isn’t just a convenience; it’s a fundamental upgrade to the collaborative process.

• A True Single Source of Truth: The Pinterest board becomes the definitive source of inspiration. There’s no more asking, “Do I have the latest version?” or finding out about new ideas in a Slack message.
• Enables Asynchronous Work: A designer in one time zone can be deep in Figma while a strategist in another is adding pins. The work stays perfectly aligned without ever needing a meeting.
• Preserves Creative Momentum: The flow of design is no longer interrupted by the tedious task of manually hunting for and importing new images. The inspiration flows directly onto the canvas.

Best Practices for a Collaborative Workflow

To get the most out of syncing, here are a few pro-tips for your team:

1. Use Shared Private Boards: Create a private Pinterest board for your project and invite all team members (and even trusted clients). Pinner can access these boards, ensuring your work stays confidential while collaboration remains seamless.
2. You Control the Updates: Pinner will notify you with a badge when new pins are available, but it never syncs automatically. This gives you full control to accept changes only when you’re ready, preventing unexpected changes to your design files.
3. Use the Manual Sync Button: While Pinner checks for updates automatically (every 5min), the manual Sync button is your best friend when you want to pull in those updates instantly. Just give it a couple of beats to let Pinterest’s API catch up with your flow.

The Bottom Line

Pinner’s sync feature is more than just a tool; it’s a new way of working. It’s designed for the reality of modern design teams: remote, asynchronous, and highly collaborative. By keeping your inspiration and your execution in perfect harmony, you free up your team to focus on what they do best: creating.