Sell Canva Templates: 7 Mistakes to Avoid & How to Use Canva

Here’s the thing nobody tells you when you decide to sell Canva templates:

The hardest part isn’t creating them; it’s avoiding the 7 mistakes that can hinder your success.

It’s getting people to find them, be it on Creative Market or other platforms to maximize your reach.

I learned this the hard way. I spent weeks just focusing on design on Canva, obsessing over fonts, moving elements pixel by pixel, feeling like a real graphic design pro. I finally uploaded my first Canva template to sell on Etsy.

And then… silence, which can be disheartening, including some of you learning how to sell Canva.

No traffic. No sales. Just me refreshing the page like it owed me money.

What I realized? Most of us spend 90% of our energy creating the digital product and about 0% making it visible.

The truth is, if you want to sell Canva templates and actually make money online, you need a simple visibility system.

In this post, I’m going to share the 7 common mistakes to avoid when selling Canva templates online, and exactly what to do instead.

These are the lessons I learned building my own template shop, the lessons that took me from “nobody’s looking” to “oh wow, people are buying my designs while I sleep.”

Sell Canva Templates: Mistakes To Avoid 

1. Creating Canva Templates Without a Marketing Plan

I used to believe that if I made a beautiful Canva template, it would magically sell. (I know, rookie mistake.)

But Canva’s template library is huge. Marketplaces like Etsy are packed with people selling nearly identical products. Without a plan to get the right eyeballs on your design, it’s invisible.

The fix:

For every template to sell, create multiple paths that lead buyers in. I use Pinterest pins, SEO-friendly product descriptions, and long-tail keyword titles.

If you’re selling your Canva templates on Etsy, pair the product with at least 5–10 pins and a blog post. Don’t just publish and pray. You have to take intentional actions to market your digital products.

2. Using Generic Titles That No One Searches For

My first listing was literally called: “Pink Planner Template.”

Guess what? Nobody searched for that.

The fix:

Think like your buyers. A small business owner isn’t searching for “Pink Planner.” She’s typing: “Undated Weekly Canva Template for Busy Moms” or “Minimalist Canva Template for Coaches.”

Use Canva’s search bar, Etsy’s autocomplete, even Quora questions to uncover real phrases. Build titles around struggles, not aesthetics.

That one shift took my Canva template sales from crickets to clicks.

3. Writing Descriptions That List Features, Not Benefits

Most Canva users don’t care that your digital product has “12 pages” or “editable fonts.” They care about what it saves them: time, energy, sanity.

The fix:

Instead of: “This Canva template includes 10 social media posts.”

Try: “Tired of wasting hours designing social media graphics from scratch? These pre-made templates let you customize and post in minutes, without needing design skills.”

Remember: you’re not selling pages. You’re selling freedom.

4. Forgetting About SEO and Keywords

I thought selling on Etsy is great since Etsy would handle visibility for me. Wrong.

Without keywords, your template design won’t show up in Etsy, Google, or Pinterest.

The fix:

Sprinkle keyword phrases naturally into:

Your title (long-tail works best: “Editable Canva Template for Instagram Posts”)

Your description (use customer language like “small business owners” or “social media templates”)

Even your blog posts or Pinterest descriptions

This is how you make your Canva templates to create actually searchable, so your digital product becomes a way to make money—not just another forgotten file.

5. Relying on Just One Pin or One Post

I used to create only one pin for one Canva template. I thought this is marketing, just pin it on Pinterest, put in the title and description. But nothing happened of course.

The fix:

Create at least 5 different pins for each template link. Change colors, fonts, and headlines. Test different calls to action: “Save Time,” “Get Instant Access,” “Design Like a Pro.” Each pin becomes a new entry point into your template shop.

Think of pins as doors. Why would you only have one door to your online business when you could have ten?

6. Ignoring Canva Pro and Licensing Rules

This one’s huge. Many people don’t realize that you’re not allowed to sell Canva templates using free elements you don’t own. If you create and sell using Canva Pro elements, you’re safer—but you need to check Canva offers and their content license.

The fix:

Use Canva Pro (yes, the pro account is worth it for serious sellers).

Stick to elements you’re allowed to sell.

Replace free elements with your own graphics or design assets.

This is a mistake to avoid at all costs. The last thing you want is to build a Canva template business on shaky legal ground.

7. Believing More Products = More Sales

I know the temptation. It’s natural to think that you should create like a hundred Canva templates, upload to Etsy and assume that sales will come in. I’ve done that and it nearly burned me out with no sales.

The fix:

It’s not all about quantity. Quantity is important, but not in itself. I’d say that speed is most important, then balance quantity with visibility and quality. Don’t just create 1 template and expect any sales either.

I’d rather have about 10 templates that people want to buy, with keyword-rich titles, problem-solving descriptions, and 50 Pinterest pins each… than 100 templates nobody can find and nobody wants.

Track your sales, look at what works, and create templates accordingly. Double down on winners.

How to Use Canva to Create Templates That Actually Sell

When I first opened my Canva account, I thought I knew what I was doing. I’d drag in a random font, drop in a pretty graphic, and call it a finished Canva design. It looked good on screen, but when I tried to sell that Canva template? Crickets.

That’s when I realized: knowing how to use Canva isn’t just about creating something that looks nice. It’s about building a digital product that’s easy to edit, legal to sell, and valuable enough that people actually pay for it.

So here’s how I use Canva today—not just to create templates—but to sell Canva templates effectively.

Go With Canva Pro

If you’re brand new, free Canva is fine to start. It’s user-friendly and gives you access to Canva’s template library, pre-made templates, and free elements to practice your design skills. But if you want to start selling, you’ll quickly run into limitations.

That’s where Canva Pro comes in. A pro account gives you access to premium design assets, advanced typography, and brand tools that make your template design look polished. Canva Pro also offers a free trial, so you can test it before committing.

And trust me—if you want to run a Canva template business as a real side hustle or online business, Canva Pro is worth it.

Use Canva Pro Elements Correctly

Here’s one of the biggest mistakes to avoid: using elements you’re not allowed to sell. A lot of people selling Canva templates on Etsy (and other marketplaces like Etsy or Creative Market) don’t realize that not every element in Canva’s template library can legally be used in a template to sell.

If you’re selling your Canva templates, always double-check Canva offers and licensing rules. Use Canva Pro elements you’re allowed to sell, or swap them out for your own graphics and design assets. It’s not glamorous work, but it protects your shop.

Design With Buyers in Mind

When you create and sell Canva templates, you’re not just making art—you’re making a digital product someone else will customize. That means your Canva design should be clean, easy to edit, and practical.

Think about typography choices (simple fonts over fancy, unreadable ones). Think about the design background (don’t drown it in graphics). Think about how Canva users—small business owners, coaches, or creators—will actually use your template.

Your job isn’t to impress them with your design skills. It’s to give them a ready-to-use Canva template that saves time and makes them look professional.

Always Share With a Template Link

This is where a lot of people make common mistakes. Don’t just download your template and send a PDF. The correct way to sell Canva templates online is to generate a template link. That link lets your buyer open the design inside their own Canva account and customize it instantly.

Before you start selling, test your template link. Open it in a fresh Canva account and make sure every font, element in your design, and layout works. If the link is broken, your Canva template sales will tank fast.

Build for Passive Income

The real magic of Canva is that once you create and sell one template, you can resell it endlessly. That’s how you turn a Canva template shop into a way to make money online and create passive income.

But this only works if your template design is simple, editable, and built to last. Track your sales, notice what templates on Canva actually perform, and create templates accordingly. Don’t just make random social media graphics—make Canva templates to create that solve real problems (like social media templates for small business owners).

That’s how you stop “people selling Canva templates online” from being your competition—and start building your own Canva template business that feels like a real way to make money.

Final Thoughts On Selling Your Canva Templates

I get it. It’s exciting to create Canva templates online. It feels like a fun side hustle, and it’s free to start. But if you want to sell your templates effectively, you need to avoid these common mistakes:

• Don’t just design on Canva, market your work.
• Don’t write boring titles, use keywords.
• Don’t list features, sell benefits.
• Don’t skip SEO, learn how to sell Canva with search.
• Don’t rely on one pin, spread your net wide.
• Don’t ignore Canva Pro rules, use pro elements legally.
• Don’t overwhelm yourself with quantity, focus on visibility.

When you fix these, your Canva template shop stops being invisible. It becomes an actual online business, a way to sell designs that bring in passive income, even while you sleep.

Key Takeaways

1. Selling your Canva templates isn’t just about creating, it’s about visibility.
2. Titles and descriptions must be keyword-rich and problem-focused.
3. Pinterest, SEO, and Flipboard are powerful search-driven traffic sources.
4. Canva Pro is essential, don’t risk licensing issues.
5. More products don’t equal more sales, visibility does.
6. Templates on Canva can become a real way to make money online if marketed right.