Want to Stop Wasting Hours on OpenGraph Images? Let's Fix That Together 👋

Ever had this moment? You've just written an amazing blog post or launched a new feature. You share it on Twitter and... the preview looks terrible. Or worse, no preview at all. Now you're spending the next hour trying to get that OpenGraph (OG) image just right. 😅

I feel you. As developers, we have better things to do than fight with design tools for social previews.

The OpenGraph Rabbit Hole 🕳️

Last month, I was updating my website. Simple task, right? Well, not quite:

1. Open Figma
2. Google "What size should OG images be?"
3. Create new frame (1200x630, got it!)
4. Add text, looks good
5. Export and test...
6. Text is too small on mobile
7. Back to Figma
8. Repeat... for Each. Single. Post. 

Two hours later, I was still tweaking fonts and wondering why I, a developer, was spending my evening doing this.

You're Not Alone 🫂

After sharing my frustration in some Discord communities, I discovered I wasn't the only one. Here's what other developers told me:

"I keep a Figma file with all my OG templates, but it's still a pain to update each one."

"I tried automating it with code, but making it look good was harder than I thought."

"Sometimes I just skip it because it takes too much time."

Sound familiar?

The Real Problem(s) 🤔

After talking with dozens of developers, here are the common pain points we all share:

1. Time Sink

   • Manual design work for each image

   • Testing across platforms

   • Tweaking for different displays

   • "Why am I spending my coding time on this?"

     
     

2. Design Decisions

   • Font size? Font family?

   • Colors and contrast

   • Layout and spacing

   • "I'm a developer, not a designer!"

     
     

3. Technical Headaches

   • Different size requirements per platform

   • Caching issues

   • Missing previews

   • "Why isn't this showing up on Twitter?"

     
     

4. Maintenance Overhead
   • Updating multiple images
   • Keeping brand consistency
   • Managing templates
   • "I should be writing code, not doing this."

A Better Way Forward 🌅

Here's what I think we need:

1. Speed: Create professional OG images in seconds, not hours
2. Simplicity: No design skills required
3. Consistency: Templates that actually look good
4. Automation: Easy updates and management

And that's exactly what I'm working on with gleam.so.

What's Coming in This Series? 📚

Over the next few posts, we'll dive deep into OpenGraph images. Here's what you can expect:

1. Technical Foundation (Next Post)

   • OG image specifications that actually work

   • Platform-specific requirements

   • Implementation best practices

     
     

2. Practical Tips & Tricks

   • Quick wins for better previews

   • Testing and validation

   • Automation techniques

     
     

3. Real-World Case Study

   • Before/After examples

   • Performance impact

   • A/B testing results

     
     

4. Developer's Implementation Guide
   • Step-by-step solution
   • Code examples
   • Automation scripts

Let's Make This Better Together! 🤝

I want this series to be genuinely helpful for developers. So:

1. Share Your Pain Points

   • What's your biggest OG image challenge?

   • Which platforms give you the most trouble?

   • What would make this process easier?

     
     

2. Join the Journey
   • Follow this series for updates
   • Share your experiences
   • Get early access to solutions

Quick Question for You 💭

Drop a comment with your answer:

What's the longest you've spent trying to get an OG image right? And was it worth it?

Mine was 2.5 hours... and I still wasn't happy with the result. 😅

This is Part 1 of the "Making OpenGraph Work" series. Follow along as we tackle OpenGraph images, step by step.