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Social Link Previews (Open Graph)

When you paste your website link into WhatsApp, LinkedIn, X, or Facebook, a little preview card usually appears with a title, a short description, and an image. If that card looks wrong, this article explains why and how to ask Kite to fix it.

What is Open Graph?

Open Graph is a small set of hidden tags on each page that tell social apps what title, description, and image to show in the preview card. Twitter cards are the same idea for X (formerly Twitter). You don't see these tags on the page — they only appear when your link is shared.

Why your preview looks wrong​

A few common reasons a shared link shows the wrong information:

  • The preview shows the word "prototype," a placeholder, or an old title. This usually means the Open Graph tags were never customized for that page, so a default or build-time value is showing.
  • The wrong image appears (or no image). No preview image has been set for that page, so the social app picks something on its own — or nothing.
  • The old preview still shows after you fixed it. Social platforms cache previews. They may keep showing the old card for a while even after your page is updated (see the troubleshooting note below).

How to ask Kite to set your social preview​

You can set the preview per page. Decide on a title, a short description, and an image, then tell Kite plainly.

  1. Open your site in Kite.
  2. Describe what you want for the page, for example: "Set the social link preview for my Home page. Title: Bright Spark Electricians. Description: Licensed electricians serving Denver — same-day quotes. Use my logo as the preview image."
  3. Ask Kite to set both Open Graph and Twitter card tags so the preview looks right across all apps.
  4. Publish your changes. See How to publish.
Choose a good preview image

A clear, landscape image (such as your logo on a clean background or a strong photo of your work) reads best in preview cards. You can manage your images in Images & logos.

Troubleshooting​

  • The preview still shows the old/wrong info after I fixed it. Social platforms cache previews. First confirm the change is live on your page, then re-share the link. Many platforms offer a "debugger" or "post inspector" tool that lets you force them to re-fetch your page — search for the one belonging to the platform you're using (for example, the LinkedIn Post Inspector or Facebook Sharing Debugger).
  • It says "prototype" or a placeholder. That page's Open Graph title hasn't been customized yet — ask Kite to set the title, description, and image as shown above.
  • The image is missing or cropped oddly. Ask Kite to set a dedicated preview image for that page, and choose a landscape (wide) image.
  • Only some apps show the right preview. Make sure both Open Graph and Twitter card tags are set, and remember each app caches separately, so they may update at different times.