Pinterest is a unique social media platform that’s used by over 250 million people worldwide.
Despite this and the amazing potential, it can have for marketing, it’s often overlooked by so many businesses.
There's something about browsing through tons and tons of pins that makes it hard to look away.
It could be the sheer variety, the colorful images, or simply the fact that we like to look at pretty stuff.
Despite this, Pinterest marketing can be really effective.
From content strategy to SEO, Pinterest marketing isn't all that different from other types of social media marketing. And if you’re looking for great ways to expand your digital marketing strategy, why not take a look at Pinterest?
This article takes a closer look at how Pinterest marketing works, so you can apply it to your own business.
Important disclosure: we're proud affiliates of some tools mentioned in this guide. If you click an affiliate link and subsequently make a purchase, we will earn a small commission at no additional cost to you (you pay nothing extra).
How Is Pinterest Different From Other Social Media Networks? 💁🏻♀️
There are several reasons why this network is a little different from the rest. Firstly, it has a hugely heavy focus on images, like Instagram.
But, unlike Instagram, you can easily link these images off from Pinterest itself, to another site on the web.
This could be one of your other social media accounts, a product, a blog post… the list is endless.
And, Pinterest is basically used as a search engine. It’s really popular for searching for inspiration for the home, fashion, lifestyle, weddings, parties, gifts, and more.
So, if you have a product to sell in this space, you can entice the buyers in by having a Pinterest presence.
Work On Your Profile 📝
If people browsing on Pinterest see something that inspires them, and the image links off to where they can actually buy it, they’re more likely to make this jump to becoming a customer.
There's something very powerful about being able to browse through thousands and thousands of pins and find exactly what you're looking for - utilizing this in your strategy will help you in more ways than you can count.
But how can you optimize Pinterest marketing to help more potential customers see your products?
The first step is to create a Pinterest business account - this provides you with lots of benefits such as analytics, rich pins, and more.
The next steps include choosing a cover board (think this one through!) and selecting up to 5 showcase boards - this is a great way to present your brand, blog, and whatever else you might be promoting.
Once you upload your profile photo and write up your bio, you can move on to branding your board covers - this way your boards match up with your brand and once you link each board to your website, you're making sure your profile aesthetic matches your brand aesthetic - and that's always a good thing!
Now onto verifying your website (this is the last step in setting up your account), you'll get access to both Pinterest analytics and rich pins - a way to share more information with your link.
The Power Of Hashtags On Pinterest #️⃣
Just like on certain other social media networks, such as LinkedIn and Instagram, the power of hashtags on Pinterest is strong.
They’re a great way of categorizing your posts and signposting what your image is all about.
Hashtags are easily picked up on by the algorithms that Pinterest uses, so they know who to show your content to.
As with any use of hashtags, make sure to keep them relevant and research the best ones to use before you jump straight in. Also, bear in mind that Pinterest only allows 500 characters in the descriptions of images.
So, if you want any other text describing what you’re sharing, you might have to use fewer hashtags than you’re used to.
Be An Active User of Pinterest 🌟
It's a fairly common knowledge that the bigger your audience is, the better - and the same applies to Pinterest.
As with any social media network, if you want to make the most out of Pinterest, it’s important to use it to the full!
So, don’t just post your images and go.
Make an effort to become an active member of the Pinterest community and grow your followers.
This involves pinning other pins that inspire you, and commenting on Pins that you have enjoyed.
You can easily make this branded for your business. For example, if you’re a wedding planner, you can share Pins that have wedding day tips.
In this way, you should start to build up a bigger audience, and being more engaged in general is always good for getting your name out there and making the most out of this marketing opportunity.
Think About The Purpose Of Your Content 📝
What do you want the content that you upload to Pinterest to achieve?
Is it simply a sales and marketing tactic, or do you want to expand your brand voice?
Perhaps you want to educate people in order to become an authoritative voice in your industry.
👉🏼 Whatever you choose, it’s important to have a purpose to guide your Pinterest marketing strategy.
This will help you to decide what to post, and also who and what to interact with on the platform. You don’t want to be sharing content that is irrelevant to your business or industry, especially on a professional account.
If you do this, you run the risk of looking like a disjointed brand that’s unsure about its own voice, which is never what you want to achieve from a marketing strategy.
Don't Forget About The Pinterest SEO! 👀
You might not think of Pinterest and SEO as having anything in common, but you'd be wrong.
SEO is just as important here.
With the right keywords spread through your profile, you have a higher chance of coming up in search engines.
There are 3 places where you need to focus on SEO:
Your Profile
It's easy to add the keywords you're targeting to both your name and your bio. With 65 characters allotted for your name and 165 for your bio, make sure to include the relevant keywords, whatever they might be.
Your Pins
both the title and the description of your pins should target your relevant keywords.
Just make sure your descriptions sound natural - no keyword stuffing, please!
Use a couple of primary keywords and a few secondary keywords to sound natural and target your desired keywords.
Your Boards
The same thing applies here. No fun titles for your boards - this won't do you any favors in the SEO world. Provide valuable descriptions along with your selection of keywords and you'll do just fine.
Get Blogging 📝
Struggling for content to upload to your Pinterest account? One of the things that actually works really well on this content is blogs.
Sharing your blog articles on Pinterest is really simple. Just choose a relevant and engaging photo or infographic that goes with the topic of your blog.
Then, you can link off to the exact blog page on your site! As we said previously, many people use Pinterest like a search engine to find things that inspire them. All sorts of topics work, you just need to find your niche.
If you think that your blog could fit the bill for inspiring content, promote it!
This will drive more traffic off your social media accounts to your site, where they can find out more about you as a business.
Pinterest Is Great For Market Research 🕵🏾♂️
- Want to know what your competitors are up to?
- Need to research the latest trends and see where your business or product fits in?
Pinterest is a really great place to do all of this!
People all over the world use it to get inspiration for their own lives.
So, why not use it to get inspiration for your business? You’ll also be able to gain insight into their own Pinterest marketing strategies which you can then put into action yourself.
Integrate Pinterest With Your Other Social Media Accounts 🙌🏽
Pinterest marketing tends to work best if you use it in conjunction with other social media networks.
For example, if you have a great post on Instagram, it’s a good idea to share it to Pinterest with a link back to that post.
This will not only get you engagement on Pinterest but also drive traffic over to your Instagram account, so it’s a win-win situation.
Did you know that you can also claim your Pinterest account on other networks such as YouTube, Etsy, and Instagram so that it’s easy for your followers and fans to find your other accounts?
Furthermore, you can also link your account up with Facebook and Google. This makes it easy to find others that you know on the platform, so that you can share the love and get more organic engagement.
Don’t Be Afraid To Use Tools 🛠
Getting it right on Pinterest can be tricky.
You might need to do a fair bit of trial and error to find out what works best for you and your business. After all, every business is different and varying strategies will work for each one.
Having said this, there are plenty of things you can do to help you along your Pinterest marketing journey.
There are so many tools out there that you can use to guide you! Here are some of them that you can’t miss:
Canva
Canva is great for creating eye catching graphics and infographics which are really popular on Pinterest.
And, you don’t need any graphic design skills to make something that looks good!
There are so many templates available, and it’s super simple to use, so you’ll be creating quality content in no time at all.
Hootsuite
is the ideal tool to use if you want to schedule your pins in advance, and tie them in with the rest of your digital marketing campaigns.
It’s also really simple to use and can revolutionize the way you post your content! It’s simple to add your image and caption.
This way, you don’t need to worry about remembering to post regularly, as you can upload everything in one go and schedule it to go out over a period of time.
Pingroupie
Pingroupie is the ideal tool to use to find group boards on Pinterest that you might want to join.
You can then use these to get your name out there and start being a more active member of the Pinterest community, which is always great for upping your engagement and brand awareness.
How To Measure The Success Of Your Digital Marketing On Pinterest 🧐
So, you’re keen to use Pinterest as a part of your digital marketing strategy.
👉🏼 But how can you make sure that what you’re doing is working?
Well, it’s really easy to see your insights, which will show you how many times your Pin has been viewed, clicked on, and more.
You just need to make sure that you’ve got a business account.
With a business account, you’ll also be able to run paid ads if you choose, helping to boost your presence on the platform and get some of that all-important engagement.
👉🏼 Overall, it’s clear that Pinterest marketing is really worthwhile if you have the right business and products to really make the most of it.
While it’s a social media network that is often overlooked, there are so many benefits to using it that can help skyrocket your digital marketing strategy.
Once you set up your profile, work on SEO optimization in your boards' and pins' text and keep developing your content strategy, you'll realize that Pinterest marketing is a wonderful way to promote your brand and your business for a long time to come.