Stephen Jeske — January 22, 2017 Follow @stephenjeske
There are a lot of people getting lots of referral traffic from Pinterest, which got me to thinking;
How do they do it?
And what do they know about Pinterest marketing that I don’t?
So I spent a lot of time combing the Internet to come up with a good list of solid Pinterest marketing tips to share with you today. There’s a lot of advice out there that experts have generously shared through blog posts and videos.
I narrowed my long list down to these 28 tips for marketing on Pinterest from which anyone can benefit, regardless of experience or budget. Pinterest marketing tools do make the process easier, but you still need to dedicate sufficient time to getting things done.
Schedule Your Pins
Buffer’s Kevan Lee is a big proponent of scheduling pins, which should come as no surprise. Scheduling increases productivity since you can batch the process of finding and sharing great content with your Pinterest friends.
Spacing out your pins offers a better experience for your followers. Instead of receiving a burst of content, followed by periods of silence, your pins arrive in a consistently steady stream at a time that’s convenient for them. Pinterest marketing software like ViralWoot , with an integrated Pin scheduler make this real easy to execute.
Make Your Pins Tall
Many good Pinterest marketing ideas can be found right on their blog, like this official video in which they emphasize the importance of tall images. Unlike wide images, tall ones look better in the column format that Pinterest uses. Size is of particular relevance when viewing pins on a smartphone, where Pinterest users are most active.
Use Pinterest to Conduct Market Research
According to Nidhi Shah, some merchants on Etsy marketplace use Pinterest to get valuable customer feedback. They make changes to their products based on the response they receive. Pay close attention to metrics including likes, repins and user pins to determine the popularity of your offer.
Offer Pinterest Referral Traffic a Surprise Discount
In her post on Unbounce, Sharon Hurley Hall relates the story of a garden supply company that received lots of traffic from Pinterest, but below average conversions. Their solution was to create a campaign targeting Pinterest visitors that came to their homepage.
They just added a popup to collect emails and an offer of free shipping on orders of $ 75 or more. As a result, they were able to triple the purchases they received from Pinterest referral traffic.
Move Your Top Performing Board to the Top of Your Profile
Social media expert Rebekah Radice advises people to move their top 3 performing boards to the upper part of their profile for easy viewing and repinning. It works much the same way as the popular posts widgets on the sidebar of many blogs. Making it easier for your audience to access the content they enjoy improves your chance of receiving some engagement.
Design Content to Support Goals
“Once you choose your goals, you can determine what to pin by reviewing your Pinterest analytics,” suggests Mitt Ray in his post on Social Media Examiner. Perhaps you want to drive engagement or maybe build an audience or drive traffic to your site. Businesses will typically choose a primary goal such as getting traffic, plus a second complementary goal like building and audience. Review your analytics based on those objectives.
Go Beyond Your Niche
Pinterest is unique as your professional and personal interests can exist side by side on the same profile page. Marc Guberti believes that “one of the best ways for relationships to build is by creating some boards that are based on your hobbies.” Going beyond your niche adds an extra dimension to your profile and allows your audience to gain better insight into a more personal side of your online persona. It also provides the opportunity to engage with others in your niche with whom you may not otherwise interact.
Don’t Forget to Lead People Back to Your Website
This tip may seem obvious to some, but Teuila Mau has a valid point. A link to your page is automatically generated when you pin a web page because it has a URL. But that’s not the case if you upload an image from your computer. Make sure in this instance that you add your URL manually.
Serve Complementary Content
Julia McCoy believes “If you provide your audience with helpful information, people are more likely to follow your Pinterest boards and engage with your content.” Providing customer with useful and relevant information helps builds trust and loyalty among your followers. In her example of Bank of America, you will see they share tips across a diverse range of categories like wedding plans, travel, home buying and financial education for children.
Make Your Brand Pinnable
Here’s what Deborah Mitchell advises in her article on Entrepreneur. Include Pinterest on your sharing buttons to make it easier for your visitors to share content. Use long pin descriptions for maximum impact. Create a keyword-rich description so your pin is easily found in a search. Include a link to your product’s purchase page and use a dollar sign in the pin’s description so it can become part of gift guides.
Plan Pinterest Content in Advance
Be conscious of seasonal trends and topical times of the year. According to ThriveHive, consistency improves your Pinterest marketing results. Don’t expect the content you share to be a hit without any promotion on your behalf. Budget your time and money in advance so you’re not caught off-guard with peak season activities. Social media is like a garden that needs constant nurturing.
Don’t Hard Sell – Inspire!
The visual nature of Pinterest makes it very easy and tempting to focus solely on the exciting projects in which you’ve participated. Kayley Bright believes that companies rise above the competition when they stop focusing only on them themselves. So balance the company-focused content you share with other information about your industry.
Optimize Your Pinterest Presence for People and Search
Optimization increases the chance that you will be found among the 100 million Pinterest users. Heidi Cohen suggests you associate your Pinterest username with a relevant keyword. Otherwise, you limit your chance at being discovered. Use a relevant call-to-action in your “About” section that links to your website, combined with a keyword-rich description of your business. Name your Pinboard using words for which your audience searches and include keyword rich descriptions.
Cash in on Popular Pinterest Topics
Zack Fagan has some advice for brands on Pinterest that aren’t in the popular DIY, fashion and travel markets. “Piggy back on the popularity of other topics for your own good.” It will take some creativity on your part to figure a way to connect a favorite topic with your brand. But once accomplished, you’ll have access to a far greater number of prospects.
Repurpose Your Content
Leverage your significant investment in content creation by repurposing your content for different situations. In his podcast on Social Media Examiner, Michael Stelzner reveals how Jeff Sieh, creator of Manly Pinterest Tips, makes different images and shares them across different networks every time he publishes a new post. He also pins new posts to multiple boards for maximum exposure.
Use Text in your Images
Most boards are so crammed with pictures that it’s practically impossible to know the subject matter of what a pin, without clicking on it. That’s why Tina Cheong urges her clients to overlay an image with text. Words help your audience grasp the topic of your pin and keeps it from getting lost in all the visual noise. It’s been said that a picture is worth a thousand words, but in this case, a little text helps a lot.
Choose Your Target Wisely
In her post on Adweek, Kimberlee Morrison advises marketers to consult their Pinterest analytics before spending money on Promoted Pins. Use that insight to figure out what currently works and choose the keywords in which your audience is most interested.
Use a Board Widget on Your Blog
Choose a board that’s related to your topic and include it at the end of your blog, advises Anna C Bennett. When a visitor clicks on the board, it takes them directly to Pinterest and provides additional exposure for your other boards. This tactic is also an excellent way to gain more followers. It’s a simple Pinterest marketing tip that takes little effort to accomplish.
Capitalize on Semantic Search
The Pinterest search engine dramatically affects how marketers should promote their brand on Pinterest. According to Alyson Ben-Yehuda, it’s not enough to post content about your product. You need to pin and repin about other topics in which your target audience is interested. Pinterest semantic search brings highly qualified and engaged leads. So your Pinterest marketing must work to inspire your audience and capture their imagination.
Utilize Zoomed Images
In her post on TrackMaven, Nicole Campisi reveals that zoomed images perform better on Pinterest. Apparently images with less than 40% background receive two to four times more repins. Surprisingly, pins that show a person’s entire face received 23% fewer pins. L’Oreal and Nordstrom are two prime examples of brands benefiting from the use of zoom images
Say Yes to Logos, but No to Banner Ads
Be tasteful and make sure your pins don’t look like ads are what Lisa Lacy advocates in her post on Momentology. Data shows that pins that resemble ads receive up to 30% less engagement than corresponding pins. However, logos encourage participation and add credibility to the content you share. It serves as a visual marker helping consumers decide whether or not the content is right for them.
Focus on Themes
Heather Pimental advises those engaged in Pinterest marketing to create boards that are focused on a particular theme. The reason is simple. When the visitor finds a pin that solves their problem, they’re prone to look at other pins in that collection. Before creating your Pinterest marketing strategy, check for seasonal trends and try to identify the interests of your customers. Compiling the best product options in one place increases the likelihood of getting more followers
Nurture Your Blog
Your blog is the heart of your content marketing, argues Sarah Fichtinger in this Gradiblog post. Create a board dedicated solely to your blog so your followers can find all your posts in one place. Make finding your board easier by including your most relevant keywords in its’ name. Every time you publish an article, pin it on your board accompanied by an enticing description with a strong call to action and high-quality image.
Use Rich Pins
Lucas Santo at Shopify urges anyone marketing through Pinterest, especially retailers, to use rich pins. They contain additional information right within the pin like real-time pricing and stock availability. Also, rich pins improve visibility and click through rates through eligibility for Pinterest’s own curated feeds.
Analyze and Improve
“Pinterest Analytics will give you a lot to ponder,” according to Nora Flint. In her post on Pagemodo, she suggests reviewing your analytics to figure out what content gets the most traction. You will gain insight into your top pins and the most popular boards as well as your most popular pins of all time, which ones rank highest in search results, and those that received the most re-pins. The Interests section on your analytics report tells you which categories and boards your audience enjoys.
Pin Your YouTube Videos on Pinterest
Vlog Nation have a number of Pinterest marketing ideas. One in particular encourages marketers to pin a thumbnail image of their video and link it back to their video page. Create a vibrant and beautiful board through pinning of additional material like behind-the-scene images and video screenshots.
Comment on Pins to Build Relationships
“Take 3 minutes a day to post one value-added comment,” is the recommendation by Ishita Ganguly. Make the comment relevant and not self-promotional, and link to other content as a means of providing additional resources.
Thanks for taking the time to read my post. Using Pinterest for marketing doesn’t have to be complicated if you make a concerted and focused effort. If you’re still in need of some more ideas, check out these 24 Pinterest Marketing Blogs.
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