Pinterest is a visual platform that allows users to share and collect images of things they like, are interested in, or want to try out or purchase. Pinterest is a great way to organize your thoughts and ideas, find new inspiration, and connect with others who share your interest. Plus, following the right profiles can help you get creative, learn something new, find what you are looking for, and be productive in no time. As the content creator and online business owner, it’s your job to be the one your audience finds. The site has over 478 million active users worldwide and is growing rapidly. In this blog post, I am going to give you a quick run down on how to get started on Pinterest and what to do to start seeing results quickly.
What is Pinterest and how does it work?
Pinterest is an inspirational image-based search engine that consists of virtual pinboards. . It gets lumped in with other social media sites and in some aspects it is similar but the one thing that makes it stand out from Facebook and Instagram is that it’s a search engine first and foremost. Users can create boards based on different topics, and then add pins (images or videos) to those boards. Other users can follow each other and “re-pin” pins to their own boards. Most pinners who follow other pinners don’t know each other, either in real life or on other social media platforms. They follow other users based solely on the info they are sharing on Pinterest and the idea of following back doesn’t really exist on Pinterest. As the content creator, you are there to provide answers to what the pinner is searching for, not necessarily to comment and reply back and forth as you do on Instagram. A massive difference between Pinterest and other social media platforms is the fact that the user is there for themselves, they aren’t there to live vicariously through someone else and they aren’t there to chat it up with you. They simply want to learn something, find a solution to their problem, figure out a way to achieve what they desire, and find what they are looking for (and this oftentimes leads to purchasing or signing up for something).
Pinterest is an excellent platform for businesses to market their products and services. It’s set up in a way that really helps businesses get themselves out there and in front of their desired audience.
It’s super easy to create pins, you don’t have to be a graphic designer, and promoting your ideas and business content is free. When done right and with consistency, Pinterest can be your #1 traffic driver.
Setting up a business account on Pinterest
The first thing you need to do before you can start promoting your business on Pinterest is to create a free business account. This gives you the ability to claim your website, create and publish pins, access to a robust set of analytics, and you can run ads if you so choose to. However, I do not recommend running ads until you are well established on Pinterest and your website is optimized for the traffic otherwise you run a real chance of tossing money out the door with little to no return.
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Here’s a quick rundown on how to get started:
1. Create a business account
You can convert your personal account to a business account but you want to make sure your current activity has to do with your business. If not, keep your personal account personal and create a brand new business account using a different email address. Here’s where you create a new account: https://business.pinterest.com/
2. Optimize your profile
Head to your profile icon and then to settings. This is where you will add a profile image (I strongly recommend using an image of yourself), write a short bio of fewer than 500 characters, and claim your website. For the bio you want to make sure you use keywords. More on that coming up.
3. Find your keywords
Before you do anything else you have to know the keywords or search terms currently being searched on Pinterest so you know how to better optimize your profile, create boards, write board descriptions, and create pins that are found and convert. The best place to find keywords is right in Pinterest using the search bar. As you start typing you will see a guided search appear. The guided search is the dropdown of the most common searches based on the words you are typing into the search bar. I recommend doing a brain dump, writing down all the possible keywords and search terms you think your audience would use to find your content. TIP: Think like the user which usually means taking your expert hat off and thinking like a beginner.
4. Create boards and board descriptions
Now that you know your keywords you can work on creating boards. You want to create boards using the results in the guided search. Doing this means your boards will be found in the search results. If you title your board something that is not showing up in Pinterest search or is titled something your audience doesn’t understand or won’t recognize you are missing out on some serious opportunities of being found in the search results. The search results is the whole point of Pinterest. Your goal is to show up there and to show up often and the only way to show up in the search results is to use words that appear in the search. That’s how Pinterest indexes profiles, boards, and pins….they use the keywords. Aim to create at least 5 boards to start off with. You will create more as you get further along in your Pinterest journey but when you are first starting out it’s best to be really intentional with your boards. Create boards that have to do with your business, based on the content you create and will be saving to those boards. Each board needs to have a board description. The board description should be heavily keyworded. The board description is more for Pinterest to index rather than for the pinner to read although you can include links in the board description if it makes sense.
5. Add pins
When you first create the board Pinterest will prompt you to add some pins to the board. I recommend adding 5-10 pins from other pinners to this board to jump-start the indexing process and to show Pinterest it is on the right track with knowing what you will be adding to the board. This is also an excellent time to check to see how good your board title is. If you see content in the suggested pins that looks like content you create or will be creating, then you are on the right track. If you do not see pins that fit the content you will be creating for that board then it’s probably a good idea to rethink the board title.
6. Follow others
Followers aren’t nearly as important as they are on Facebook, Instagram, or TikTok. I do recommend doing some pin and profile research though to see what else is out there, to get some inspiration, and to follow others. It’s ok to follow others within your industry. It’s not a high competition platform like other platforms you might be on. Pinterest is more about collaboration and there’s absolutely more than enough to go around. Following others on Pinterest also helps to tell Pinterest your audience and who you are looking to get in front of.
7. Create & publish your own pins
I use Canva.com to create pins for my clients. The Pro version is phenomenal. It’s perfect for all levels of design and very easy to navigate. Once you do some pin and profile research you can see what is out there and what others are currently creating then you can head to Canva to create your own based on your content for your business. Blogs do excellent on Pinterest. In fact, I highly recommend starting a blog so you can always have fresh content to publish to Pinterest. Even if you are an e-commerce business, create a weekly blog as a way to draw your audience in, get them on your email list, and introduce them to your world. When creating pins keep in mind that keywords are everything. You want to make sure you are using keywords in the text overlay (the words that go on the image), in the pin title, and in the pin description. When you are uploading the pin to Pinterest always make sure you include a destination link that way when your pin is found and clicked on, the pinner is taken to your website.
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Pinterest for Beginners Checklist
Pinterest can be a great way to market your business and content if used correctly. Here are some tips for beginners on how to get started:
1. Make sure your profile is complete with a good description of your business and website.
2. Create interesting and engaging pins that will stand out and grab people’s attention.
3. Use keywords in your descriptions and titles to help people find your pins.
4. Use a CTA (Call To Action) when designing your pin and in the pin description.
5. Pin regularly, at least once a day, to keep your followers engaged.
6. It’s ok to repin other’s content, especially if you do not yet have enough to make sure you are pinning daily. You can use others’ pins to fill in the gaps. But be intentional and pin more of your content than others.
7. Use hashtags sparingly – too many hashtags can make your pins look spammy. Hashtags are searchable so use them as keywords
8. Add a “Pin It” button to your website so people can easily pin your content onto their boards. You do this by enabling Rich pins and your social media sharing feature on your website.
9. Don’t add links to the text overlay of the pins you create. You can (and should) add a link to the description area AND add a link in the comments section after publishing the idea pin.
Measuring the results of your Pinterest activity
Pinterest has a robust analytics section that allows you to see and track all that’s going on with your pins. You will start seeing monthly views and impressions within a week from pinning to your Pinterest account. Those numbers are great! It means you are on the right track, you are using the right keywords, and your content is showing up in search results. The real numbers you want to pay attention to, though, are clicks, saves, and follows.
1. Clicks
This is the number of times your pin was clicked on to view, engage, and interact with.
2. Saves
This is the number of times your pin was saved to another pinner’s board. Saves tell you the health of your pin. The more saves, the more people with similar interests see your pin.
3. Follows
This is the number of people who have chosen to follow you based on the content they found that you created. They want to see more of what you are putting out there.
Know Your Marketing Goals
I recommend creating a Pinterest strategy based on what your business goals are and what want to get out of Pinterest. Pin with intention for 3 months then check back in and see where you are at. Evaluate your progress, see which pins are doing the best, and look at what you might need to improve or change.
BIG TIP: Pinterest is a long game. It takes at least 3 months of consistency and using Pinterest best practices before you start seeing some good results. For brand new business accounts, it’s usually more like 6-9 months. Don’t give up or think Pinterest isn’t working for you. Pinterest is a search engine. Everything is evergreen which means the pins you create now will be out there working for you for years to come. The work you put in now will come to fruition down the road so think about that when you create your Pinterest strategy and lay out your expectations. Think long-term. You always want to be at least 45 days ahead of the trend. Pinning content when that topic is at its peak isn’t the best strategy. That pin will do great the next time that trend comes around though!
THREE game-changing tips for Pinterest success:
1.) Keywords are everything. Know them and use them all the time.
2.) Stay relevant. Always know what your audience is currently searching for and create content around that. If they aren’t searching for it, they won’t find your content
3.) Be consistent. Stay the course, whatever that might be. You can’t go hard one month and then take 2 months off. Find a pinning schedule that works for you and then commit to it. Stay accountable and watch Pinterest help you achieve your goals plus so much more.
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