Pinterest is widely known as a hub of inspiration for DIY crafts, recipes, interior design, and other similar projects. Yet many businesses are successfully using the platform as a marketing channel. In this blog post, we’ll explore the benefits of using Pinterest for marketing, as well as best practices for building a Pinterest social media strategy.
What is Pinterest and Why it Matters for Your Business Social Media
Pinterest is a social media site and search engine centered around visual content. Over 460 million active users visit the platform every month in search of inspiration when they are excited to start a project or ready to make a purchase. This makes it a great place for brands to get their products in front of potential buyers.
But as with any other platform, proper social media management tools and techniques are necessary for success, from knowing your audience, to effectively executing the right content, and more.
Benefits of Using Pinterest in Your Social Media Campaign
Pinterest users have access to endless inspiration at their fingertips, a simple way to keep their ideas organized, and a source of positive reinforcement. However, the benefits of the platform are not limited only to individuals. Here are some ways businesses can benefit from Pinterest:
Increased brand visibility
Pinterest is incredibly effective at getting your content to people with genuine interest or intent. Once a user searches for something, the Pinterest algorithm recommends other pins and search terms that are closely related to their original search – even if the content was posted eons before.
It functions more as a visual search engine than a social sharing platform. Users are typically actively searching for purchase inspiration for personal projects, as opposed to forming community connections like on Instagram or other similar platforms.
This makes it easy for your ideal audience to find your content.
Engaging in content creation
High-quality, regularly updated content is one of the best ways to make a lasting impression online. Pinterest allows brands to create fresh content that targets potential customers at an important point in the customer journey.
Amplified website traffic
Pinning content – the key term associated with publishing – allows brands to add imagery and links to each content they publish, which can aid in organic traffic development. Pins also show up in Google search results, which provides even more opportunities to drive traffic to your website.
Drive more sales
On Pinterest, users can shop for your products directly from the platform. Simplifying the customer buying journey is likely to drive more sales for businesses.
Setting up Your Pinterest Business Account
To get started using Pinterest for your business, you’ll need to set up an account. You’re able to create either a business account or a personal account. To create a business account, first, go to pinterest.com and click Get started here.
Next, click Create account and enter your email address. You’ll then be asked to create a password, followed by your basic business information. You can then choose to add the link to your website so that it will be included in your Pinterest bio.
Once you’re done, you can start creating pins.
Steps To Create a Pinterest Social Media Strategy
To get the best results from your marketing efforts, it’s best to have a solid strategy in place. Here are some steps you can take to build a Pinterest social media strategy for your business:
1) Identify your audience
The first step to building a marketing plan on any platform is to identify your audience. Who do you wish to create content for? Where do they live? What are their goals? Age group? Clearly defining your target audience will help you create relevant content, making it more likely for them to connect with you.
2) Define your visual identity
Good, consistent branding will make it easier for your business to stand out. On Pinterest, the main opportunities for branding are your cover photos, your profile photo, and your bio. Choosing a color scheme and general style for your cover photos and pins is a great way to differentiate your business from others. Your mission statement should also be clearly stated in your bio.
3) Create compelling content
The Pinterest site is hyper-focused on visuals, which means the best way to attract users is by creating stellar images for your pins. Pin visuals can be made up of product photos, text, or a combination of both. Product photos with short descriptive text directly on the pin can be very effective at getting users’ attention.
Besides the visual elements, it is important to craft clear pin titles and descriptions and use relevant keywords to show up in search results.
4) Use different pin formats
There are several pin formats you can choose from. These include:
Image Pins: This is a pin with a simple image on it. This image can be a product photo, descriptive text graphics, a featured image for a blog post, or whatever you choose.
Video Pins: These are pins that display video content. Each pin can have one or a combination of short videos. You’re also able to add stickers and other elements to your videos.
Idea Pins: These pins allow you to include a collection of videos or photos on one pin. This is similar to carousels or stories on other platforms.
Product Pins: This type of pin allows viewers to purchase products directly from Pinterest.
Rich Pins: Rich pins pull information from your website and display it under your pins. For example, you could display a product and its price, and the rich pin will update the product details if anything changes on your website.
5) Creating and organizing your boards
Pinterest allows you to group your images using boards. To keep pins organized, it is usually best to use a separate board for different categories of products or services. For example, if your brand is a home goods store, you could opt to create a board for each category, including bedroom, kitchen, living, and similar.
A good quality cover photo and a board description that includes relevant keywords are also essential when creating boards.
6) Schedule content
Regularly posting fresh pins increases your chances of showing up in search results on Pinterest. A good social media management tool will allow you to create and schedule pins well in advance. This can save a lot of time and boost profile quality.
7) Use a social media moderation tool
Social media moderation is vital for maintaining your business’ image online. From responding to customer complaints to ensuring content quality standards are being maintained on your social accounts, proper moderation is invaluable.
Consider outsourcing social media moderation services across all platforms with ICUC, in any language to businesses around the globe.
8) Implementing Pinterest SEO
Keyword research is important for any content strategy — one of the benefits of Pinterest is that brands can implement keyword research directly on the platform. By entering a search term, the Pinterest algorithm suggests several related keywords, based on what users are entering frequently.
These related search terms can be included in pin titles, descriptions, and even board descriptions to improve the performance of your pins in the search results.
9) Use Pinterest Ads
Pinterest ads allow business profiles to target users (potential customers) who are deeply interested in a product or service category. With Pinterest ads, brands can re-target people who have already interacted with your content, those who often interact with content similar to yours, and people who already viewed your website, for example.
10) Use Pinterest Analytics to track results
A business account gives access to Pinterest analytics so you can measure the performance of your pins. Some useful metrics to track include:
Link clicks: The number of times visitors click on links in your posts.
Impressions: How many times your posts show up in users’ feeds or search results.
Saves: The number of times viewers save your pins.
Shares: The number of times users have shared your pins.
Best Practices Using Pinterest Social Media
Here are some tips for the best results in your Pinterest social media marketing strategy:
Drive traffic to your website
Brands can use Pinterest to boost traffic to their website. You can do this by posting images or videos relevant to your business, and then including a link directly to your website. A good pin description and title help encourage users to click through.
Feature your blog posts
A high-quality featured image linking to a blog post is a great way to increase views on your blog. This type of pin is also very relevant to the Pinterest audience since it’s filled with users seeking clear instructions and ideas for their projects.
Use original and relevant images and videos
To ensure you’re attracting the right people to your business, it’s essential to post relevant content on Pinterest. Product photos and other properly branded images are more likely to attract users who are interested in your business offerings. Pinterest content leans heavily into idea generation, listicles, and inspiration.
Choose the right categories for your content
Pinterest organizes pins by categories, so it’s important to choose the category that best describes your business when setting up your account. Popular categories include home decor, DIY and Crafts, Women’s Fashion, and Food and Drink.
Selecting the right categories can help guide your content creation strategy, allowing you to target users in specific niches.
Connecting with influencers to boost your Pinterest reach
Influencer marketing is an effective way to get in front of your audience, and it works wonderfully on Pinterest. To identify good influencers on Pinterest, search within your niche for those who post fresh, high-quality content regularly.
Because of the search engine nature of the platform, follower count is less important for getting content in front of a large group of people. Still, follower count can be a good indicator of someone who posts quality content regularly. Other helpful metrics to look at include monthly views, number of boards, as well as number of pin comments & reactions.
A brand-aligned influencer with healthy reach and engagement can help you build brand awareness, connect more deeply with your audience, and drive sales and traffic, depending on your goals.
Develop Your Pinterest Social Media Strategy With ICUC
Taking the time to build a Pinterest social media strategy for your business can result in increased brand awareness and sales. ICUC can assist with building a social media strategy that boosts engagement, generates leads, and uncovers new audiences.
Interested in starting a brand strategy on Pinterest or another social sharing platform? Schedule a call with us.
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