You’ve probably heard about using Pinterest for business, and you may have even had many people tell you, you need to be on it, or ask why you aren’t on it?
So, why aren’t YOU on it?
If you’re like most clients I have, you are overwhelmed with having to learn a new social media platform. Or you’re skeptical as to whether Pinterest will work for your business… and if it does, you question how to even get started.
Well, let’s help with that.
Table of Contents
Will Pinterest Work for You?
Pinterest users are on the platform looking for a solution. Moms are awake at night with a fussy baby, and in desperation they search “how to get my newborn to sleep”. Getting ready for a new date you might search “How to do ____ with makeup”. Whatever the user’s needs may be, they hop on the platform to find answers. Users could be looking for healthy snack ideas, a recipe to use leftover turkey or ham, fashion ideas, how to start a business, running tips to increase your speed or any number of other tidbits of information.
The point is, there are millions of people on Pinterest (291 million to be exact) who are looking for solutions.
And the AMAZING thing is, it doesn’t matter what niche you’re in, there is. at least a segment of your audience somewhere on Pinterest for the solutions you’re providing.
You see, they don’t just get on Pinterest to scroll mindlessly, like we might be caught doing on Facebook or Instagram. They’re on there looking for a specific answer to a specific problem.
So, let me ask you. Does your product answer someone’s problem? Does your class, coaching, digital product help someone with their need? If so, then you can utilize Pinterest for your business.
Why Pinterest Marketing is so Effective
First off, let me tell you why Pinterest marketing is so effective. Since users are on Pinterest looking for an answer, they are a little bit “warmer” than the cold traffic you might find elsewhere.
They search things like “fashion ideas for kids” and up pops hundreds of pins giving with all kinds of related fashion ideas. When a user sees a pin, which stands out to them, they click on it and head on over to your website to learn more.
According to an article from 99firms.com Pinterest users are 98% more likely to try out what they see on Pinterest. That means, on your website, they’re more likely to click and opt-in to your freebie, take the steps you taught them, and that might include buying something as well.
Not only that, but the average time spent on Pinterest per visit is 14 min. That means they are searching for the right answer to their question and then acting on it.
When you get your Pin out there, with the right answer and give them tips, they are WAY more likely to sign up for your email, and hopefully buy from you in the future.
One more quick reason why Pinterest marketing is so effective is because even as a small business or less-recognized brand, you’re still able to stand out from the rest of the companies. Many Pinterest users have learned about brands with which they are unfamiliar more on Pinterest than other platforms.
Now that you see why Pinterest can be such a valuable marketing tool for your business, let’s get to the good stuff. How DO you get started with Pinterest to drive traffic, build your brand and ultimately increase sales?
5 Actionable tips to drive traffic and build your brand using Pinterest
- Figure out who your target client and/or customer is.
Pinterest makes it extremely easy to target users. You just need to know who you are serving, what they are looking for, what their biggest pain points are, and how your product can help them.
Action Step: If you don’t have a client avatar already, spend 10-20 min figuring out who your target client is. Be sure to write their gender, dreams and desires, wants and needs, and 3-5 of their most burning questions which you can help answer.
- Do the research, get it SEO friendly
Now that know who your target client is, and what their problems are. Now, it’s time to search Pinterest for the top keywords they are using. SEO and keywords on Pinterest are how users find your pins, get to know you, and you’re able to market to them.
Action Step: Using the Pinterest search tool (the bar at the top of the page) start searching the way your client would with their problems. Search for words such as “get my newborn to sleep better”, “how to do make up”, “protein packed snacks”. When you use these keywords, if Pinterest starts giving you some ideas then those drop-down ideas are also popular keywords and phrases. Make a list of popular SEO keyword and phrases. If you’re interest, I’m hosting a master class to help with SEO issues just like this.
- Create a powerful Pinterest profile.
Now that you know who your target client is, and what you can do for them, and popular keywords they are using… it’s time to build your Pinterest profile for them. As you build your profile helping your ideal clients, those ideal clients will find your pins, get to know you and visit your traffic.
Action Step: Create 8-10 boards which you can put pins on to help answer those burning questions they have. Typically, if it’s a big question, sometimes it can be condensed into 2-3 different boards. Make sure these are SEO friendly, using top keywords and phrases your target client would be using (the ones you found in step 2.)
- Be consistent
SEO and consistency are the 2 key elements to succeeding on Pinterest. There are a few ways you want to be consistent on Pinterest. 1. Show up 5 days a week. 2. Search the platform and pin helpful content for your ideal clients. Now, before you ask, yes this includes OTHERS’ content, maybe even your competitors… 3. Pin NEW content for your ideal clients.
Action Step: Decide when you will get on each day to pin. It’s best to do it the same time each day. I like to do it right before I dig into work, because sometimes I get super focused and I don’t want to stop working (sound like any of you? Lol). Typically, I set the timer for 10 min and start pinning till it beeps.
- Have your website ready for your traffic.
Pinterest is a great tool for brand awareness and increasing traffic to your website. But now that you have the traffic what are you going to do with it? It’s best to have that planned and all set up before the massive traffic starts coming. Once a user lands on your website and sees your content, what’s next? Will they opt in to your newsletter, sign up for a freebie, schedule a free consultation? Are you going to target them on Facebook with ads? Email marketing? Guide them to an online class?
Action Step: Decide what you want from your Pinterest traffic. How are you going to utilize that traffic to increase your profit?
In conclusion
Pinterest marketing is extremely effective if you have a powerful profile set up to target your specific clients, because traffic is great and all, but if it’s not your ideal client, then it won’t help you. And once your profile is geared towards your clients, you’re consistently pinning. In about 3 months you’ll start seeing more and more traffic to your website. Make sure you’ve got a way to turn that traffic into paying customers, and as the months go on, Pinterest will just keep growing and growing.
Enjoyed reading the blog? Sign up for our bi-monthly newsletter to receive marketing news and advice.
Related posts:
- Why you need to be utilizing Pinterest for your business - February 20, 2020
Hi Charisse, I love Pinterest and have been using it for almost a decade. I love using Tailwind now with it, it makes it easier to pin more frequently and it does generate traffic. I found it worked really well when I had a retail website. Thanks for your tips here.
Love that! Yes, Pinterest is a great platform to generate traffic. Tailwind is a great resource too, just make sure you do add some manual pinning into your strategy for best results 🙂