Whether you’re a blogger or a business owner, Pinterest is a valuable tool for promoting your business.
What, Pinterest?!
The one you scroll through for hours on end looking for sofa inspiration (doing my living room at the moment so sofas are a hot topic in our house!)
Yep, the very same one.
Pinterest is a huge visual search engine with 250 million users every month.
If used properly Pinterest can be a massive referrer of traffic to your blog or business page whether that’s your own website, your Facebook page or your Etsy shop.
I don’t know about you but if I’m redecorating a room in my house, looking for present ideas or outfit inspiration I have a search on Pinterest.
In fact, Pinterest itself says that 93% of Pinners use Pinterest to plan their purchases!
If someone is looking for the very thing you are selling, maybe it’s art prints or cute handmade items, if you’re not on Pinterest advertising your products (and I’m talking for free, although promoted Pins are an option) then you’re missing out to someone who does!
You need Pinterest in your life.
I’m going to introduce you to the basic concept of how you can get the eyes of a potential customer or reader on your offer (so to speak!) via Pinterest.
Why should I use Pinterest to market my business?
Your target customer is on Pinterest
You read properly when I mentioned earlier that Pinterest has 250 million users every month. EVERY MONTH! That’s ridiculous!
93% of those users are there to plan their next purchases. This means they are ready to shop!
Pinterest is a global platform so if you’re thinking it’s only big in the U.S. you thought wrong my friend! Over 50% of users are international.
And if you thought Pinterest was just for the ladies you got that wrong too. Over 50% of all new sign-ups are men.
It’s highly likely that your target customer is on Pinterest.
Pinterest is the gift that keeps on giving!
Wait there’s more…the beauty of Pinterest is that your Pin can be repinned over and over again.
The life of a Pin is much longer than other types of social media posts – a pin lasts for months as opposed to hours.
This means more people can see it and awareness of your business and your brand can grow.
And if it goes viral, well then you’re #winningatlife.
Have a look at this image from Tailwind that shows what can happen if you achieve the holy grail that is a viral pin!
Just imagine the exposure and what that could do for your business.
And the best bit?
A Pinterest Business Account is completely free!
Ok, have I convinced you yet?
Pinterest for Business – Beginners Overview
What is Pinterest?
Before we go any further, I don’t want to make the assumption that you’re on Pinterest as much as I am!
So let’s run through the basics of “what is Pinterest?” just in case (feel free to scroll if you know this bit already) and familiarise ourselves with some Pinterest terminology.
Pinterest is a massive search engine filled with content that is known as Pins.
Each Pin links directly back to a source on the internet.
Users are able to pin these Pins to their own accounts by way of Boards that they have created.
It’s a bit like ripping a picture that you like out of a magazine but instead of keeping it in a scrapbook you pin an online image (‘Pin’) to a Pinterest Board.
Pinterest users are called Pinners because…well it’ s pretty obvious why!
If you like what a Pinner is pinning you can follow their Pinterest account i.e. all of their Boards or you can just follow a specific Board.
Once you are a “follower” of that Pinterest user, their Pins will show up in your Pinterest Feed.
You can see how that would be brilliant for a business!
How do I use Pinterest to promote my business?
Let me explain the top-level basics of using Pinterest to market your business. This works just as well for bloggers as it does for business owners.
#1 You start by creating a Pinterest Business Account
You can convert your personal one if you prefer but there are pros and cons of doing this.
Unless you have tons of followers it’s probably best you set up a separate business account so that you can use the business name in your Pinterest URL.
You can have a personal and a Business Pinterest account so you’re not limited.
The best news is setting up a Pinterest Business Account is completely free.
#2. You create amazing looking Pins and Pin them to your Boards
Pins are the images you see on Pinterest. You link these Pins to either a post on your blog, a specific page on your website or particular product on your facebook page/Etsy shop etc.
#3. Users will click on your Pin and be directed back to your blog, business website etc
Once they have been directed they will be able to buy your product, inquire about your service or read your blog post.
Amazing!
Now, I appreciate that this is not ideal for businesses that are limited by location. You’re not going to want Pinterest users in Australia click on a pin that advertises your family photography business in London!
However, there are loads of other business models where Pinterest will work brilliantly!
As a Pinterest Business account holder, you will be able to see where your audience is located as part of the analytics Pinterest offers.
How to create a Pinterest Account for my business?
How to set up a new Pinterest Business Account
This is super easy and the actual set up takes just a few minutes…
#1. Get started here.
#2. Fill out all your details and choose from the drop down the option that best suits your business.
#3. Click the “Create Account” button at the bottom of the form.
Once you’ve created your account you can then fill out your account basics, including verifying your website.
How to convert a personal Pinterest account to a business account
#1. Log in to your Pinterest profile
#2. Click on this link to convert to a business account
#3. Fill out your information and click “Done”
How can I maximise Pinterest for my business?
The aim of the game is to get as many eyes on your Pins as possible.
The more people that see your Pins increases the number of saves of your Pins which in turn increases the number of clicks on your Pins to then redirect a potential customer to your site/page/shop to hopefully make a sale!
Phew!
There are lots of ways to increase the audience of your Business pins.
Building up a following and an audience takes time and work but it’s definitely worth it!
Here are a few ideas for building a following and getting your Pins out there to a wider audience:
- Fill out your profile description.
- Make sure you add a profile picture
- Set up relevant Pinterest Boards that your potential customer would be interested in (not random personal boards!)
- Make sure you fill out your Board Descriptions including relevant keywords (from your research earlier)
- Claim your website on Pinterest
- Create stunning Pins (try using Canva or PicMonkey) with a keyword rich relevant description
- Enable Rich Pins
- Perform Pinterest Keyword Research
- Join Group Pinterest Boards
- Use an approved Pinterest scheduler like Tailwind.
Some of these are a bit more advanced but don’t worry I’ll delve into these in a future post.
Recap
Using Pinterest for your Business is awesome!
You may have thought that Pinterest was only used by people planning their wedding or designing a kitchen but that’s just not true!
Pinterest is a massive global search engine with customers ready and waiting to buy from you.
By setting up a Business account, creating amazing Pins showcasing your business and linking those Pins back to your business’ online presence you will be able to attract new potential customers.
The great news is that the life of a Pin far out lives a post on Facebook or Tweet on Twitter.
Your Pins can be repinned over and over putting your products, services or blog in front of a whole new audience who have been waiting to discover your fantastic brand.
So what are you waiting for? Set up your Pinterest Business Account today!