If you are looking for ways to improve digital marketing, Pinterest may just be the missing link you’ve been searching for.
On Pinterest, small business marketing has taken off on the social media platform over the last few years, and a free Pinterest Academy has since been launched, specifically designed to help businesses advertise effectively.
Let’s be real, though: Managing your small business is a labor and time-intensive process, meaning you may not have time to complete all those training modules regardless of their zero-cost nature.
Instead, what you need is a crash course on Pinterest small business digital marketing, and that’s exactly what the team at Galactic Fed had in mind when we put together the following guide to advertising on the platform.
Digital Marketing: Pinterest Stats You Need to Know
Pinterest is the 14th largest social media network in the world. Though that fact may lead you to question whether small business Pinterest advertising is a viable way of earning new customers and boosting sales, there’s no need to worry. We get it: It’s understandable for something in 14th place not to sound all that appealing, but it isn’t the site’s ranking that makes Pinterest for small businesses such a great marketing tool.
Instead, Pinterest for small business marketing is so worthwhile because a large chunk of its 482 million monthly active users are in the United States. More importantly, Pinterest has a penetration rate of 29.4% in the U.S., which means you can reach nearly one-third of all prospective consumers on the platform.
Users, referred to as “Pinners,” are planners and dreamers, often looking for things they want to try or buy, and that makes the platform a goldmine for your business when you’re looking to increase its brand visibility and drive sales. Whether you are an established brand or a relative unknown, you can make your mark on Pinterest.
Why Pinterest Digital Marketing Makes Sense
It’s no secret that social media marketing is a mainstream brand-building tool, but many social media giants, including Facebook, Instagram, and X, are geared toward bigger brands. While thousands of small businesses are successful at running ads on these platforms, they are still ultimately left at a bit of a disadvantage.
On the other hand, Pinterest is built for small businesses: A staggering 97% of Pinterest searches are unbranded, which demonstrates how most Pinners aren’t looking for a particular brand or company. They want useful, fun products or solutions to their problems, and therein lies your opportunity.
Pinterest isn’t a haven for international brands; it’s a place where everyday users and local companies connect over shared interests. All you need to do is identify a need and position your product as a solution for said need — it’s as simple as that.
Setting Yourself Up For Pinterest Digital Marketing Success
Before we get into how to launch a Pinterest digital marketing strategy, there is a bit of housekeeping you’ll need to take care of first. Specifically, you’ll need to do the following:
Create a Pinterest Business Account
If you already have a Pinterest user account, setting your brand up for advertising success will be easy. Simply switch over to a business account so you can access detailed analytics tools and other business features. If you don’t have an account yet, create one, making sure to set it up as a business profile.
Complete Your Profile
Fill out your profile with a clear description of what you do. Add your website link and upload a recognizable profile picture, most ideally your brand logo.
Claim Your Website
Finally, claim your website on Pinterest to link your account on the platform with your site. Once linked, you’ll be able to track Pinterest-driven traffic and determine whether your advertising efforts on Pinterest are encouraging people to visit your site.
Crafting Your Pinterest Small Business Marketing Strategy
With the basics covered, it’s time to create a game plan. There may be no one-size-fits-all solution to Pinterest small business marketing, but there are some general best practices that just about everyone should adhere to.
These are as follows:
Know Your Audience
Ask yourself who your ideal customer is. If you can’t confidently answer the question, now is the time to fix that. You need to know who your audience is on Pinterest, what they are interested in, and how they search for things on the platform.
Once you know who you are marketing to and how they interact with content, you can craft a curated marketing strategy that appeals to them. Pinterest offers audience insights, which can be incredibly useful in understanding your target demographic.
Set Clear Objectives
Your next question should be focused on what you want to achieve through Pinterest digital marketing. Whether the goal is to increase brand awareness, drive traffic to your website, or boost sales, having clear objectives will guide your content and promotional strategies.
Your goals should be realistic and quantifiable. Instead of saying, “I want to improve brand awareness,” set a more attainable goal, such as, “I want to reach 3,000 new users in the next month.” Getting your ads in front of 3,000 people can do wonders for brand awareness, especially if you can do it in a cost-effective way.
Focus on High-Quality Visuals
Pinterest is all about visuals, so make sure you use high-quality, eye-catching images that stand out. Vertical images work best, as they take up more space on users’ feeds, thereby increasing the chances of engagement.
The goal is to make your posts pinnable: The more pinnable it is, the higher the chances are that users will save it and circle back to it later.
Optimize for SEO
At the end of the day, Pinterest is a search engine, so applying SEO strategies to your posts (pins) is essential. Use keywords in your descriptions and pin titles to increase the likelihood of your pins showing up in search results.
In addition, remember that the overwhelming majority of Pinterest searches are unbranded, which means most people aren’t going to be searching for your company or products by brand name. Instead, they’ll be using relevant keywords, so if you’ve optimized your content, you have a better chance of popping up in their results.
Create Value-Driven Pins
Even when advertising, prioritize delivering value to your audience above all else. No matter what the goal or format of your content is, it should be useful to those viewing it.
With that said, seeing as many Pinterest users are looking for ideas and inspiration, your pins should offer value to your audience in the form of tips, tutorials, infographics, or even inspiring images.
Leveraging Boards Effectively
Using pinboards effectively can be a bit tricky, but there are a few ways to get more out of them. For one, make sure your content is organized. Each board should be relevant to your brand and audience while also flowing in a way that makes it easy for users to find what they are looking for.
Once you get your Pinterest digital marketing strategy up and running, consider collaborating with influencers. Working with Pinterest personalities or other businesses to create group boards can extend your reach to a wider audience.
Integrating Pinterest Into Your Overall Marketing Strategy
Your Pinterest small business marketing strategy can’t exist in a vacuum — it needs to function as a part of your overall brand-building efforts. Thankfully, there are many ways to weave your Pinterest campaigns into your strategy.
First, make sure you promote your Pinterest account on other social media pages and websites. Doing so helps in leveraging your existing audience across different channels.
If you’re in e-commerce, take advantage of Pinterest’s shopping features, too, like product pins and shoppable boards. These features allow users to purchase your products directly through Pinterest.
Lastly, for an extra boost, consider Pinterest ads. Running ads will help you gain traction faster within the platform while also improving the cross-channel flow of traffic.
Benefits of Small Business Pinterest Marketing
Marketing your small business on Pinterest can yield all sorts of benefits, such as:
- Access to niche markets
- Improved brand awareness and visibility
- Marketing mix diversity
- The opportunity for growth
However, getting the most out of your Pinterest digital marketing efforts requires a cohesive strategy and clear goals. You’ll also need to use a well-rounded approach that combines organic efforts with paid ads and off-site marketing efforts.
Elevate Your Digital Marketing With Pinterest
Pinterest offers a unique platform through which to creatively showcase your brand and connect with an engaged audience.
By understanding your audience and targeting them with valuable, visually appealing content, you can elevate your digital marketing. Pinterest success doesn’t happen overnight, though: It requires patience, consistency, and a willingness to adapt, but with the right approach, you can add the platform to your digital marketing tool kit and pin your way to success!
