Pinterest is a great place to share your product or ideas with the world in a way that is easy and accessible. So why not share what YOU have to offer? Here are 10 tips and tricks to have for posting on Pinterest!
1. Remember, Pinterest is a Search Engine
Lots of people think that Pinterest is a social media site, when in reality, it is a search engine! Like Google, Bing or Yahoo, it is a place where you can go to search for things that are online.
What does this mean for you?
If you want to create a space for your clients to figure out who you are, what you do, and why they need you, then it’s time to start using Pinterest in a professional rather than a social way. That means hiding the pins, posts and boards that do not reflect the kind of company you are or want to represent.
2. Archive or Create Secret Boards
Like it was said previously, it is time to start fresh for your business and get rid of the pins or boards that do not reflect you or your business. Now before you go in and delete everything, may we offer a better solution?
Here’s the deal, you do not want to lose the followers you currently have, right? Well, deleting something on your page will also lose you those followers.
Instead, simply archive pins you no longer want seen on your page, or create secret boards that only you are able to see. This will clean up your page in a way that reflects your business in the best light!
3. People Like People
You may be excited to post all about your business and your page, but aren’t you forgetting something? What about you? People want to interact with other people and know who they’re buying from.
The best way to do this is on your profile page. On your profile, choose a clean, clear, professional looking photo of YOU that you want people to see. If you hide behind a logo and do not put up an actual picture, future clients may feel a sense of disconnection or insincerity that may turn them away from you.
Oh, and don’t be afraid to pin some of the things you love! While your other boards should be private or archived, try to think of the pins that show who you are and what you like while still maintaining your business image, and put those ones out there for people to see.
By doing this, people will feel that you are more real, connected, and have a personal interest in the things that you post.
4. Create the Perfect Client
Now before you start posting and pinning, may we offer a word of advice: make sure you create the perfect client.
Create in your mind who the perfect client would be, and write it down!
Think about what this person likes, dislikes, fears, wants, does in their free time, what they are looking for in life, etc. then create someone to refer back to when you are creating content. By finding these answers and creating that perfect client, you are able to build a more stable and engaged audience.
Most people think that creating general posts for a general audience would be more effective. This may work at first, but soon the people you have reached will see that you are doing or selling something different than what they originally thought because you were too broad about it.
By creating for a specific client in mind, you can stay true to your content and products while growing your audience who genuinely is interested in what you have to offer. Your audience will be more engaged, solid, and likely to look you up or pin your posts again!
Get our client avatar template here.
5. Keyword Strategy
Like we said previously, Pinterest is a search engine, so people will be looking up specific words to find the things they need. That means that you need to figure out the words you want people to find you with!
An easy way to start is to simply think of 5 core keywords that describes your business (e.g. social media marketing, female entrepreneur, website designer, etc.)
You can figure out if these words are effective by testing them out on a search engine like Google or Pinterest, and if you want additional help, you can check out sites like Moz.com or Answer the Public.
Keep track of these words and consistently try to stick to 10-15 that you can use in your Pinterest content, that includes descriptions, Pin titles, board names, name of Pin graphic file, URL Slugs – pretty much anywhere you are able to infuse them naturally.
Remember to pick your words wisely because they will be the words that you’ll be known for online.
6. Pinterest Boards
While we are still on the subject of words and keywords, we need to talk about boards and board names.
If you have a Pinterest, you have probably seen people who name their boards funny titles for the things they Pin. For example, if they have a board for recipes, it may be called, “Get in my Belly” or a quote board called “I Needed this Today”.
While those may be funny or okay to use if you are using a personal Pinterest account, it is not the best strategy for a business account. Be straightforward and clear when it comes to titling your board. Then, infuse and include keywords in your descriptions and hashtags!
When you take a look at your boards, feel free to click and drag the most important boards to the top. You can do this at anytime, even if you continue to create boards.
One more note, create what people call an “Anchor Board”, a place where it is all exclusively YOUR pins, YOUR content, YOUR creations, etc. That way people can find things that are immediately related to you and your website.
7. Content Creation
Creating content for your business is important if you want to be seen and drive traffic to yourself. If you are starting out on Pinterest, don’t feel like you need to create 50 different Pins to get traffic. You can make the most out of 1 Pin by reusing it and giving it a different image, different design, different background, new title, or different wordplay, but link it to the same URL.
An easy way to start is to create 1-2 Pins per day and schedule them out for a month or so. When you feel you can handle more, feel free to up it to 3-4, 5-6, etc. until you feel that is the right amount for you.
Schedule some time and dedicate a couple hours of just Pin creation, whether that’s once a week, once a month, it does not matter so long as you create sufficient content to keep up with your goal.
(If you want, you can also repurpose old content by adding new graphics.)
Oh, and don’t forget to be consistent about pinning! Your followers want to see your content and can easily lose interest if they see that you go long periods of time without posting or updating.
8. Popular Content
The type of content you create can really bring your numbers up. Here are some different types of content that are popular on Pinterest:
-“How To….”
– Quotes
– “Steps for….”
– Quizzes
– Infographics
– “Ideas for….”
– DIY’s
Try to make your content in one of these formats, they grab the most attention and will drive traffic to your website.
9. Pin Titles/Descriptions
I know we’ve touched a little bit on titles, but we want to share a bit more in depth on Pinterest titles and how to make them the best you can.
First off, think of your keywords or key phrases like we discussed previously. Think of what words you want and how you want to infuse them naturally.
Next, make sure that the title is something clever. Try using trigger words or something that sparks curiosity.
In your Description, you’ll want to add more keywords naturally and add a call to action. You are limited in your character count, so make sure to be clear and approachable, make it something that your viewers are curious about to want to know more of.
Lastly, add a few hashtags. This will help Pinterest organize your content and help others find you. Don’t feel like you need to add a lot of hashtags, add anywhere from 2-5.
10. Check Analytics
This has become a great way for me personally to know if what I’m doing is growing my audience or decreasing it. Your analytics will let you know what kind of traffic your pins have made. They use the metrics of Impressions, Total Audience, Engagements, and Engaged Audience.
For this tip, I have 2 things I want you to remember.
- Impressions is a good way to see if your keyword strategy is working. But this is not the most important number to be paying attention to.
- Engagements/Engaged audience are the most important analytics because they are an indicator of how you are doing as a business. The more engagements, the better you are doing.
Now get on over to your Pinterest account and start optimizing your profile!
Still need help? That’s what we do best!
Contact us about social media optimization options and get the help you need to get to the next level in your business.
