Do you use Pinterest to promote your business? If not, you are missing out on an easy way to attract new customers and build buzz around your brand.
Since September 2015, the network has 100 million monthly active users, with the number of “Pinners” doubling within the last 18 months, reportedly.
This superstar network offers more than three times the traffic attracted by Google Plus, YouTube, Twitter, StumbleUpon, LinkedIn and Reddit all combined. If you’re ready to power up your marketing campaign and use Pinterest to promote your business, here are some simple steps to help you get started.
Create a “Pinterest for Business” Account
Pinterest offers an exclusive account for businesses with access to advertising features like rich pins, Pinstitute, and a “Pin It” button you can add to your website. So your first step is to create a Pinterest for Business account and get familiar with the features.
Choose the name of your account carefully. It should reflect your business and give a clear look at what your brand is all about. You can also add a link to your website in your profile. Don’t forget to add relevant information about your products and services so that people know what you are offering.
Choose Compelling Pins
Pinterest is all about visual content. In this unique platform, you are competing for attention among a sea of images so choose your photos carefully. Bright colors, infographics, and large vertical pictures work best. If you’re promoting an article, you might want to use a basic photo editor to add the title text on the pic so it will instantly create curiosity. Always choose high quality images and include relevant links and descriptions with each pin.
Make Your Pins Searchable
Creating great pins is just the first step. Next, you need to optimize them to be easily found in searches. Use features like Rich Pin to add keyword-rich descriptions and hash tags along with links to your website. Sort your pins into separate boards that target relevant keywords.
For instance, if your website sells t-shirts, you should create boards based on potential Pinterest searches. You might set up a board for “Funny T-Shirts” or “Celebrity Quote T-Shirts”. Then pin individual t-shirt photos and descriptions on the appropriate board to make it easier for your potential customers to find.
Improve Audience Engagement
When you promote your business on Pinterest, it is extremely important to interact with other Pinterest users. Otherwise, your pins might look spammy. Take time to pin regularly during the times your target audience is most active. Do additional research to understand your customers’ interests and the type of content they often share. If you know their needs well, you can create pins they will love. Engage and talk to your followers. Respond to their comments. Follow them and share their content as well.
Another great way to improve engagement is to follow the influencers already present in your industry. Comment and share their pins to get the attention of their audience base. But your job does not end here. You have to promote them further. Link your Pinterest account to your other social media accounts like Facebook and Twitter. This will help you draw in a few followers as a starting point and then you can grow your Pinterest account from there.
Track Your Progress
The last step is to track your progress. How many times have people re-pinned your images? What type of pins get the most attention and engagement? At what time your audience is most active?
Questions like these can help you a lot in developing new strategies to improve your Pinterest presence. You can also use the newly introduced Pinterest Analytics feature to track all the important metrics that you need to know to market your business effectively.
If you don’t use Pinterest, you are missing an easy opportunity to reach a large potential customer base. Tap into a whole new audience and spread the word about your products and services. Start promoting your business on Pinterest today.
