What is Pinterest
Pinterest is a social media network – a so-called visual search engine that serves to find ideas and inspiration from across various domains. The most searched content on Pinterest includes: food, interior design, travel, health and fitness, women’s fashion, cosmetics, DIY and crafts, entertainment, weddings and holiday and event tips (decor, gifts, etc.).
Pinterest works on the basis of so-called pins. A logged-in user searches for images (pins) on Pinterest that interest them and pins them to their board. Pinterest then offers them more and more additional ideas from this area.
Pinterest as a marketing tool
Pinterest is often seen as a platform for inspiration in the field of design, fashion or living, but it has great untapped potential for the B2B segment as well. Its visual nature and unique algorithm can help companies build a brand, increase the visibility of products or services, and attract a new type of customer or business partner. Here are a few reasons why Pinterest should definitely become part of your marketing mix:
Visual search engine
Pinterest works as a visual search engine where users can search for inspiration on the basis of images and short videos. Pinterest’s algorithms are designed to deliver relevant content based on a user’s past behavior, searches, and pins. High-quality visuals and SEO optimisation of your images will help you start up organic traffic.
Organic SEO
Pinterest is a powerful tool for SEO. Each pin contains links to external sites, which creates backlinks and thus helps increase organic traffic to company websites. From an SEO point of view, it’s also important to optimise your images, their descriptive ALT texts, and the keywords you use in your pins so that this content appears in searches not only on Pinterest, but also outside of it.
Advertisements and Promoted Pins
Pinterest also provides paid advertising options that allow businesses to target a specific audience based on interests and demographics. “Promoted Pins” are paid pins that appear to users in search results and can be very effective in reaching new customers. People use Pinterest to find new brands and ideas, so advertising on this social network site is very effective.
Pinterest Analytics
Pinterest offers analytics tools that allow businesses to track the performance of their content. In Pinterest’s analytics reports, you can see which Pins are achieving the furthest reach, which are getting the most interactions, and to what extent they are converting to the website. You’ll also find out what users do next with the content they save from your accounts. Regular measurement, evaluation and optimisation are the basis for correct business decisions.
Sources of inspiration for B2B and B2C
Pinterest is not just a space for fashion or designer brands. Even B2B companies from different segments can use the platform to share professional infographics, creative solutions and technical content. Pinterest acts as a mood board where business individuals, designers, marketers or tech companies can get inspired and, at the same time, make their solutions visible to a wider audience.
How to use Pinterest in business
As we have already outlined, Pinterest is primarily a visual search engine. Therefore, it is more suitable for promoting products and services that you can show in an engaging way in the form of a nice photo or an interesting video. However, if you are wondering how you can use the power of Pinterest in your business, here are some tips:
Fashion brands and Retail
For fashion brands, Pinterest is the ideal platform to share new collections, fashion trends and inspiration. As users often search for specific styles and outfits, fashion brands can use the platform to sell their products directly. Through choosing the right communication and interaction with users, Pinterest can become a powerful source of building brand loyalty.
Interior design and home decor
If you deal with interior design or selling home accessories, Pinterest will be the right place for you. Showcase your projects, generate interest through sharing trends in home decor, and DIY instructions will be the icing on the cake. The special ones are a big hit on Pinterest.
Gastro – restaurants and influencers
Recipes and food is one of the most popular categories on Pinterest. Restaurants, food brands and influencers can share recipes and various culinary tips that people can then use in their homes. This makes the brand an everyday part of customers’ lives, which strengthens brand awareness and loyalty.
Travel agencies and Tourism
For travel agencies, Pinterest is a great opportunity for inspiration. Users often create boards with dream destinations, trips and vacation tips. Travel agencies can thus easily attract new customers with the help of experiential images or videos. Creating interactive trips and itineraries using pins strengthens the relationship between the brand (travel agency) and the Pinterest user.
Fitness and Wellness
If you are a fitness or wellness company, you should make the most of this platform. People often search for exercise and healthy lifestyle inspiration on Pinterest in the form of training plans, healthy eating tips, or specific exercise videos. This creates space for you as a company to interact directly with them and subsequently sell your products or services. Whether you’re a gym, a personal trainer, a nutritional supplement seller, or a healthy lifestyle influencer, you’ll definitely find your place on Pinterest.
Advertising on Pinterest
You can improve the effectiveness of your activity on Pinterest by using paid ads, which are very effective on this platform. It is not as saturated with paid formats as other social networks. Although Pinterest is more often associated with inspiration in the fields of fashion, design and DIY projects, advertising on this platform brings huge potential for other industries as well.
Types of ads on Pinterest
Pinterest offers various forms of advertising that allow businesses to target a wide range of users. These include:
- Carousel pins – advertising in the form of several images that the user can scroll through.
- Image Pins – classic images that users see in their feeds. These pins look like regular content, but are sponsored for greater reach.
- Video ads – videos that play automatically in users’ feeds.
- Shopping Ads – so-called collections, thanks to which the user can buy products directly. If you are an online store, you should consider this type of advertising.
One of the main advantages of Pinterest advertising is its high relevance. Pinterest users are actively looking for ideas and solutions, which means your ads can be very effective. If you don’t know how to get started, Pinterest has created a free Pinterest Academy where you can find various courses and seminars to help you get started.
Practical tips for creating content on Pinterest
Since Pinterest is a social network, when you are using it, you need to think about how you will engage the end user. It is important to test different formats, regularly evaluate their success and then adapt the shared content accordingly. There is no such thing as a recipe for 100% success, but here are some practical tips to help you:
High quality visuals
Pinterest is all about visual content, so image quality is key. Use high quality vertical images that will stand out from the crowd. The recommended aspect ratio is 2:3 (e.g. 1000 x 1500 pixels), otherwise the pin may be cropped badly and the ad may not look credible.
Consistent visual identity
Pay attention to the brand. Maintain consistency in your use of colors, fonts, and styles to make your content easily recognizable. Avoid various abstract photos that do not represent your brand and the people in it. We also recommend using your logo in individual pins, ideally in a tasteful way and not in the bottom right corner. You can also use a photo overlaid with text that will be placed over your image and will thus draw attention to it.
Catchy captions
Pin captions are just as important as visuals. Use keywords that your target group is searching for. Pins with a clear title will appear in search results faster. You can use a maximum of 100 characters in the title and a maximum of 500 characters in the description. Don’t forget to include a call to action (CTA) such as “Learn more” or “Shop now”.
Optimisation for SEO
Pinterest works as a visual search engine, so it’s important to optimise your pins for SEO. Use relevant keywords in titles, descriptions and board titles. This will ensure that your pins show up in searches. If your pin has a backlink , make sure it’s active and can be loaded quickly. The relevance of the link is a given.
Timeless content
Pins on Pinterest can stay visible and active for months or even years. Create timeless content that will continue to remain relevant. Topics such as DIY, recipes, business improvement tips or product tutorials have been a long-term success on Pinterest.
Interaction with the audience
Pinterest is a social network and therefore it enables a space to interact with other people. Reply to all comments and messages and strive to build a strong community on Pinterest. It is also important to follow other relevant accounts, save pins, and join discussions. Regular interaction helps you build relationships and strengthens your brand awareness among others.
Pinterest in e-commerce
Pinterest is a powerful marketing tool that helps businesses increase visibility and reach relevant audiences. On Pinterest, you will find users who are already at a certain stage of their purchasing decision. They are actively looking for specific tips and ideas, and with the right strategy you can quickly turn them into customers. If you want to maximise the potential of Pinterest for your business, quality content, attractive images and videos and regular interaction with users are essential. After all, it is a social network, and advertising here can be the right piece that is missing from your marketing funnel.