If you own a small business, you likely have a presence on social media. Social media platforms can be a great place to share tips and strategies while showcasing your products and services. The downside to social media is that it often has a short impact. Twitter’s 15-20 minutes, Facebook posts lasting around 6 hours, and Instagram 48 hours, with Reels being slightly longer.
Then there’s Pinterest. While we think of this as a social media platform, it actually works more like a search engine. You use keywords to get people to your profile. From there, you utilize links in your pins to drive traffic to your website. Pinterest content has a significantly longer lifespan than other social media platforms, with an average half-life of around 3.76 months (or 114 days), though well-optimized, evergreen pins can remain discoverable for six months to over a year! Pinterest is so different from other social media platforms and there are many different ways to use it for your businesses’ growth. So let’s dive into getting started on Pinterest!
Set Up
Like other platforms, you can set up a free business profile. This profile shows you the analytics you need to see your performance on Pinterest. When setting up your profile, make sure to use keywords about your business and brand within the description to have your profile more optimized for the search engine. Use words around what you sell or offer, your message, and even include broad words related to your brand and what you focus on.
If you’re unsure of what keywords to use for your business and content on Pinterest, don’t worry, they’ve got you covered there too! To find more keywords, start by entering just one broad word or idea about your brand into the search bar. Once you’ve done that, click search, and you should then see a row of colored bubbles right below the search bar. This is your Guided Search on Pinterest, helping you find more relevant and specific content to incorporate!
Now that your account is set up, and you have an idea of your profile’s keywords, let’s look at how to create pins and boards that get results!
How to: Content Creation
When creating content for Pinterest, there are many aspects to consider regarding the boards, pins, captions, and designs you need to incorporate. The main idea is that all of these should be created in a way that optimizes searchability. Let’s start with board designs first!
Boards
When creating boards, focus on implementing themes to make it easier for your audience to navigate your content. It also increases discoverability because boards can rank on Pinterest’s search engine with the use of certain searched keywords. Let’s dive into the template for creating your boards:
- One main board you can incorporate is a brand board. This is focused on showcasing your brand logo, colors, and overall visual appeal to show your audience consistency and let them connect with your brand’s vibe as well.
- Create main topic boards, around 2-4, aimed at showing your specific areas of expertise.
- Go even deeper by creating 2-4 more boards that go more specific off of your main topic boards.
- You can include broad boards like “New Blog” or “Testimonials”.
Pins
Now that you have your boards set up, we need the pins to go in them! When creating designs for your Pinterest posts, if you have pictures to include, keep the wording minimal. For instance, if you are showcasing a product, only include an obvious, visible title. Include any needed information in the caption. Vice versa, if you don’t have photos in your post, include information that is organized by bold titles, lines, and a cohesive design. Also, you can have short videos on Pinterest, so follow this same design guideline for these as well. And of course, include keywords for the content you’re speaking about in the title, which is easily visible on the post!
Now let’s talk captions. Knowing that Pinterest acts as a search engine, keywords are very important, especially in the caption. Use the same keywords in the title on the design, the title of the pin, and within the beginning of the caption. Also, include outbound links in every pin that you post to drive traffic to your website, shop, or desired destination. For example, you can make a post highlighting your lead magnet, linking the lead magnet into the post and caption. Using this strategy with your lead magnet can be a great way to grow your list, drive traffic to your site, and convert your audience into dedicated customers. If you don’t have a lead magnet, don’t worry. Click here to find out what a lead magnet is and how to create and incorporate one into your business.
Pinning Schedule
Now all you need is a consistent pinning plan. Create a schedule that you can actually follow through on, with a goal of posting 1–5 pins per day. Change up the pin designs you post to add diversity to your boards and profile. Be sure to link different URLs and not just your main website link, such as a blog page, recipe page, about page, services, etc. Don’t forget to include videos! Videos can be a game changer on Pinterest as they can show your products in action, demonstrate steps, and not to mention, since these videos autoplay on the feed, they often stand out and grab more attention.
Pinterest posts can be searched and remain visible and impactful for months or even years! This can be a great tool in helping your small business be easily found when people are searching for the products and services you offer. Although it may seem like a lot at first, by implementing these tips and strategies, you’ll be optimizing your content and boosting your engagement in no time! Woo Hoo!
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