Pinterest isn’t just about DIYs, wedding inspiration and cookie recipes. As a business, you can find so much more use with the tools and features on this platform. Using Pinterest for Business is a sure way to enhance your content marketing strategy as users on this platform are continually growing and are highly engaged.
According to a data report by We Are Social, Pinterest boasts an average of 367 million active monthly users globally. Granted, next to bigger players such as Facebook, this isn’t the largest audience. But engagement is just as important of a metric as reach when it comes to picking an appropriate social media channel for your content marketing strategy.
Here, we’ll discuss the various benefits Pinterest has so that you can then decide if they align with your marketing goals. But first, let's go over what Pinterest is and how it works.
What’s Pinterest?
Pinterest is a ‘visual discovery engine’ that was launched in 2010, where users find inspiration and ideas for their interests. These ideas are represented through Pins which are saved into general categories called Boards. Users can name their boards and organise them on their profile as they please.
Why have a Pinterest Business account?
Here are some of the advantages you may find on Pinterest:
1. Drive traffic to your website
Pinterest has the ability to drive massive amounts of traffic to your website through inbound links. Since every pin includes a link, you can easily lead your audience to the source (such as your website). Think of the number of visitors you can bring to your website by posting images of your products or even promoting repurposed content from your blog posts.
The referral traffic from Pinterest is higher than most social media platforms. The catch is that this traffic is heavily reliant on good content. Remember that Pinterest is a visual medium, so to get your audience interested in following your links, your visuals have to be of high quality.
2. Make use of visual search
As much as Pinterest may seem like any other social media platform, it actually works as a search engine but for images. Think of a Google Search. You go type in your search term in the search bar then Google gives you results related to your query. This is essentially how Pinterest works. You’re given the best results in the form of pins and boards for the keyword you typed in.
Appearing in these results can be extremely lucrative to your business. This is achievable by creating and organising your pins in a way people can easily find what they’re looking for. In addition, promoted pins appear at the top of related searches. By properly optimising your pins, you can reach the people who are looking for exactly what you’re offering.
3. Generate more conversions
Pinterest acts as an information source for most of its users when they are about to make a purchase. Remember it’s like a search engine where users are doing their research before making a decision. And even though they may not make the decision right away, they can easily save your pins as they plan for a later purchase.
With Pinterest, you’re likely to convert your audience to prospects or customers by having great visual content that ties back to your product or service. This is because unlike other social platforms, Pinterest ‘reduces’ the number of steps in the buyer’s journey. Or rather, it enables you to convert leads into sales at a much faster rate.
4. Grow your brand authority
Other than pinning your own content, you can add related content from outside sources to your boards. Following and engaging with other businesses (in the same industry as you or those with similar interests) will not only humanise your brand but also increase your brand authority.
Social interaction is still important on Pinterest and it’ll help you get recognised by other users while providing more useful boards to your audience. Group boards are also an available feature on Pinterest that will enable you to share ideas and plans with others. They are a great way to increase your blog traffic.
5. Find out what your audience is interested in
Every business is driven by understanding and catering to the needs of their customers. This is what feeds your business goals and ultimately your marketing goals. By being on Pinterest, you will get to see what your target audience is interested in and trends in your industry. This may help you identify gaps in your product or messaging proposition.
You’ll essentially be able to find new ways to market your products or services in a way that fits what your audience is looking for. If you're still unsure about targeting the right consumers, consider building a buyer persona with our free template down below.
Pinterest is a great marketing platform that has sadly not been utilised by several businesses. It ranked as the 8th most popular social media network in Kenya with 27% of internet users (approximately 6 million) having reported using the platform in January 2020. This number proves that you shouldn’t dismiss Pinterest without at least trying to understand whether your business can actually benefit from it.
First, take time to find out if your target customers are on the platform. If so, then what are they doing? Are they browsing, buying or both? Can your business stand to benefit from reaching this untapped market? The answer is probably yes. Then make a point to test out Pinterest for Business and you might just be surprised at how much your business will benefit.
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