Pinterest for Business Tips

Hardworking, hustle-mode boss babe… I see you over there busting your butt and trying to get more clients for your business. You’re tired and the thought of managing yet another platform has your eyes welling up with tears of overwhelm. Sound about right?

What if I told you this platform wouldn’t take up more than 10 hours a month… Yes, SERIOUSLY! If you need more convincing, head to this post for a Pintervention. Otherwise, let’s jump into some Pinterest for business tips!

Pinterest Search

Let’s get one thing clear before moving forward… Pinterest (as social as it is) is a search engine. Think of it like the love child of Google and Instagram. It’s an extremely advanced visual search engine. People love it because it’s fun to scroll, but still gets them helpful results.

Like Google, it has the advantage of a longer lifespan for each post or link. Regardless of when the pin was created, it’ll show up in relevant searches. But like Instagram, it’s full of aesthetically pleasing imagery.

So, here’s what happens when you type something into the Pinterest search bar… It snags results that has relevant, user-generated content and keywords. From a business perspective, this means you can be really strategic about getting your content / offers in front of ideal clients!

And that’s not all (insert cheesy infomercial voice here)! Keyword-optimized Pinterest boards can show up on Google results too! Whaaaaat? Two birds, one metaphorical stone, my friends!

Pinterest Keywords

Okay, if you’re over there with glazed eyes after reading “keyword-optimized,” let me pull a Missy Elliot and put my thang down, flip it, and reverse it. In other words, let’s back up a minute.

What Are Keywords?

Keywords are descriptive words (or phrases) that tell users what your content is about. For instance, “Pinterest for Business Tips” is the title of this blog post, but it’s also a keyword people search often on Google… tricky, tricky, right?

Pinterest Keyword Targeting

So, how do we use keywords on Pinterest to our advantage? And what the hell is Pinterest keyword targeting? In the brilliant little Pinterest search bar, we’re going to begin typing words relevant to the Pin we want to post. Think, “what would my ideal client search for to find this nugget?” The most popular searches are going to auto-populate first, which means they’re also searched more frequently and will be more competitive.

So, we want to find a keyword phrase that is a couple options down the list, but still makes sense for our content! Less competitive, but still searched, it’ll give our biz goodies a better chance at being seen! Got it?

Pinterest SEO

Say it with me … “S-E-O.” SEO is just shorthand for search engine optimization. Remember that Pinterest is a search engine and keywords are what help us optimize, right? But… what are we optimizing?

Pinterest keywords should be used in our business profile description, Pinterest boards, pins, and if you wanna be really sneaky… even in the pin’s image name. That’s right, Pinterest is so smart, it’s even going to read the file name you upload from your computer! Mind blown yet?

But here’s my word of caution. No one likes a Spammy Sammy, so don’t just use a bunch of keywords separated by commas or lines! This is what we call keyword stuffing and it’s a quick way to lose friends, your job, your hair, and end up forgetting everything other than the name of your pet in first grade.

Okay, that may not be true, but it is highly frowned upon and will likely hurt your SEO. Instead of filling your board descriptions, pins, and profile with a bunch of keywords you found, get creative. Write actual sentences that make sense in context, but contain the keywords.

Remember how many times you’ve read the words “Pinterest keywords” throughout this post? Probably not because I was strategic about it, but guess what? It’s another keyword I’m targeting in this post! (Told you I was tricky!)

If you can find a natural way to incorporate 2-3 keywords in each pin description, you’re doing just fine… plus, it’ll help you keep those friends, job, and hair we talked about earlier!

Pinterest Links

SPOILER ALERT: All of those beautifully keyworded, friend-keeping captions don’t mean a thing if you forget to link the pin back to your site! All the saves, monthly viewers, and shares may inflate your ego, but money comes from web traffic.

So, let’s get one thing straight…. it’s VITAL to link the proper pages of your site to your content. Not only will it get more people to your site, which tells Google you’re cool and sends more people to sit at your table, but… It can also help you gain more leads and convert them to clients (assuming your content is helpful and gives them a call to action – that’s a whole different topic).

To see how many people are actually coming to your site from Pinterest, make sure you claim your website as you’re setting up your Pinterest business account! It will allow you to get down, dirty, and a little nerdy on analytics as your account and site grow!

Also, I highly recommend adding a Pinterest plug-in to your site if you have sharable content so people can save your blogs for later and share them with friends! You can see my “save” button at the end of this post as an example. Free advertising? Yes, please!

Pinterest Graphics

Remember how I said Pinterest was a visual search engine? Well, just like Instagram, you won’t get very far with subpar photos. Here are a few Pinterest for business tips: image edition!

Use High Quality Images

No one likes to look at ugly things, so if you post blurry photos (like the right one below) with a crappy design around it, you’re gonna get overlooked. Think of Cinderella versus her ugly step sisters. Do you remember what they look like? Or is your mind just filled with Cinderelly’s beautiful ball gown?

If you aren’t a graphic designer, that’s okay. Canva has some pretty cool pre-fab templates you can use and customize for your brand.

Be Consistent

Speaking of your brand… people should be able to see a pin and know it’s your brand from a mile away! How do we accomplish that? Use consistent colors and fonts. This works on Pinterest, Instagram, and just about every social medium.

People love consistency and when they realize they love your brand, you’ll be able to slow their scroll when they see it!