Pinterest for companies

The visual search engine’s advantages at a glance

Author

Christina Essl

Social media marketer

A must in your marketing mix

Let’s start with a few quick facts:

15 million people from the German-speaking area use Pinterest every month.
On an international level, user numbers have grown by 37 % during the last year.
The platform has a total of 240 billion entries.
85 % of active users have discovered new products or brands via Pinterest.
55 % of users use Pinterest for shopping.

One thing’s for sure: Pinterest is booming! The platform no longer is just about interior design, recipes and DIY projects. Instead, it has become a powerful tool for brands and companies. In addition to the visual impact that easily grabs the users’ attention, Pinterest is also interesting because of the many organic possibilities it offers. Our recommendation: Utilise this great potential for your business and incorporate the social media platform into your marketing mix!

Pinterest – that’s why!

All advantages at a glance:

It’s a free source of traffic: Pinterest is THE channel for organic reach, bringing high-quality traffic to your website – without any additional budget! Do you have a blog or an online magazine? Great – editorial features do particularly well on Pinterest!
It’s good for Google: Pinterest content is indexed by Google. So provided that you have a certain level of SEO optimisation, you can kill two birds with one stone – or rather utilise two search engines at once. The idea is simple: The more pins are shared, the more traffic you get on your website. The higher this traffic effect, the better your Google ranking – a total win-win situation!
It’s a cash cow: Pinterest inspires users to buy products even when they are not actively looking for them. Guided by the principle of “discover, save, do”, the platform covers the entire customer journey from inspiration and information to the actual purchase decision. You’re looking for an extra boost? Pinterest Ads give you greater reach by highlighting your content.
It has long-term effects: Pins live longer! While a Facebook post has a half-life period of only 90 minutes, that of a Pinterest pin is 3.5 months, turning it into a long-term benefit.
It’s great visual marketing: Pinterest is something like a picture-book of different content, or rather of visual bookmarks that point to your content and give you greater reach – in an inspirational and emotional way!
It’s excellent for organic growth: What do you need to achieve great organic reach on Pinterest? The right strategy, appealing visuals and regular updates! Our tip: Incorporate the “save” button into your website to encourage users to share and thus broaden your reach. Sounds interesting? Let’s get down to the nitty-gritty!

A strategic vision

As always, strategy comes first! Before setting up a Pinterest account, ask yourself the following questions: What objectives do I want to reach with Pinterest? What role does the platform play in my online marketing activities? Do I reach my target audience with this channel? Your answers to these questions are the first steps of your Pinterest strategy.

Expert tip: Mobile first! Keep in mind that 80 % of traffic comes from mobile devices, and draw up your strategy and pins accordingly.

And what about Pinterest boards? It takes a bit of strategic thinking to create your own boards. Think about what topics are relevant for your business. Keep in mind that rather general topics (e.g. “marketing”) are less successful than niche topics (e.g. “Pinterest marketing”). We recommend starting off with ten boards containing 20 pins each and taking it from there.

Talking about pins: To see how well your pins are doing and where you need to tweak things a little, don’t forget to regularly check your Pinterest Analytics. Because we all know that there’s no long-term success without monitoring!

If you want to know more about the most important social media KPIs, check out our article in the punkt & komma online magazine.

And finally: your personal Pinterest checklist

8 important to-dos for your successful business profile

Business account: Make sure to set up a business account. Why? Because this gives you access to Pinterest Analytics, Rich Pins and Pinterest Ads. These features help you to increase your visibility and to improve your content.
Account settings: Feed your account with all the necessary information, i.e. with a profile image and header, a self-evident username, short description and imprint. Our tip: Verify your website! This allows users to see that you’re an official brand.
Keywords: Don’t forget that Pinterest is a search engine! Use relevant keywords in your pins, in your profile description and on your boards. Our tip: Check your Pinterest Analytics to see what users are actually looking for.
Rich Pins: This kind of pins allows you to position yourself as an expert. Not just that, this also helps your posts to reach more relevant users.
Pin descriptions: Make sure to provide all necessary information and try to make it interesting to read. Of course, this also includes using relevant keywords. Plus, good calls-to-action make your users curious for more, encouraging them to click on. By the way: If you think that hashtags are just for Instagram, think again! Make sure to add between one and four brand-relevant hashtags to every pin!
“Follow” button: Incorporate the follow button into your website, your newsletter other online marketing channels. This makes it easier for users to get to your Pinterest profile with only one click.
Visuals: Create pins and templates in line with your corporate design and brand identity. Some elements, such as your logo, should be present in every layout to enhance brand recognition. By the way: the ideal format is 1000 x 1500 pixels (2:3 ratio).
Activity: Regular updates are key to your Pinterest success! Our tip: Publish one pin every day! Seasonal trends help boost your pins in the search listings. Happy pinning!

Do you believe in the benefits of Pinterest?

Because we certainly do!

Do you want to get active and need professional support with your Pinterest activities? Simply send us an e-mail or get in touch on Instagram, LinkedIn or Pinterest!