Pinterest: What it is and how to take advantage of it for your company

by Moises Hamui June 27, 2023

Do you like beautiful images, funny videos, and infographics that teach you new things? Would you like to keep all that in a place where you can see it whenever you want and share it with your friends?

Then you're going to love Pinterest, a platform that lets you do all of that and more.

In this text I am going to tell you what Pinterest is, what it is for, how it works and how you can use it for your business. Read on and discover everything Pinterest can do for you!

Brand identity: What is it and what is its importance in a company?

What is Pinterest and what is it for?

Pinterest is a platform that allows you to create and save collections of content that you like or are interested in. For example, you can create a collection of books you want to read, clothes you like, courses you want to take, or anything else you can think of.

These collections are called boards, and you can organize them by topic, color, alphabetical order, or however you like.

The content you save to your boards is called a pin, and it can be a photo, video, infographic, or any other format that can be viewed on a screen. Pins can be linked to a web page where you can find more information on the topic you are interested in.

For example, if you save a pin for a cooking recipe, you can go to the website where the full recipe is and see the ingredients and steps to follow.

Pinterest is used for many things, but above all to inspire you and discover new things. You can search for pins on any topic you like or are interested in, and see what other people have saved on that topic.

You can also follow other people who have similar tastes as you and see their boards and pins. So you can find ideas for your projects, your hobbies, your trips or whatever you want.

What benefits can Pinterest bring to businesses?

Pinterest is not only a platform to have fun and learn, but also to promote your business and reach more customers. Many people use Pinterest to search for products or services that they need or would like to have.

So if you're a business, you can use Pinterest to showcase what you offer and drive those people to your website or store.

Pinterest has many benefits for businesses, such as:

Improve SEO positioning by images : by saving pins with quality images and keywords related to your business, you can improve the positioning of your website in search engines like Google or Bing.
Build brand awareness – By creating boards with interesting and relevant content for your target audience, you can increase your brand awareness and build trust among your potential customers.
Increase Followers – By sharing pins with useful, original, and creative content, you can get more people to follow your boards and engage with your business.
Increased Visibility – By using hashtags, descriptions, and links in your Pins, you can make your content easier to find for people searching for topics related to your business.
Going viral with your brand – By creating engaging and sharing-inviting pins, you can get your content out there to more people and reach morepotential customers .

How does Pinterest work?

To use Pinterest you only need to have a user account. You can create it for free with your email or with your Facebook or Google account. Once your account is created, you can start creating your boards and saving your pins.

To create a board you just have to give it a name and choose a category. For example, if you want to create a board about fashion, you can name it “Fashion” and choose the “Style” category. You can also add a description and cover for your board.

To save a pin you just have to click on the “Save” button that appears under each pin. Then you can choose the board where you want to save it or create a new one. You can also add a description and link to the pin.

To search for pins on a topic, just type it into the search bar at the top of the screen.

For example, if you want to search for pins about cooking recipes, you can type “cooking recipes” and you will see all the pins on that topic. You can also use filters to refine your search by pin type, color, size, or date.

To follow other people you just have to click on the "Follow" button that appears under their name or photo. So you can see their boards and pins on your home page. You can also leave comments or like the pins you like.

Pinterest Business: How to create a business account

If you have a business and want to use Pinterest to promote it, the first thing you need to do is create a business account.

A business account gives you access to special features that will help you improve your marketing strategy on Pinterest, such as:

Catalogs – They allow you to upload your product catalog to Pinterest and turn them into shoppable pins directly from the platform.
Ads – They allow you to create ad campaigns to promote your pins and reach more potential customers.
Analytics - Allows you to measure the performance of your pins and ads and see your account statistics, such as the number of impressions, clicks, visits or conversions.

To create a business account you just have to follow these steps:

Enter the Pinterest Business page and click the “Create account” button.
Fill in the form with your company details, such as name, email, website and country.
Choose the type of business you have, such as e-commerce, education, health or beauty.
Choose topics that interest you or are related to your business, such as fashion, travel, food, or sports.
Click on the “Create account” button and you will have your business account ready to use.

Marketing budget: what it is and how to define it

How to edit your company profile

Once you have created your business account, it is important that you edit your profile so that it reflects the image and personality of your brand

. To do this, you just have to click on the “…” icon that appears in the upper right corner of the screen and enter “Settings”. There you can modify the following aspects of your profile:

Photo : You can upload a photo that represents your company, such as the logo or an image related to your activity.
Name – You can type your business name as you want it to appear on Pinterest.
Username – You can choose a unique and easy-to-remember username for your account. This name will be the one that appears in your profile URL, such as pinterest.com/yourusername.
About You – You can write a brief description about your company, what you offer, and what sets you apart from the competition. Use keywords related to your business and the interests of your target audience.
Location : you can indicate the physical location of your company, if you have one, or the geographic location where you operate or where you want to go with your pins.
Website : You can add the address of your website or blog where users can find more information about your company or your products or services.
Social Networks – You can link your Pinterest account with your other social networks, such as Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. So you can share your pins on those platforms and increase your reach.

How to verify your website

Verifying your website is a very important step in improving your presence and credibility on Pinterest. By verifying your website you will be able to:

Add an icon with your company logo to your pins
Add a “Save” button to images on your website
Access advanced statistics from Pinterest Analytics
Create Shopping ads with your products

To verify your website you just have to follow these steps:

Go to your account settings and click on “Claim”.
Type your website address and click “Claim Website”.
Choose one of the two available methods to verify your website: upload an HTML file or add an HTML tag.
Follow the instructions Pinterest gives you to upload the HTML file or add the HTML tag to your website. If you don't know how to do it, you can ask your hosting provider or web developer for help.
Once you've uploaded the file or added the tag, go back to your account settings and click “Next”.
Wait a few minutes for Pinterest to verify your website. If everything went well, you will see a confirmation message and you can enjoy the benefits of having your website verified.

How to create and optimize your boards and pins

You already have your business account and your verified website. Now is the time to create and optimize your boards and pins so that they are attractive, relevant and effective.

Remember that your boards and your pins are the showcase of your company on Pinterest, so you must take maximum care of them.

How to create thematic and relevant boards for your audience

Boards are the collections of pins you create and save to your account. Boards help you organize your content by topic, by category, by season, or however you like.

The important thing is that your boards are thematic and relevant to your target audience, that is, that they have to do with your business and the interests of your potential customers.

To create a board you just have to click on the “+ Create” button that appears at the top left of the screen and choose “Board”.

You can then give your board a name, choose a category, add a description and cover, and decide if you want to make it public or private.

Some tips for creating good boards are:

Use clear and descriptive names for your boards, which indicate what the content you are going to save is about. For example, if you have a clothing store, you can create boards such as "Fall-winter fashion", "Accessories", "Looks for work" or "Trends 2023".
Use keywords related to your business and the topics you cover on your boards. This way you can improve the SEO positioning of your boards and make them easier to find for people looking for those topics.
Create specific boards for each type of product or service you offer, for each type of client you target, or for each type of occasion or event to which your business is related. For example, if you have a flower shop, you can create boards such as "Bridal bouquets", "Centerpieces", "Flowers to give away" or "Decoration with flowers".
Create boards with varied, original and creative content that shows different aspects of your business and adds value to your audience. For example, if you have a restaurant, you can create boards such as "Our menu", "Our team", "Homemade recipes" or "Tips for healthy eating".
Create boards with up-to-date content that adapts to trends, seasons, holidays or current events. For example, if you have a bookstore, you could create boards such as “Books for Summer”, “Books for Halloween”, “Award Winning Books” or “Recommended Books”.

How to add pins with quality images, videos and infographics

Pins are the content you save to your boards. Pins can be images, videos, or infographics that showcase your products or services, your ideas, your tips, or anything else you want to share with your audience.

Pins are the key to grabbing the attention of users and driving traffic to your website.

To add a pin you just have to click on the “+ Create” button that appears at the top left of the screen and choose “Pin”.

You can then upload an image or video from your computer or mobile, add a title, description and link and choose the board where you want to save it.

Some tips for creating good pins are:

Use high-quality images or videos that look good and have good lighting, good framing, and good colors. Avoid blurry, dark, pixelated, or distorted images or videos.
Use vertical images or videos, which are better suited to the Pinterest format and which take up more space on the screen. The ideal size for your images or videos is 1000 x 1500 pixels.
Use images or videos that show your product or service in a clear, attractive and realistic way. Avoid generic, boring, or misleading images or videos.
Use images or videos that convey an emotion, sensation, or story. Avoid images or videos that are only informative, cold or impersonal.
Use images or videos that include text, such as the name of your product or service, a tagline, a question, an offer, or a call to action. The text helps you reinforce the message of your pin and capture the attention of users. Of course, do not abuse the text and make sure it is legible and consistent with the image or video.

How to link your pins to your website or blog

Linking your pins to your website or blog is a very effective way to drive traffic to your page and get more leads.

By linking your pins to your website or blog you can offer more information about your product or service, answer questions, show testimonials, invite them to subscribe to your newsletter or buy your product or service.

To link your pins to your website or blog, simply add your page's URL in the "Website" field when you create a pin.

Make sure that the URL is correct and that it is related to the content of the pin. For example, if you create a pin about a cooking recipe, you can link it to the page where the full recipe is.

Some tips for linking your pins to your website or blog are:

Use short and friendly URLs that are easy to remember and type. Avoid long, complicated, or many parameter URLs.
Use specific and relevant URLs that take the user directly to the page where they can find what they are looking for. Avoid generic or irrelevant URLs that take the user to the main page or to a page unrelated to the pin.
Use updated and functional URLs, which are current and do not give an error. Avoid expired or broken URLs that take the user to a non-existent page or an error message.

How to use Pinterest Ads to promote your pins

Pinterest Ads are the advertisements you can run on Pinterest to promote your Pins and reach more potential customers. With Pinterest Ads you can create campaigns with different objectives, such as:

Brand Awareness – To increase your brand visibility and generate interest among your target audience.
Consideration : To drive traffic to your website or product catalog and generate leads or subscribers.
Conversions : to encourage sales, downloads or the actions you want your customers to take.

Pinterest Ads offers you different ad formats so you can choose the one that best suits your content and your objective, such as:

Standard Pins – These are the normal Pins that show up in users' feeds, but with a "Promoted" label indicating they're ads. They can be images or videos and can have a link to your website or to your product catalogue.
Video Pins – These are pins that contain a video that automatically plays when the user views it in the feed. They can be up to 15 minutes long and can have a link to your website or to your product catalogue.
Carousel Pins – These are pins that contain multiple images or videos that the user can swipe to see more content. They can have up to 5 images or videos and each one can have a different link to your website or to your product catalogue.
Collection Pins : These are pins that contain a main image or video and several secondary images that show related products. When the user clicks on the pin, a page opens where they can see the details of the products and buy them directly from Pinterest.
Shopping Pins : These are pins that show products from your catalog and have a “Shop” tag indicating that they can be purchased directly from Pinterest. When the user clicks on the pin, a page opens where they can view the details of the product and add it to the cart.

How to create an ad campaign on Pinterest

To create an ad campaign on Pinterest you just have to follow these steps:

Go to the Pinterest Ads page and click the “Create ad” button.
Choose your campaign objective, such as brand awareness, consideration, or conversions.
Give your campaign a name and define your budget and schedule.
Create one or more ad groups within your campaign. Ad groups allow you to segment your audience and define your bidding strategy.
Choose the type of ad you want to create, such as Standard Pin, Video Pin, Carousel Pin, Collection Pin, or Shopping Pin.
Select one or more existing pins or create a new one to use as an ad. Add a description and a link to your website or to your product catalogue.
Review your campaign details and click the “Publish” button.

Value proposition: what it is and how to do it

How to segment your audience and define your budget

One of the most important aspects of creating a successful campaign on Pinterest is segmenting your audience well and defining your budget well. This way you can reach the right people with the right message and optimize the performance of your ads.

To segment your audience you can use the following criteria:

Location: You can choose the country, region or city where you want to show your ads.
Language: You can choose the language spoken by the people you want to reach with your ads.
Device: You can choose the type of device used by the people you want to reach with your ads, such as computer, mobile or tablet.
Gender: You can choose the gender you want to target your ads to, such as male, female, or everyone.
Age: You can choose the age range you want to target, such as 18-24, 25-34, or 35-44.
Interests: You can choose topics that interest the people you want to reach with your ads, such as fashion, travel, food, or sports.
Keywords: You can choose the keywords that people you want to reach with your ads use when searching for content on Pinterest, such as recipes, decorating ideas, or beauty tips.
Audiences: You can create or use custom or lookalike audiences based on data from your website, product catalog, or customer lists.

To define your budget you can use the following criteria:

Daily budget: This is the maximum amount you want to spend each day on your campaign or ad group.
Total budget: This is the maximum amount you want to spend for the entire duration of your campaign or ad group.
Bid: This is the amount you're willing to pay each time someone views, clicks, or takes an action on your ad. You can choose between an automated bid, which adjusts based on the market and your campaign objective, or a manual bid, which you set yourself.
Optimization: This is the type of action you want to optimize with your campaign or with your ad group, such as impressions, clicks or conversions.

How to measure the performance of your ads with Pinterest Analytics

To measure the performance of your ads on Pinterest, you can use Pinterest Analytics, a tool that provides you with data and reports on the reach, engagement, and conversions of your campaigns. With Pinterest Analytics you can:

See general statistics for your account, such as the number of impressions, clicks, visits or conversions that your pins and ads have generated.
View detailed statistics for each campaign, ad group, or individual ad, such as the number of impressions, clicks, visits, or conversions they generated, cost per result, and return on investment.
View statistics by segment, such as the location, language, device, gender, age, interests, keywords, or audiences of people who have interacted with your ads.
View statistics by attribution, such as the time from when someone viewed or clicked on your ad to when they took an action on your website or in your product catalog.
See statistics by product, such as the number of impressions, clicks, visits or conversions generated by the products in your catalog that you have promoted with your ads.

Written by Moises Hamui Abadi : I am an entrepreneur, founding partner of Viceversa and SoyMacho. After being in charge of several digital businesses and advising several other businesses; I decided to form MHA Consulting, a digital marketing consultancy dedicated to growing and empowering digital businesses in more than 7 countries and generating more than 1,500 million pesos.

If you want more information on this topic or you are looking for other options to profile your ideal client, at MHA you will find the solution you need. Schedule a call.