5 Tips to Get Success on Pinterest in 2021
Why Pinterest is such a powerful marketing tool in 2021
Has Pinterest been on your radar for ages, but somehow keeps slipping down the business to-do list? Or are you already putting effort in, but you’re wondering why it’s not bringing you traffic back to your website yet? Today I'm sharing my top tips to get success on Pinterest in 2021, including how to utilise the most recent updated best practices. So grab your fave notebook and strap yourselves in pals, this is a juicy one!
background image by Em J Photography
Pinterest have released some changes to the platform recently, and it spurred a little bit of internet panic (like most algorithm based changes do). But the great thing is if you can keep up to date with their ever changing platform (and ever improving platform), then you definitely stand the best chance of being an early adopter on these changes. Here’s the thing - Pinterest gets me 70% of my website traffic for my design business. It's my main marketing tool and it’s so powerful, but so many people don't realise that (or they're under utilising it).
Who is Pinterest for?
It’s a common misconception that Pinterest is only for “pretty businesses”. While it is obviously a highly visual platform, there are businesses getting success on Pinterest across a huge variety of niches. Weddings, handmade business owners and bloggers are the more obvious ones, but there are also great opportunities for marketers, content creators, graphic designers, photographers, podcasts, educators and SO many more.
Pinterest describe themselves as a “full funnel solution” meaning that their users are on the platform at every stage of their buying process. They come to Pinterest first to plan (much earlier than on other platforms), then to consider their options, and then finally to decide on where to make a purchase. Here’s a fun statistic: 97% of searches on Pinterest are unbranded - which means pinners are looking for something specific, but not a particular brand. That means you can introduce yourself to your customers at exactly the right moment, and solve their problems for them before they even know who you are. But to do this, you first need to set up your Pinterest strategy with intention.
1. Post More Fresh Content vs Duplicate Content
The first tip for getting success on Pinterest in 2021, is relevant to the most recent changes to the best practices on the platform. Pinterest are now putting emphasis and preference on fresh content versus duplicate content. So all this means is that Pinterest want to be seeing fresh images that have never been seen before on their feeds. They want their platform to stay relevant and they want you to be creating new content for their users to see and be inspired by. And if they see that you're putting this fresh content on their platform, they're going to reward you for it.
This doesn't mean that you're going to get flagged up for spam anytime you post duplicate content, you can still save other people's work (that’s the lifeblood of Pinterest after all). But if you are producing fresh content and pinning it on a regular basis, then Pinterest will reward you for that and push your work out in front of more people.
The good news is that you can post as many pins from the same URL as you want, as long as you’re using a new image then it will still count as fresh content. Here are some examples of ways you could repurpose your content and make multiple fresh pins for one blog post:
2. Pin Vertical Images in a 2:3 aspect ratio.
Another way to get the most out of your Pinterest strategy is to pin vertical images only, which is probably one of the most famous and important Pinterest best practices. It's so important in fact, that I never pin horizontal images and I very rarely pin square ones.
Vertical images take up a lot more space on the smart feed (that’s Pinterest’s version of the algorithm). They’re pushed out more regularly and they get more engagement. So for me if I'm going to spend time pinning it I want it to be on something that's going to get the most eyes on it and also the most engagement, so I only pin vertical images.
3. Pin consistently, every day.
Lots of people log on to Pinterest every so often and pin 20 to 50 images at once because they're looking for something specific, and then maybe log off for another couple of weeks. But for marketing on Pinterest, it’s best to pin regularly and consistently. So instead of pinning in bulk all at once in a flurry, try a steady stream of daily pinning, and you’ll start to see a lot more success.
How many pins should I publish per day?
If you’re just starting out with Pinterest marketing, the best frequency for pinning is whatever you can keep up with. Whether that’s 1 per day, 5 per day, or even a few a week, choosing a schedule to fit your own life and work needs will always be the best choice. With a scheduling tool like Tailwind, pinning consistently is so much more attainable. I manage to schedule all my pins across three accounts in a few hours on a Sunday afternoon (usually with my feet up in front of a cosy film).
4. Optimise your pins and profile to be found in search.
Pinterest is a search engine and not a social media platform, so to be found on Pinterest you need to gear your posts towards that search engine. Look for ways to include keywords in your pins and profile (in your descriptions and titles), and make sure that all of your posts are optimised to be found in search by your ideal customers. Remember that this is not a place to “keyword stuff”, Pinterest like you to use full sentences that are keyword rich, but made for humans to read.
Here’s a checklist of places to include keywords on Pinterest:
Your profile name and bio
Board titles
Board Descriptions
Pin titles
Pin descriptions
5. Stay up to date with Pinterest’s updates to best practices.
Like most platforms, Pinterest changes best practices and introduces new features regularly, so it’s important to stay up to date with these. Use all of their features like video pins and story pins. It’s great to be an early adopter of any new features that come out, and will give you a leg up in the smart feed if you are utilising all the tools Pinterest give you. Make sure to follow a select few experts that you trust to keep you up to date on any changes that happen, and try to avoid reading every single thing you see about Pinterest on the internet. There can be a lot of rumours and misinformation, and when you try to consume it all it’s a recipe for confusion.
Want more free Pinterest tips from me? Here are some more blog posts to help you maximise Pinterest for your business:
How to create clickable pins, and get free website traffic from Pinterest. Read more here.
Save time on your Pinterest strategy with Tailwind. Read more here.
Understanding Pinterest Analytics, including the most recent 2021 updates. Read more here.
I hope you’re now feeling fired up and ready to crack on with your new Pinterest strategy! If you’d like to work with me 1-1 to get some personalised help and advice, then you can read about my strategy coaching packages here.
This post contains affiliate links, but I only recommend tools that I use and love.
