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How (Certain) Small Businesses Market Successfully on Pinterest
Are you marketing on Pinterest? It could be extremely beneficial if your business ticks off the right boxes on the checklist. Read on to learn more:
While Pinterest may not immediately come to mind as a marketing tool compared to giants like Facebook or Instagram, it has several distinct advantages, particularly for certain small businesses. Let’s take a look:
User Engagement
Pinterest is unlike other social media platforms in that it acts more like a visual search engine. Users go to Pinterest not just for social interaction but to discover new ideas, products, and inspiration. For small businesses, this means that Pinterest users are not only more likely to interact with their content, but they are also more likely to make a purchase.
According to Pinterest statistics, 89% of users utilize Pinterest for purchase inspiration, and 47% of users are more likely to discover new brands through Pinterest than on other social platforms. And since Pinterest is poised to reach 102.2 million users by 2027, that’s a lot of users to engage with!
The main drawback is that your product or service needs to be of interest to women between the ages of 25 and 34 since that demographic is the majority of Pinterest users. Also, since visuals are extremely important, what you sell should lend itself to the creation of visually appealing posts. Creativity helps, but it can be really challenging to get good images of certain products and services.
Targeted Marketing
Unlike other platforms that rely on follower counts or engagement rates, Pinterest’s algorithm prioritizes relevance and quality. This means that even small businesses with limited resources can have their content discovered by potential customers based on the quality and relevance of their pins, rather than solely their advertising budget. Pins can be optimized with keywords related to specific industry, products, or services to make it easier for small biz owners to reach their target demographic.
Long-lived Content
One of the main advantages of Pinterest is the longevity of content. Unlike Instagram or Facebook, where posts quickly get buried under new content, Pinterest pins have a long shelf life. A well-crafted pin can continue to appear in users’ feeds or search results for months, or even years, after it is posted, driving ongoing traffic to a business’s website.
This long lifespan means that the time and resources invested in creating high-quality pins can have long-term benefits, continuously contributing to website traffic, lead generation, and sales rather than dropping off within a few days or hours.
Website Traffic
Since Pins are linked directly to a website, blog post, product page, or eCommerce store, it’s easy for users to click through to explore more. Product images, blog post teasers, and infographics drive traffic to your website.
Additionally, Pinterest integrates seamlessly with many eCommerce platforms, allowing small businesses to feature products directly on Pinterest with “Buyable Pins.” This makes it easier for customers to make a purchase and lets small businesses meet their audience at the point of inspiration and decision-making.
Better ROI
If you are working with a limited marketing budget, you should check out what Pinterest offers compared to other social platforms. Start with organic marketing by optimizing pins with relevant keywords, visually appealing designs, and strategic pinning schedules.
Then, consider investing in Pinterest ads. The cost-per-click (CPC) tends to be lower than on other platforms like Facebook or Instagram and Pinterest ads are designed to blend in seamlessly with organic pins, making them less annoying and encouraging conversion.
Pinterest's search function is incredibly powerful which means when small businesses create great pins and optimize them right, they can successfully compete with companies who have big marketing budgets. This is particularly advantageous for industries like fashion, home decor, beauty, food, travel, and DIY -- anywhere a strong visual presentation attracts attention. However, even service-oriented businesses can use Pinterest to share infographics, tutorials, and blog content to reach audiences looking for that kind of inspiration or solution.
You’ll need a website or e-commerce platform as a foundation for your Pinterest marketing, and the Sprocket Websites team always suggests you start with your website because it’s the only online space that YOU totally control. If you need help getting your site ready for Pinterest marketing, give us a call today and we’ll get started!
This article is an update to “Advantages of Marketing on Pinterest” dated 5/19/2016.
Photo by indra projects
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Kate Gingold
I have been writing a blog with web marketing tips and techniques every other week since 2003. In addition to blogging and client content writing, I write books and a blog on local history.
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I have been writing a blog with web marketing tips and techniques every other week since 2003. In addition to blogging and client content writing, I write books and a blog on local history.
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