When it comes to social media marketing, most experts recommend focusing on just two or three platforms. As the world’s largest social media platform, Facebook is an obvious choice. Most brands then fill in the gaps with popular sites like Instagram, TikTok, and X.
And way down the list – with 445m users to Facebook’s eye-watering 2.95bn – is Pinterest.
But it’s important to remember that a lack of popularity doesn’t mean a lack of potential. While other platforms offer a more general experience, Pinterest positions itself as the single greatest resource for discovering new products and planning future projects. For brands who know how to market with Pinterest, investing in this underused platform can generate some serious value.
Is Pinterest good for ecommerce?
The key feature of Pinterest is that it allows users to search for images and group them together in Boards. So if a user is planning their dream wedding, they can create a Board containing their favorite bouquets, table dressings, canapés, and bridesmaid’s dresses. This creates a highly personalized browsing experience that makes users 7x more likely to buy the products they save!
Instant access to a conversion-focused audience isn’t the only benefit of a strong Pinterest marketing strategy, however. The platform also:
- Enables omnichannel marketing through a highly visual, highly specialized platform
- Offers image search capabilities using the Pinterest Lens feature, which can recognize over 2.5bn products (1.5bn more than Google Lens)
- Promotes an ecommerce-friendly ecosystem with Verified Merchant tags to reinforce credibility
- Provides excellent advertising opportunities and Advanced Pinterest Analytics options
It’s true that Pinterest isn’t a great fit for everyone. A business that sells industrial components to a niche client base probably wouldn’t gain much traction. But if your ecommerce brand offers visually appealing, inspirational products that speak to a customer’s identity, Pinterest is absolutely worth your time.
10 tips for building a powerful Pinterest marketing strategy
1) Create Pins that stand out
Pretty much every social media platform encourages the use of high-quality images. But for Pinterest, which is utterly dominated by visuals, anything less than stellar can easily get lost in the noise.
High-quality Pins are the core of your Pinterest content strategy. So make sure yours are on-brand with eye-catching colors that draw a Pinner’s attention. It’s also recommended that you use vertical images with a 2:3 aspect ratio so they fit snugly on a phone screen.
Once you’ve picked the perfect image, you’ll need to write engaging copy. While Pinterest allows 100 characters for the title and 500 characters for the description, only the first 50-60 characters of each show up in the feed. Make sure to include your key points within this cut-off limit, and finish your post with a strong call-to-action.
Every image you post should also link to a relevant landing page. This makes it easy for Pinners to buy your products, and encourages them to browse your online store for other items they might like. On Pinterest, you can embed links into your images, so you don’t need to waste your limited characters on adding a URL.
As well as static images, Pinterest also allows you to create video Pins and Idea Pins. Videos should be 6-15 seconds long, with a powerful hook to draw readers in and closed captions for those viewing on mute. Idea Pins, much like stories on other platforms, let you combine video, images, lists, and custom text for a creative, multilayered post.
Be aware that Idea Pins can’t link to your website like regular Pins can. So when you create an Idea Pin, you should treat it as an opportunity to grow your audience within Pinterest rather than try to make a sale.
2) Sort Pins into Boards
Pinners create their own Boards to group ideas. But ecommerce brands can also use them to group product categories.
A fashion brand might want to create Boards for men, women, summer clothes, winter clothes, formal wear, and so on. A food brand, on the other hand, might offer Boards for different kinds of recipes, like pasta, Asian cuisine, or appetizers.
Well-curated Boards can also rank pretty highly on Google, letting you reach an even wider audience. So remember to keep on top of your Boards as part of your Pinterest marketing strategy.
Board Collections from Anthropologie
3) Use SEO keywords
While Pinterest is technically a social media platform, it’s useful for ecommerce brands to think of it more like a search engine. That includes using SEO keywords in your titles and descriptions to push your images to the top of the search results.
Pinterest SEO is simple. Just use any words and phrases that are relevant to your brand and products. Once you’ve exhausted all the obvious keywords, you can find inspiration using Pinterest’s guided search, Google AdWords, and Pinterest Ad targeting. You can even look at the language your competitors are using to help you get ahead!
4) Use hashtags
Hashtags are important for ecommerce brands across social media, and Pinterest is no different. These allow you to connect your content to a specific topic or theme, which helps it spread to more people. Use 3-5 hashtags on every Pin, including a brand hashtag that you include on every post.
5) Use Rich Pins
Rich Pins enhance your Pins by pulling information from your website. There are three types of Rich Pin:
- Product Rich Pins add up-to-date pricing, availability, and product information
- Article Rich Pins add the title, description, and author of an article or blog post
- Recipe Rich Pins add a title, serving size, cooking time, ratings, dietary preferences, and ingredients
Using Rich Pins allows Pinterest users to learn more about your Pins, products, and services as soon as your post shows up. This encourages greater engagement and provides a more satisfying user experience.
6) Add share Pins to your product pages
A good Pinterest marketing strategy doesn’t just drive traffic to your site. By adding Pin buttons to your ecommerce product pages, you give customers the chance to save and share your products back on Pinterest, too. This allows them to add your products to Boards for later purchases as well as give you free exposure to their friends, family, and colleagues.
7) Follow a publishing schedule
Consistently publishing engaging content is the open secret to successful social media marketing. Start by posting as many high-quality Pins as you can, then slowly increase in volume without letting your standards slip. Keep an eye on your Pinterest Analytics to find the sweet spot between publishing too little and overwhelming your audience.
It’s also a good idea to use social media management tools like Hootsuite or Buffer as part of your Pinterest content strategy. These tools allow you to queue up posts for publishing, making it easy to follow your schedule.
8) Mix up your Pinterest content strategy
Publishing the same types of Pins day in and day out is a great way to bore your audience. So instead of just posting images of your products, remember to share videos, blogs, infographics, guides, and other types of content as well. That way, you can keep your audience engaged and avoid blending into the background on their feed.
9) Use Pinterest ads
Pinterest offers a far more intimate, personalized experience than other social media platforms. So it’s no surprise that its ads are 2.3x more effective than other platforms, with a 2x higher return on ad spend for retail brands!
The platform offers a variety of ad formats with extensive ad targeting options to help you reach your target audience. Take advantage of these features to connect with an engaged and receptive customer base.
10) Engage with other accounts
Building a strong community is vital for success on Pinterest. As well as posting your own content, it’s important that you follow other relevant accounts and like, comment on, and re-pin their content.
But that doesn’t mean you need to start promoting your competitors. Instead, focus on accounts whose posts complement your product range to give your audience a full, enriching, and valuable browsing experience.
Bonus tip: Partner with an experienced ecommerce marketing agency
Understanding how to market with Pinterest is an important first step of leveraging the platform’s immense potential to build your brand. But for many ecommerce companies, maintaining a strong online presence on top of running a business can be overwhelming – especially if you don’t see the success you want. That’s why brands of all sizes and industries rely on LimeLight Marketing.
Contact our expert team today to discuss how we can help you grow your ecommerce brand with an effective digital marketing strategy.
