We don't know about you, but Pinterest has become our new favorite marketing platform. Pinterest is not your average social media network! It is a space for visual discovery that is designed to help users find and organize their inspirations. But that is not all! Pinterest is not given enough credit when it comes to driving traffic to your website. If you have not been doing so, you are missing out because if you want to see more visitors, traffic, and customers coming to your site, Pinterest can do wonders for you.

If you think Pinterest is just for DIY projects or amazing food pictures, think again! It is literally a world of treasure for businesses and marketers like you that is just waiting to be tapped. Let's explore why Pinterest should be a part of your marketing strategy and how you can leverage it to drive traffic to your site.

What Makes Pinterest Different From Other Social Media Platforms?

Let’s talk about potential first. When Pinterest was launched in 2010, it became the quickest site to gain 10 million active users. Today, Pinterest has an active monthly user base of 537 million users worldwide, with the numbers jumping fast. 

With a 73% satisfaction score, it easily ranks above the likes of Facebook and LinkedIn for user satisfaction. But Pinterest is not like Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. It works more like a search engine than a social media platform. 

When a user logs into Pinterest, the intent is not only to scroll through posts from their friends, peers, or influencers; they are actively trying to search for solutions, ideas, inspirations, and even products. This means that the people who find your content on Pinterest come with a more engaged and ready-to-act mindset.

In fact, there are over 2 billion searches happening on Pinterest every month, which is a massive opportunity for your content to be visible and discovered. If you are not on Pinterest yet, you are missing out on a lot of potential traffic that may bring you more conversions. 

Pinterest Business Accounts: Why Are They Important?

Before we look at strategies to drive traffic from Pinterest to your site, let’s talk about how to get started.

If you want to tap into Pinterest’s potential for businesses, you first need to switch to a Pinterest business account. A personal Pinterest account may not cut it if you are aiming to drive serious traffic to your site. Once you make the switch, you can benefit from features that are specifically designed to help businesses thrive on Pinterest.

So, what are the benefits that you can enjoy from having a business account? Let's have a look!

Access to Pinterest Analytics

When you create a business account on Pinterest, you get access to Pinterest Analytics, which can be the ultimate game changer for how you do things on Pinterest. You can easily track what is working and what is not and which Pins are sending the most traffic to your site. You can even see which audience traffic is engaging more with your content, which allows you to refine your strategy. 

Rich Pins 

Rich pins are a feature that enables you to add more context to your Pins. For instance, there are product pins that can display real-time prices, availability, and a link to your site. Similarly, you may find recipe pins that can include ingredients, cooking time, and even serving sizes. These kinds of detailed pins give users more reason to click-through to your site.

Educational Resources

Pinterest does not only give you the tools; it also gives you tons of educational material to help you succeed. Pinterest's Business Hub includes guides, best practices, and success stories from other creators to inspire your strategy. 

Promoted Pins

If you want to enhance your marketing efforts on Pinterest, Promoted Pins can help. These enable you to get your pins seen by more people in exchange for a fee. These are essentially Pinterest's version of ads and are a great way to boost your traffic quickly in case you have a product or service to promote.

So, if you do not already have a Pinterest business account, consider switching right away. It is your ticket to making Pinterest the ultimate traffic driver to your site. 

Pinterest Strategies to Drive Traffic to Your Site 

Pinterest is indeed an incredible platform for driving traffic to your site but achieving consistent results requires more than just pinning a few pictures here and there. 

If you want to make the most out of your Pinterest presence, you need to employ a strategic and thoughtful approach that ensures your content reaches the right audience and gets noticed. Here are some essential steps you can follow to build a Pinterest strategy that will help bring more visitors to your site over time: 

Create Dedicated Pinterest Boards for Your Content

To effectively drive traffic from Pinterest, one of the first things you should do is to create a Pinterest board specifically for your posts. This will make it easy for your audience to find your content all in one place. For instance, if you post about healthy recipes, you can create a board dedicated to “healthy recipes” or “tasty and easy dinners” and so on. 

These boards must be very well organized and should contain multiple Pins that link directly to your blog. The beauty of Pinterest lies in the long shelf life of content! Unlike other social media platforms where your posts quickly get buried under new or more trending content, your Pins have a longer visibility period. When you organize all your posts into dedicated Pinterest boards, you can make it easy for users to stumble upon your content, even months after you have pinned it. 

Another good idea is to pin your posts multiple times. Do not just post a Pin once and forget about it. We recommend pinning each post to multiple boards over time to give it more exposure. Mixing is important to prevent the algorithm from flagging you as spam. Also, spacing the pins out over several weeks or months will keep the content fresh in users’ feeds, and Pinterest's algorithm will keep showing it to relevant users.

Research and Use Keywords to Make Your Pins More Discoverable

If you want to make sure that your pins are seen by the right audience, you need to optimize your content. Pinterest, as we mentioned before, is more like a search engine, so it is important to use the right keywords to make your content discoverable. 

Start by using Pinterest's search bar, type in a broad topic related to your blog, and take note of keyword suggestions that Pinterest provides. These suggestions will give you an idea about what people are really searching for.

Once you have identified the keywords relevant to your niche, you can strategically place them in different places. Here are a few ideas:

• Pin Titles- This is where you can make your content stand out. For instance, instead of just calling your pin “5 Easy Recipes”, you can optimize it with something like “5 Easy Vegan Recipes for Beginners."
• Pin Descriptions- Write a creative description that includes your target keywords while ensuring that it is still natural and helpful for the prospective reader. Do not stuff keywords just for the sake of it—instead, focus on creating a description that explains what your Pin is about while using keywords effectively. 
• Board Titles and Description- Make sure your board titles also contain relevant keywords. For instance, instead of using a generic name like "Recipes" for your board, you can try something specific like "Healthy Gluten-free Dinner Recipes."

Always focus on the context when adding keywords, as the right placement makes your content sound human. On the other hand, overstuffing your content with keywords can get it flagged as spam. When you optimize your Pins and boards for search, you can ensure that your content appears when users search for a related topic. 

Create Pins That Drive Traffic

When creating Pins, it is important to consider elements that make them successful. Click here to learn Pinterest's best practices for the creative process. Here are added few tips in this regard:

• Create Pins in Popular Categories- Pinterest is organized into categories, and some categories are more popular than others. If you want to drive traffic, it is important to create pins within popular categories like food, DIY, home décor, or fashion. However, if your blog or site does not fit into any of these categories, do not panic. With millions of active users, there is surely a niche for everyone, and Pinterest users are increasingly exploring diverse content according to their varying interests.
• Ensure Visual Impact- If you use Pinterest, you will know how visual of a platform it is. Your pins need to stand out visually, which is why the quality of the images is important. A blurry or poorly composed image would surely not garner much attention as compared to much better ones. 

In this regard, you can use tools like Canva to create stunning Pins. Even if you are a beginner, Canva features a myriad of templates, even free ones, which are easy to customize. You do not need a fancy graphic design degree to create something that demands attention. 

• Optimize Image Size- There is a specific size that Pinterest prefers for Pins—1000 x 1500 pixels, which is basically a 2:3 aspect ratio. Vertical pins tend to perform better because they take more space in the feed, so make your Pins accordingly. 

Also, make sure that you are not oversizing or undersizing your images, as this may negatively impact your Pin’s reach. 

• Incorporate text Overlay- While images are the primary focus, adding a text overlay to your Pin can help communicate the value of your content. This is just the title of a blog post. Keep the text short and to the point so readers can understand it at first glance. 

Pin Consistently for Maximum Visibility

Consistency is a major factor in Pinterest's success. It is important to post regularly because Pinterest rewards active users who share fresh content consistently. Ideally, you should aim to post every day, and while it may sound time-consuming, it does not have to be if you consider the bigger picture. 

You can use Pinterest scheduling tools to plan your posts in advance. This way, you can create a batch of Pins for one week or even a month and schedule them to post automatically at optimal times. You can also set up your Pins to go live at the times when Pinterest traffic is highest, which is usually late in the afternoon and evenings. Scheduling will ensure that you are pinning consistently without having to think about it every day. 

Another benefit of regular pinning is that your content will be continually refreshed in user feeds. Pinterest's algorithms tend to favor accounts that are active, which implies that if you post regularly, your Pins are more likely to appear in front of fresh eyes. 

Use Group Boards to Increase Exposure

Group boards are community-driven boards on Pinterest where multiple users can share their pins. Joining group boards within your niche can be incredibly helpful for expanding your reach. It can be an effective means to tap into an already established audience. 

Here is how you can use group boards effectively:

• Join high-traffic boards- Look for group boards that are active and have a large number of followers. If you are in the food niche, try joining boards that focus on recipes or healthy eating. You can use various tools like PinGroupie to find the best groups for your niche. 
• Pin to relevant boards- Always make sure that your Pin is a good fit for the group board you are posting to. Group boards have specific rules so pay attention to the guidelines to avoid spamming or sharing content that is irrelevant.
• Participate regularly- The more you Pin to group boards, the more exposure you will get. Moreover, it shows your active participation, which can lead to increased followers and higher visibility. Pinning to group boards enables you to share your content with a wider audience and increases your chances of getting more clicks to your website. 

Consider Adding the “Pin It” Widget to Your Website

It is important to make it as easy as possible for your website visitors to share your content on Pinterest. One of the easiest ways you can do this is by adding the Pin It button to your posts and images. This enables the visitors to pin any image from your site to their Pinterest boards with just one click. Similarly, if you have a valuable blog post that people may want to keep referring to over time, you must make it easy for them to do so. 

You can also add hover buttons to your images so that when someone hovers over an image, the Pin It button automatically appears. This may prompt the user to take action who may otherwise hesitate to share your content. 

You can add this functionality to your site and make it very easy for visitors to share your content, which increases the likelihood of repins. The more your Pins are shared, the more exposure your content will get. Consequently, you will see more traffic coming to your site. 

Build Relationships and Gain More Followers

Building relationships is important for growing your Pinterest following and driving traffic to your site. Here are a few tips you may find helpful in this regard:

• Follow and engage with popular boards- Check out what is working for the bigger players in your niche. Look at their Pins and their boards and explore what is working for them. Follow the popular boards and engage with the content. Interact where you can and leave comments. This helps get your name and brand out there in front of a broader audience. 
• Engage with your followers- Just like any other social media platform, Pinterest is all about relationships. Make an active effort to respond to comments, engage with your followers, and show them that you care about their contributions. Also, comment on your followers' feeds and show some love to deepen your connection and make them feel valued and appreciated. If people feel connected to you, they will be compelled to share your Pins, which may then bring in more traffic.

We also touched upon group boards in an earlier section. These are a great means of boosting engagement as they enable multiple contributors to add their own Pins. You can join a group board to get access to a wider audience that may not otherwise get to see your content. If you can contribute, it will help boost your credibility and expand your reach. 

Be Consistent and Patient

Here is the thing about Pinterest! If you are looking for instant gratification, Pinterest may not be for you. Unlike platforms like TikTok, Twitter, or Instagram, where your posts can go viral very quickly, Pinterest takes time to yield results. Hence, patience and consistency are very important if you want to see significant traffic results. 

It can take weeks, months, or even more before your Pins start driving noticeable traffic, but do not be discouraged. Pinterest rewards consistent efforts over time, and once you have built up a collection of Pins that are driving traffic, the results will eventually start to snowball. 

The more Pins you have, the more chances you have for visibility. Also, because Pins tend to have a long lifespan, your content will continue to be shared and repinned, thereby providing a constant flow of traffic even months after you posted it for the first time.

Final Thoughts

Pinterest marketing is now regarded as a powerful way to drive traffic to your website. However, it is important to keep in mind that it is an ongoing effort. The key is to get creative with your Pins, be consistent with your strategy, and optimize your content for Pinterest's unique search algorithm. 

The more you learn and grow on the platform, the more traffic you will be able to attract to your website over time. So, start today! Follow these strategies, start pinning, and let Pinterest work its magic for you and your brand.