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Is Pinterest Right for My Business?

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Hey Brandi – I love spending time browsing Pinterest, but how do I know if Pinterest is right for my business?

Pinterest exploded onto the social media scene a few years ago. To be honest, when it first came out, I didn’t get it. And then, I got hooked and had to create a list of things to do besides hang out on Pinterest (like actually try the recipes or do the workouts, not just collect them on my beautiful boards).

And now it can drive significant traffic for your business. Let’s start by looking at the demographics of Pinterest users:

  • As of 2016 Pinterest had 150 million users
  • Of all adults in the US, 45% of women use Pinterest and 17% of men (2016 Pew Research)
  • The most popular categories are food, home décor, and clothing (2016 Pew Research)
  • Pinners are 47% more likely to be planning for a life event, like a wedding or a trip, within the next 6 months (Milward Brown 2016 study)
  • 36% of Pinterest users are between the ages of 18-29, and Gen X (ages 30-49) makes up 34%. (2016 Pew Research)
  • Pinterest is relatively evenly used across income brackets, with those in the $75k+ bracket comprising 75% of users. (2016 Pew Research)

Of course, the platform still has its own unique challenges:

  • Only 25% of users use the platform daily, and an additional 31% only use the platform weekly. This is in sharp contrast to the 76% of users who use Facebook daily and 51% of users who log into Instagram daily. (2016 Pew research)
  • Only 31% of online Americans used Pinterest in 2016 – the same percentage who used the platform in 2015.
  • Pinterest is one of the most visually driven social media platforms – which means that your pictures really are worth 1000 words (or more). If creating visual content to support your business isn’t your cup of tea, Pinterest may be a challenging platform for you. Consider either developing the skills to create your own visuals, or find a graphic design partner who can create great graphics for you.

Personal vs Business Pinterest Accounts

Much like Facebook has business pages and personal accounts, you can create personal or business accounts on Pinterest. The key difference between the two (at least for now) is access to Pinterest Analytics. If you’re pinning as a way to drive your business, then the transition from personal is worth it. You can choose to either change your personal account to a business account, or create a new account for your business. Learn more about how to set up your business account from Pinterest. 

Pinterest Analytics

Is Pinterest right for your business?With Pinterest Analytics, you can see performance of your Pinterest account as well as how well your website content is performing on Pinterest.

Account Analytics

  • Top pins from the last 30 days across your account
  • Top boards from the last 30 days across your account
  • Your best pins for all time, including your most re-pinned pins, best in search pins, and power pins (Power Pins are those with all-time high engagement including likes, comments, and sends.)

Website Analytics

  • Top pins from the last 30 days that link back to your website
  • Top boards for the last 30 days – i.e., which boards contain a lot of pins that link back to your site.
  • Number of original pins on a daily basis, including the most recent unique pins that have been created from your content.
  • Most repined, best in search and Power Pins for all time from your website
  • Use of the “Pin It” button (if you’re using the official Pin It button)

Audience Analytics

  • Demographics, including locations, languages and gender information
  • Interests, boards, and other businesses that your audience is interacting with

Pinterest Engagement Tips

If you’ve decided based on all this information that Pinterest is the right platform for your business, and created your business Pinterest account (so you get all those great analytics benefits), here are some ways to drive engagement.

  • Schedule pins to post throughout the day. (You may need a solution like TailWind or BoardBooster since Pinterest does not offer a native scheduling solution.)
  • Pin consistently. Just like any social media presence, consistency is important!
  • Support other influencers through Pinterest. One of the powerful things about Pinterest is its ability to provide wide ranges of content through curation. Don’t just share your own pins!
  • Consider a dedicated brand board for your own content. Even if you also share on topic boards, a brand board dedicated to just your own posts can provide a way for your audience to always find your latest shares.
  • Build complementary partnerships. If you’re a fashionista, consider partnering up with a hair or makeup pinner. You may also join group boards that allow you to share some of your content while contributing to an overall theme.

So I’m curious – did you decide Pinterest was right for your business? Let me know in the comments or drop me an email.

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