10 Ways to Use Pinterest for Business

Is Pinterest still a relevant social network to use for your social media marketing? According to the Pinterest business website, 482 million people use the visual “bookmarking” site every month to find new ideas and plan their next purchase.

Pinterest works well to reach specific audiences. Over 75% of Pinterest users are female and under 35 years of age. If that is the right target market for you, adding Pinterest into your social marketing mix makes sense. In addition to marketing, there are internal business uses for Pinterest as well. Here are 10 ways you can do both.

1. Share your content. The easiest way to begin leveraging Pinterest for your social media marketing is to share your content as pins. There are several ways to do this. First, make sure the images on your website are Pinterest friendly which includes adhering to the proper dimensions – at least 600 pixels wide. Any height will do, but taller vertical images often work best. Pin images directly from your website or build a pin with a custom graphic, designed specifically for Pinterest and add a link to your website. Remember to also pin videos, not just graphics, to add visual interest to your Pinterest Boards.

2. Drive traffic. As you pin from your website or with links to your website, you’re potentially driving more traffic to your website. Pinterest users and your Pinterest followers may save your pins or, if interested, may click on the pins to be directed to your website.

3. Showcase what you do. Public Pinterest boards can be used as a portfolio of work. Artists, photographers, and graphic designers can upload digital images of their work. If you produce products of any kind, you can feature them in photographs and videos. Other ways to highlight what you do include adding videos of speeches, slide presentations, and event coverage, particularly if you are providing a service versus products.

4. Provide instruction (How-to). Product demonstrations, tips, or other instructional information does well on Pinterest, especially if featuring a video or a step-by-step graphic. A step-by-step graphic on Pinterest is typically a tall, vertical image with either illustrations or photographs and concise steps to perform a task or activity such as “How to make a Fall centerpiece” or “How to accessorize for the office.” Provide information relevant to your business and your customers or prospects and encourage them to get in touch to purchase from you or hire you.

5. Follow trends for inspiration. Whether you’re working on a creative project or planning an event, pin images and videos to boards set up specifically for organizing content by topics. For example, if you are an interior designer, you could set up Boards for color, furnishings, wall décor, and carpets.

6. Planning. Move beyond saving pins for inspiration and transition into the planning stage. Using the interior decorator example, you could then set up a separate board pairing your finds together for a visual collage. If you’re on the other end working with a designer, use Pinterest boards to gather examples that help communicate your vision.

7. Research and shopping. Your saved Pinterest pins can help guide you as you shop for anything from art and home décor to technology, appliances, furniture, clothing, accessories, and more. If it can be purchased, it can be pinned and used to set up visual shopping lists. Product Pins on Pinterest can lead you directly to online shopping.

8. Team Collaboration. While Pinterest public boards are accessible to anyone, if you’re working with your team, a client, or a vendor and are looking for a more direct and private way to share pins with them, set up secret Pinterest boards and invite others to collaborate with you. Control who has access to which board throughout the collaboration process.

9. Advertise. Double check you have a Pinterest business account to take advantage of advertising on the platform. To do this, click the down arrow next to your profile picture on the upper right corner of the Pinterest website. If you see “Convert to business account,” do that first. Pinterest will guide you through the steps for business verification. Pinterest ads can help you grow your reach, drive traffic to your website, and drive actions such as sales but also subscriptions, registrations, and participation in contests, giveaways, and surveys.

10. Sell. If you’re selling something online, you could potentially set up a Pinterest store. In order to do so, you’ll need to apply for Pinterest’s Verified Merchant Program. A list of criteria and application is available on the Pinterest website.

As you can see, Pinterest offers tools for public-facing marketing and internal collaboration. Remember to measure engagement and conversions from Pinterest in the same way you do for the other social networks you use to get the most out of using it.