How (and why) to Sell your products on Pinterest
You may think of Pinterest as the social media destination for finding recipes, great DIYs, and other inspirational content, but the platform has significantly evolved over the last few years. Now, over 367 million people use Pinterest every month, with 89% of users saying they frequent the platform for purchase inspiration. What’s more, is that a reported 47% of those Pinners log onto the site SPECIFICALLY to shop. That is a LOT of people visiting a single site to make a purchase!
More recently, the platform has seen a significant uptick in shopping interest, with shoppable Product Pins increasing by 44% due to the COVID-19 lockdowns. In this time, it’s even more beneficial to sell on Pinterest, as the platform is enabling users to support small businesses, acting as a digital mall, replacing real-life shopping experiences for users.
Have we piqued your interest? Keep reading for what you need to know to start selling on Pinterest.
Set up a business account (if you haven’t already!)
If you already have your account set up as a personal profile, you can easily convert it to a business profile! You will gain access to more features, including analytics, ads, and other tools for selling. If you’re brand new to Pinterest, you can just register for a business account on the sign-up page!
Once your profile is set up, make sure you brand your page with the most up-to-date information about your business. Your profile photo, bio, etc. should reflect your current logo and contact information.
The final and most important step is claiming your website. This is crucial, as it’s how you will be able to create a shop and link products. Pinterest has a step-by-step guide you can follow here.
Create eye-catching visuals
Knowing that Pinterest is a visual platform, your company should strive to produce high-quality photos and graphics that match your branding.
When it comes to photography, we recommend capturing high-quality images of your products or services in use. Another great option is creating a graphic or text overlay out of a professional photo, providing information on a product or service (example).
Use rich and promoted Pins
Rich Pins provide more context around what you’re posting about, as they show more information directly on a Pin. There are four types of rich Pins: app, product, recipe, and article. Once you’ve applied for this type of Pin, any content on your site with metadata will turn into a Rich Pin when a user saves it. Learn more about this feature and how to apply for it here.
Promoted pins are much simpler to utilize, as these ads are regular Pins that you pay to be placed where people are most likely to see them. These Pins will show up in your target audience’s home feed, category feeds, and relevant search results.
Use Shop the Look Pins
Shop the Look Pins have white dots that highlight different parts of the look. Users are able to tap the dots to shop for each item you tag. This is a great way to feature multiple products in a single image / Pin! The process for setting up this type of Pin is manual, but once your Pin is linked to your claimed site, you can tag as many products as desired.
Create catalogs
With a business profile, you can upload your full catalog to Pinterest and easily turn your products into dynamic Product Pins, which means more shoppable Pins across Pinterest. To learn how to connect your product catalog, see their guide here.
Keep an eye out for exciting new updates
Pinterest is constantly rolling out new offerings for businesses to help them have a successful selling experience on the platform. Most recently, Pinterest launched a new app with Shopify that gives their more than one million merchants a quick way to upload catalogs to Pinterest and turn their products into shoppable Product Pins.
Don’t forget SEO
When thinking about your SEO on Pinterest, focus on using industry keywords strategically in your Pin titles and descriptions, as well as your board titles and descriptions. Make sure that you’re incorporating these keywords in a natural way so it does not feel forced. Using keywords will expose your content to a larger audience, increasing your likelihood of making a sale!
See here for more SEO tips.
Ready to up your virtual selling game? Call, DM, or email us at sbellem@bbrookstone.com to create a game plan. We would love to help your company shine on Pinterest!
