While the number of Pinterest’s monthly active users is only a fraction of Facebook's and Instagram's, it isn’t inferior in any way when it comes to sales conversion. This underrated yet powerful platform has been helping businesses (who know how to use it) perform better. So, before you sigh and think, "Nah, that’s just a waste of time," read this article first. Using Pinterest for business can help your brand soar, and we’re not exaggerating.

Why You Need to Be Using Pinterest for Business

People Use Pinterest as a Search Engine

Unlike most social media platforms, Pinterest is being used by many as a search engine. Over two billion searches – from dessert recipes to fashion accessories – are being made every month! And if your brand is not on the list, then you’re losing out on some really good opportunities to showcase your products or services and convert sales.

Furthermore, a lot of these "pinners" aren’t just saving pins for convenient bookmarking purposes. 84% of them use the platform as a tool to help them with their purchasing decisions. If you’re a business owner and you want to boost your sales, then Pinterest is a good place to start.

Pinterest Can Increase Website Traffic

Website traffic is important. More visits mean more opportunities to attract new clients, generate leads, and convert those leads to paying customers. The good news is you can drive more traffic to your website using Pinterest. This is because every pin you create becomes an inbound link.

Using inbound links is a tested and proven strategy for improving your website’s search engine rankings. The more high-quality backlinks you have, the better your chances are of showing up in searches. This makes Pinterest exceptionally helpful in increasing website traffic.

Since Pinterest works like a search engine and a social media network, people searching for similar pins, as well as those who follow you or your board, can view your pins and save them to their personal boards. Furthermore, the people who follow them will also be able to see your pins. This increases the pins' exposure and at the same time increases the chances of people clicking on them and opening the link to your website.

Pinterest Reaches 83% of Women in the U.S.

A large percentage of women use Pinterest. This means that the network is being patronized by the gender group often responsible for most household purchases. It’s a common rule of thumb that you should market your products or services to those with the purchasing power, and Pinterest, a community where 83% of women between the ages of 25 and 54 spend significant time, is an excellent platform for advertising and promotions.

It's not just women, though...

More Members of the Opposite Sex are Joining Pinterest

Brands who also market to the male demographic, this is for you! Women aren’t the only ones using Pinterest. You’ll be surprised to know that more and more males are joining the network. Last 2016, 40% of new Pinterest users were male. The network is constantly growing and producing more opportunities for exposure.

A Lot of Pinners Learn About New Brands Through Pinterest

If you’re new in the market and want to let the world know about your products and services, launching your campaign on Pinterest is a good way to start. This is because 72% of pinners learn about new brands through Pinterest. Thus, you get more opportunities to shine.

Pinterest Has a High Browsers-to-Buyers Conversion

93% of pinners utilize Pinterest for planning their purchases. If you’re a new brand and you want to expand your reach and promote your products or services to a wider audience, then you’ll have a decent chance at it when you promote your brand on Pinterest.

Pinterest’s high sales conversion rate isn’t to be taken lightly. Even though its number of monthly active users cannot compete with Facebook (at least for now), this social media platform is a major force in turning browsers into actual buyers.

Pinterest Gives You Access to Insights/Analytics

If you want the best results for your business, then you have to stay in the loop. In other words, you have to be updated on the latest trends and aware of your metrics. This is where insights and analytics come in. This data helps marketers measure performance – information that every brand needs – to see if their strategies are doing them any good.

If you’re on Pinterest for business, you’ll have access to several powerful tools that make it easy to determine whether or not your actions are working well for your brand.

For instance, they give you information about the pins that are getting the most engagement, so you’ll be able to review your content and make the appropriate revisions to improve their performance.

Pinterest for business also gives you access to historical data, so you can compare your previous years’ performance to your current performance and determine if your brand is progressing well.

Additionally, you’ll be able to see how your website is faring and which pins are successfully leading Pinterest browsers to your site.

Pinterest Allows You to Know More About Your Customers

What draws your customers’ attention? What pushes them to buy? The answers to these questions are essential for your brand to sell. If you know the habits, activities, and preferences of your customers, then you’ll have a better chance of enticing them to buy your product.

Pinterest, along with its insights and analytics, can help you build a strategy that can improve your conversion.

Pins Have a Long Lifespan

While other social media sites’ content remain visible on your followers’ feeds for a few hours to a few days (if engagement is good), pins stay put as long as you don’t remove them from your board, regardless of engagement. This is one of Pinterest’s advantages over other social media sites. Moreover, pins are searchable. So, even your old pins can still help generate traffic to your website.

Pinterest Allows You to Promote a Pin

According to studies, a lot of pinners trust promoted pins, and this leads to better performance, improved brand awareness, and an increase in sales. If you’re looking into investing in ads for your business, Pinterest is an excellent platform to do it.

How to Use Pinterest for Business

Maintaining a Pinterest for business account isn’t limited to just creating images and uploading them to your feed. If you want to increase conversions, then you have to do it right. Here are a few tips to improve your brand’s Pinterest account performance.

Make Sure You’re Creating a Business Account

There’s a personal Pinterest account and then there’s a Pinterest Business account. If you’re creating one for your business, you have to open a Pinterest business account.

This is because business accounts offer more features that are helpful for your brand, such as enabling you to view analytics, allowing you to display your company name instead of the personal account’s first name and last name, and giving you the option to promote pins.

The good thing is it’s not as difficult as you might think. Just type business.pinterest.com on your browser, click join, and fill out the information required.

Fill Out Your Profile

Let your audience know who you are. Create a username that best represents your brand. Your company name is recommended but if it’s already taken, choose something very close to it for easy identification.

Use your logo for your profile picture – be consistent with your brand image, and remember to claim your website for authenticity as well as for access to website analytics. Also, don’t forget to add your location and a short description of your brand with a few relevant keywords.

Create Relevant Boards

Organize your Pinterest account and categorize your pins into boards for easier navigation. When you’re creating boards, remember to include a clear, SEO-friendly description.

If you’re not yet ready to show your board to the world, you can initially make it a secret board to prevent other people from viewing it.

Pin High-Quality Content

One of the most important things you have to consider when it comes to increasing engagement in social media is content. Here are a few tips for producing high-quality content.

Tall Images Perform Better

When you’re creating images for your brand, make sure they’re optimized for Pinterest. For instance, tall images work well on this platform since they take up more visual real estate, which means they’re easily visible to your audience’s eyes.

Optimize, Optimize, Optimize

Aside from your image, you also have to optimize your file names and descriptions. Always try to incorporate relevant keywords so it has a higher chance of showing up in Pinterest searches as well as on other search engines. Just a reminder: When you’re adding keywords, be creative about it. Don’t make it look like you’re simply adding a bunch of keywords for SEO purposes.

Don’t Forget to Include Your Website Link

If you want to drive more traffic to your website, you have to make it easy for pinners to find your website. Aside from adding a link to your page on your profile, add them on every pin you create. This way, people can get redirected quickly and easily whenever they click your content.

Create Graphics That Catch Pinners' Attention

As much as possible, try to be consistent with your brand’s image whenever you’re creating graphics for your pin. Additionally, use photos that represent your brand, and always make sure that the text you add on the image is readable.

Add a Link to Your Pinterest Page on Your Website

Aside from adding a link to your website on your Pinterest page, it’s also good to add a link to your Pinterest page on your website and your other social media pages.This way, people know how to find you when they’re on the platform.

Network!

It’s not enough to just create good content and optimize your descriptions. Pinterest is asocial media network. Thus, you have to network. If you want more people to follow you and see your boards and pins, then make the first step. Follow other people’s boards and repin other people’s content (as long as it's related to your brand). This way, they’ll be able to notice you and – if your content catches their attention – follow you back.

Pinterest can be a very good platform for promoting your brand. When managed correctly, it can increase brand exposure, recognition, conversion, and, as a result, boost sales. Take advantage of this opportunity to improve your online presence and start pinning more today.