You might know Pinterest as the place you’d go for cute decorating ideas or to get inspired for your next big dinner party. But did you know that Pinterest is quickly catching up to social media giants like Snapchat and Twitter as one of the fastest growing social networking platforms in 2022? If you’re a creator or small business owner, you’ll want to know how to get in on this action and learn how you can leverage the platform to get eyes from around the world on your work.
What is Pinterest?
Pinterest is a social media platform designed for discovering and sharing information through images and short videos. Users can create boards and ‘pin’ images to these boards in order to visually organize their ideas. This makes Pinterest a unique destination for social networking as it fosters discovery and connection while also operating as a visual search engine and productivity tool.
Since launching in 2010, the total number of pins saved by Pinterest users has grown to over 240 billion. As a business owner or brand manager, you can share pins to reach people in your target market, provide value to your followers through posting inspiring or educational content, and even drive sales by leading potential customers through the marketing pipeline.
Who is on Pinterest?
Pinterest currently averages over 470 million active users per month with over 50% of those users residing outside of the United States. Recent studies have shown that women account for around 60% of their total users but that the number of men on Pinterest is continuing to grow by nearly 50% year over year. While Gen Z and Millennials are responsible for driving most of Pinterest’s growth in recent years, plenty of Gen X and Boomer audiences can also be found on the platform. Combining Pinterest’s unique features with built-in shopping surfaces, merchant tools for businesses, and the ability to create brand pages helps to draw in both business and consumer crowds. This makes for the perfect destination where inspiration and action meet.
What do I need to do?
Now that you’re familiar with Pinterest and what it’s all about, we’re here to guide you through your next steps to get started on the platform.
1. Create your profile
Step one is to create a business profile. You can do this by either adding a business profile to your existing personal account, converting your existing personal account into a business account, or creating an entirely new business account. Your business profile is an official business page that adds legitimacy to your brand. It also allows you to connect your Pinterest page directly to your website, which in turn allows your audience to re-pin any images directly from your website onto their Pinterest boards.
2. Come up with a content strategy
There are several types of content that work well on Pinterest. The kind of content you post will ultimately be determined by what you think will work best for your brand or business. Think of a pin as a visual bookmark, you’ll want to create content that aligns with your brand vision and that your audience will want to save. These could be photos and videos of your products, or if you’re a service-based business, maybe a visually interesting how-to guide or infographic. Whether you plan on posting photos, GIFs, or short videos, you can set yourself up for success by deciding what type of content you want to focus on beforehand. From there, create a schedule for when you’ll plan, shoot, film, and edit your content to make it easier to stay on track. Some ideas we love for a Pinterst content strategy include educational content, inspirational images, blog post graphics, and product shots!
3. Engage!
Don’t forget that Pinterest is a social media platform at the end of the day. There is a social component to Pinterest which makes it a prime place to network online and connect with like-minded individuals. Follow people who pin your posts and re-pin posts from accounts that you like and want to be like. Show up online by leaving a like or comment on the content you see. Don’t be afraid to reply to your followers and engage with your audience! It’s one of the best ways to turn fans into fanatics and turn a one-time sale into a loyal customer. Just like any social media network, building a community around your brand or business is key.
We hope you enjoyed our beginners guide to getting started with Pinterest in 2022! Whether you’re a small business owner or independent creator, expanding your reach by creating a presence on other platforms is never a bad idea.
For more tips and tricks on how to get your idea off the ground and online, follow us @Hover on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. In the meantime, check out our list of free social media management tools you need to try!
