Pinterest can be an effective avenue for bolstering both sales and engagement from customers. It’s no secret that Pinterest has been a powerful tool for effectively marketing products and increasing sales. In fact, Shopify reported that Pinterest’s image-driven platform was the second largest social media source to increase traffic to their ecommerce site, resulting in the third highest average order value. This beats Facebook. Clearly, Pinterest can be an important tool for your small business. You just have to know how to use it.
Use Rich Pins
Rich pins are pins that contain information within the pin that would be beneficial to a potential customer. Examples of this type of information could include pricing and stock availability. However, there are many important bits of information that can be included in a pin. One of the obvious benefits of these pins is the fact that they improve click-through rates (CTR). Plus, a high CTR can increase your chances of receiving Pinterest’s curated feeds. They also allow customers to stay up to date on products they’ve pinned. If there’s a change in price or any other important element, they’re notified of the change.
Sell Lifestyle
It’s not enough to post attractive pictures of your product on Pinterest. Your pins need to be more compelling to draw customers in. In essence, this is why it’s a good idea to sell lifestyle when it comes to your pins. Lifestyle pins help your customers to imagine the value that having that product or service would bring to their lives. Include lifestyle pieces along with your product, in the pins you create. For example, if you are a company that sells beauty products, check out pages like Nu Skin and see how they embody imagery of nutrition and health. It creates thought and generates more interest which would motivate potential customers to click on your pin.
Utilize Popular but Relevant Subjects
Although it’s not always smart to use popular, viral or trending content to boost interest and product exposure, it can be an effective vehicle to promote sales if it’s a subject that has relevance for your audience. If your audience is predominately female and your product is kitchen appliances, you could pin recipes using the kitchen tools and appliances that you sell.
Use Influencers
Collaborate with Pinterest influencers and bloggers to bring more exposure to your brand. Influencers can bring added credibility to your brand because they are already respected in their niche in the social media world. However, even a move like this requires that you have a strategy in place.
Choose an influencer or blogger that has an audience similar to yours. This will not only ensure that you’re increasing your exposure but will draw more customers from your desired audience. A board that’s pinned by a major influencer or blogger in your niche can do a lot to widen your audience which can ultimately increase sales. Even if you have to pay for this, the ability for this type of a move to increase your visibility is well worth it.
Run Pinterest Contests
Contests are a great way to encourage your customers to engage with your brand on Pinterest, not to mention a great way to expand your customer base. Although Pinterest has strict guidelines for contests, you can still generate sales through this technique. In fact, many brands have had a lot of success using contests. Overstock saw a 1,000 percent increase in referrals as a result of Pinterest contests.
Pinterest can be an extremely effective vehicle for increasing your sales if you know how to use it. In fact, Pinterest has been known to continually generate revenue from pins that were created months prior to the sale. In fact, fifty percent of all visits occur 3.5 months after a product has been pinned. This is a strong argument for the longevity of pins and a good reason to make sure that your pins are loaded with compelling information that will continue to draw your desired audience.