Why Pinterest?
Since its creation in 2010, Pinterest has grown into a valuable social network that businesses should be using as a pivotal marketing tool. Featuring your business’ products on the platform could help them become noticed by its 100 million active users; but for that to happen, users must be able to find them. That’s where SEO comes in.
For potential customers to be able to find your business on Pinterest, optimizing your account with SEO-enabled pins and boards is essential. Here are 4 tips on how to use SEO to gain exposure and results.
Tip #1: First Things First, Optimize Your Account
Once you’ve decided that you want to use Pinterest as a channel to entice more customers to your business, the first four steps are:
- Set up your Pinterest for Businesses account – This may seem like common sense, but a personal account vs. a business account are two entirely different realms. Make sure your account is exclusively for business.
- Verify your company website – Not only will that red circled checkmark on your profile give your company more credibility, but verifying your site will also give you access to Pinterest Analytics. This option provides you an extra leg up by allowing you to see what people pin from your site, who is viewing your boards, your most popular pins and so on.
- Add the ‘Pin It’ button to your site – This button allows Pinterest users to pin anything they find on your website to their own boards. If a potential customer were to pin your site’s images to their boards, you’d expand your audience to their followers who would see your products in their newsfeed.
- Make Your Profile Visible to Search Engines – A quick click in the ‘Settings’ area of your account can dramatically change your profile’s visibility. Find the ‘Search Privacy’ option and when it asks if you want to hide your profile from search engines, make sure it’s set to no.
These initial steps are necessary for potential customers to find your account and trust its credibility. Once you’ve finished the basic set-up, your next step will be to start creating boards and filling them with eye-catching images that are of or related to your business.
Tip #2: Think Outside the Box
Now that your account is set up, start creating boards of different categories with eye-catching photos. Pinterest is a site known for creativity, so use that to your advantage. Think about the audience you’re targeting and what they would want to engage with.
For some ideas, take PetSmart for example:
With 30+ boards, they’ve gone beyond funny cat pictures and discovered what their customers really want to see. From ‘Pet Weddings’ to ‘Puppy 101,’ their boards are filled with variety and creativity that will keep their followers coming back to their page. They’ve thought outside the box and it’s paid off.
No matter what your business’ focus is, you can take note of PetSmart’s creativity and professionalism, and apply those lessons to your business’ page.
Tip #3: Find Your Keywords
SEO and keywords go hand-in-hand, but how should you decide which keywords to use and which to scrap? Here are some suggestions:
- Utilize what you already have: If you have a set of keywords that are already performing well for your site, then there’s no need to fix what isn’t broken.
- Use Pinterest’s Auto-Complete function: Like Google, Pinterest has incorporated auto-complete in its search bar. Type your keywords into the search bar and see what suggestions comes up. This is a great opportunity to target long-tail keywords for the customers who know exactly what they’re looking for.
- Utilize Google Keyword Planner: If you think you’ve got a good set of keywords to use on your Pinterest, use Google Keyword Planner to see how well they perform from a search engine perspective. This allows you to get a ranking of stats on how a list of keywords is performing, and if a set of keywords is doing well on Google, plant those keywords all over your Pinterest.
Tip #4: Incorporate Those Keywords
Your Pinterest account is just waiting to show up in potential customers’ search bars. Now that you’ve established a list of keywords you want to use, turn that potential into a reality by incorporating the keywords on your Pinterest. Some areas to utilize your keywords include the following:
- In your ‘About Me’: Yes, this area of your profile can also show up on Google. Keep it short and sweet, while strategically incorporating your most important keywords.
PetSmart’s keywords, for example, could be: pet care tips, pet photos, or pet parents. Probably all of the above.
- In your Board Names: When you’re choosing names for your Pinterest boards, some default suggestions, such as ‘My Style’ will come up. Do not use these common, generic names, unless you want your board to be one of a million others named the same thing.
Naming your boards gives you another chance to use keywords that are both original and specific. These keywords can also be different than the ones you used in your ‘About Me’ section.
For example, the above set of boards on PetSmart’s profile feature keywords such as ‘dog training’ and ‘grooming.’
- In your Board Description: When a user clicks on one of your boards, its title and an optional description will pop up. Use that to your advantage by incorporating keywords that are more specific to the board they’re found on.
PetSmart’s example: ‘#MonsterCute Halloween’ Board
Specific keywords: Halloween, pet costumes, accessories, toys, treats
- In your Pin Description: Once a user clicks on a pin, the image will pop up onto their screen along with a description for that item. This is another chance for businesses to incorporate their keywords onto their profile.
PetSmart’s example: Pin of Halloween-themed dog bones
Specific keywords: bones, Halloween, dog treats
As you can see, opportunities to incorporate your business’ keywords are all over Pinterest. Use them to your advantage and watch the SEO traffic go up.
From setting up your account to finding and incorporating keywords into your boards, Pinterest is a growing tool that more and more businesses are using every day as a resource to get more site traffic.
If you incorporate SEO into your profile with all of these tips, there’s a significant chance that more people will find your pins and go from being Pinterest users to your customers. Happy pinning!
