Magdalena Kiczek
Pinterest is a social media channel unlike any other…
While it started out as simply a place for people to share and collate images that inspired them, it now operates largely as a shopping channel. Research indicates that over half of users are currently logging onto the platform purely to browse for purchases (Source: SproutSocial).
And, if you’re wondering “How much does it cost to sell on pinterest?” the answer is most often very little!
If you’re looking to sell on Pinterest, you’ve definitely got the right idea! And, though crafting a strong Pinterest marketing strategy can take a little work, there’s never been a better time to start. Over 2020, Pinterest grew by 26% reaching 33 million users.
In this article, we’re going to run through how to sell on Pinterest step by step, simplifying the process of creating a Pinterest strategy so that you can start getting sales rolling in!
The Benefits of Selling on Pinterest
You might have come to this article with some idea of the benefits of selling on Pinterest, or you might have no idea exactly what Pinterest could do for your business… Either way you’re likely going to be jumping to grab your laptop to set up your account straight after reading these.
- No matter how niche your product is there is very likely to be an audience for it on Pinterest. Pinterest is a platform where people cultivate content around their niche interests- from miniatures to Marmite recipes; nothing is too specific to sell with the right strategy in place.
- The high spending power of the audience on Pinterest increases the likelihood of them making direct sales. Studies suggest that 48% of Pinterest users have a yearly income of over $100k. This means that they’re likely to have a lot of disposable income and, therefore, likely to spend money on the platform more easily. For more information about the audience on Pinterest, click here.
- Even when you’re not selling on Pinterest, you’re building brand awareness- a key part of warming prospective customers up to buy. Since 81% of buyers need to trust a company in order to buy from them, becoming familiar to your target audience is crucial. Putting out valuable (non-sales) content on the platform will also elevate your brand beyond the competition and build trust with your audience.
- Pinterest can drive additional traffic to your site/ blog. Since Pinterest’s algorithm is based on users reposting content, if you add links to your site or blog, people will often promote your site without even realising.
- It’s easy to create a visually captivating feed that promotes your products. Pinterest is designed to capture the imagination and, with high quality images, you’ll have a social media page that acts as a real online storefront for your business. For tips about optimizing your product feed click here.
Selling on Pinterest in 7 Steps
#4 Create Your Pinterest Boards
#5 Get Your Product Catalog in Order
#1 Set Up A Pinterest Account
So how do you sell on Pinterest?
Well, it goes without saying that the first step is to set up an account!
You’ll want a business account, so if you have already set up a personal one, convert it by logging into your account and navigating to account settings. Click “Get started” next to “Convert to business account” and then click “Switch to business.”
To set up a Pinterest business account from scratch, simply click “Create account” and fill in the relevant information. Pinterest will ask you if you plan to run ads, but you can always tick “I’m not sure yet.” Other than that the setup process should be pretty self-explanatory.
#2 Optimize Your Page
When looking to sell on Pinterest, it’s important that you optimize your page.
- Start by selecting high resolution profile and cover images. These should be coherent with your branding across other social media platforms.
- Insert a link to your online store. This ensures that the relevant information for sales appears on all your content.
- Make use of keyword research when you write your bio. You want your page to come up in the search bar on Pinterest. Check out our next section for tips on this.
#3 Conduct Keyword Research
While you can find some keyword research tools under the Pinterest analytics tab, a better place to start is by typing a relevant word to your business in the search bar. From here you can make a note of all of the suggested keywords that come up underneath and use these.
Keywords help the Pinterest algorithm to promote your content to the right audience so as well as incorporating 4-5 of them into your bio, you’ll also want to include them on your pins and boards.
#4 Create Your Pinterest Boards
Now we’re getting down to the nitty gritty of selling on Pinterest, it’s important to note that there are two main types of content: pins are individual posts while boards are collections of pins that are organized around different themes.
As a business, you’ll want to be consistently creating both. So when considering the question of “how much does it cost to sell on Pinterest?” most of it comes down to a time-based cost. Seeing results on Pinterest might take a little bit of time, but you can shortcut success by creating your Pinterest boards in the optimal way.
Think outside of the box - what themes are there that could relate to what you are selling? If you have multiple products, try to group them together in creative ways. Rather than just showcasing them plainly, show how they fit into part of a wider lifestyle image. Take a look at Airbnb’s page for a great example of this.
Make sure to use original images as the Pinterest algorithm will promote these more. You can also use Pinterest trends to gain inspiration.
# 5 Get Your Product Catalog in Order
If you have your Pinterest account linked to a data source (i.e. a product feed or website) you can use product catalogues to create pins that feed through directly. Fill out the information on the Catalog page and be sure to input your product names and descriptions. You need to ensure that all of the links work- including image links- and that your price, availability and condition information is feeding through correctly.
If you’re looking for help creating and optimizing your data source for sales, check out our Data Feed Optimization Solution.
#6 Create Product Pins
While you’ll want to consistently push out a balance of content that is useful to your audience, product pins are a great chance for you to actively sell your items.
When creating these focus on:
- Using colour to make images pop
- Making use of text overlay to insert key information
- Keeping your captions short and attention grabbing
- Making sure your content is inspirational and exciting. 9/10 users describe Pinterest as a positive place so this isn’t somewhere to create content describing your consumer’s problems
- Adding links to each pin
While you can easily answer the question of how much it costs to sell on pinterest with the words “next to nothing,” it’s important to bear in mind that Pinterest ads are a great way to get your product out there. Pinterest boasts great return on investment with users describing ads on Pinterest as being 1.4 times more useful than those on other platforms.
#7 Monitor Your Analytics
This wouldn’t be a guide about how to sell on Pinterest if we didn’t mention the importance of monitoring your analytics.
Pinterest offers a great range of analytics, but the place to start is by tracking the engagement you get on your boards. By looking at your best performing boards, you can decide which content is working and adjust your content output from there.
If you want to take things a step further with your early Pinterest strategy, take a look at the “Audience insights” tab for insights about the type of people that are viewing your content. These may all be potential buyers so it is worth tweaking your marketing strategy accordingly.
Optimizing Your Product Feed For Pinterest
So there you have it - all you need to know about how to sell on Pinterest.
If you want to optimize your product feed for Pinterest, check out DataFeedWatch’s Feed Optimization Solution. We offer pre-set templates to streamline the entire process and will work with you to improve the product data you send over to Pinterest to boost your ROI.
You can get started with a 15-day free trial here.
