Tips for Optimizing Pinterest boards for Small Businesses

December 30th, 2013 by Search Influence Alumni

Ever since the launch of Pinterest in March 2010, marketers and small businesses are leveraging the site to drive traffic and sales. There are some old school business leaders who are still anti-social media, but they are missing out on a big opportunity if they ignore Pinterest and other platforms. The great thing about using Pinterest for your business is the potential for your posts to rank in the search results. Check out one of our previous blog posts for more details. Below are some simple tips to optimize your Pinterest boards.

1. Be creative with your board.

Don’t be too self-promotional. Not only do you want to showcase the goods and services you provide, you want to make sure you are showing the inspiration behind it and promoting the lifestyle of your brand. Users will be turned off if you are only trying to get them to buy your products. Pinterest and any social media are about creating a conversation with your users and getting them engaged with what you do. If you are a fashion designer, post images of fabrics, places, and objects that inspire you. You can always reach out to a fan of your product that has a lot of clout and get them to be a guest pinner. The more creative you are the more you will gain engaged followers.

2. Check the linking of your images and provide a good description for it.

The most frustrating thing about Pinterest is when the pins are linked to a homepage or non-existent page on a website. Nothing is worse than having a missed transaction because your customer could not directly find the product on your site. If you pin something from the site, make sure it goes directly to the page where they can buy the product. Descriptions for your pins should be informative and interesting, but not too long or too short. You could probably do a little keyword research with the free Google keyword tool to find high value phrases for your image.

3. Utilize the location-based pins.

With the recent launch of Pinterest’s location-based pins, your board can include a map of where your products are and also allow you to collaborate with other businesses. The location-based pins allow you to input your name, address, and phone number. If your product is available at several retailers, this would be a perfect opportunity to use this feature. For example, Lululemon created this Om Finder app that allows you to look for yoga studios in your area and to also get tips. This board would be perfect for location-based pins so users can physically find a specific location. Below is an example of Andrew Zimmerman’s board utilizing the place pins for best BBQ places in the US.

Start applying these tips today to get the most out of your Pinterest page. Happy Pinning!