From Pins to Traffic: How to Effectively Use Pinterest to Boost Your Blog

How to Effectively Use Pinterest to Boost Your Blog

 Introduction

If you've had a website for, say, two or three months, you might have already hit a ceiling with promoting it through WhatsApp, Telegram, Facebook groups, and other platforms, and are looking to diversify your audience while Google hasn't yet recognized your site enough for a proper ranking. However, if you’re not ready to invest in paid advertising just yet, Google Ads and Facebook Ads are off the table for now. One effective way to diversify your audience is by using Pinterest. And that's what we’re going to discuss today. Seriously, Pinterest offers some intriguing advantages, and depending on your niche, it might be the most suitable choice. So grab your coffee, and let’s dive into another post.

What is Pinterest and Why Should You Use It?

Broad Audience

It’s no surprise that social media is a major source of traffic, as 59% of the global population uses at least one of the top 10 social media platforms. According to Search Engine Journal, in 2024, Pinterest ranks 7th among the most used social networks, with nearly 500 million monthly visits.

By understanding how to use Pinterest for blogging effectively, you can tap into this vast audience and generate traffic on Pinterest. Pinterest's visual search engine capabilities and user-driven content discovery make it an excellent platform for driving targeted traffic to your blog.

Launched in 2010, Pinterest is used to share ideas on recipes, fashion, home decor, lifestyle, and various other topics related to images. Essentially, you find ideas on topics and things you like, and you can save them in boards (folders where you store ideas you liked), which are accessible to people with similar interests. You can also comment on and like the photos. And the most important aspect when it comes to how to generate traffic on Pinterest: you can add a link to each post you make. If someone likes the image, they can click on the photo, which will take them directly to your site.

Engaged Audience and High Organic Growth Potential

Think about this: if you see a picture of a guitar on a social network and decide to visit the website to learn more about that specific model, it's because you're genuinely interested in learning more. Maybe you want to learn to play it or just want to know more about its history. But one thing is certain: you'll spend a good amount of time reading and exploring the topic on that site. And if you like the page that posted the content, the chance of returning to the site is higher than someone who’s just scrolling through their social media feed.

See also: How To Make My Site Appear on Google ?

Typically, our feeds or recommended posts on any social network usually relate to things we've already searched for. And this is where Pinterest’s advantage comes in: the organic growth of your traffic. People who like your posts will save them to their own boards. And those who enjoy similar things will end up seeing these posts on other people’s profiles or boards.

But of course, getting views on your posts (called Pins) isn't just about creating something randomly and expecting it to generate traffic on Pinterest effortlessly. There’s more to it, and we’ll discuss this now.

Creating a Pinterest Account and Exploring How It Works

Starting from the beginning: create a Pinterest account and then convert it to a Business account. It’s free. Enter your site’s name (or your own). Set your interests, provide an interesting description about your work or yourself. Add a profile picture and a cover photo. You can also include your website link.

Take the opportunity to follow topics you’re interested in. Explore the posts and see how they are made. Look at the types of images being used. Check how many likes and comments they receive. Examine the descriptions of each Pin. Notice the ones that catch your eye so they can inspire you when creating your own images.

By converting your account to a business profile, you gain access to trend analysis tools. This will help you with the next step. Don’t create your Pins randomly! Research trends and your audience!

Using Pinterest Analytics

Access the Business Hub and click on “Pinterest Trends.” This tool will help you see which topics are most searched, and you can view the categories with the highest traffic over the past weeks, months, and years. Here are some trends to start with:

As you can see, the top categories were: Nails, Aesthetic, Outfit, and Fashion. So if your site covers any of these niches, you already know that Pinterest can be an excellent source of organic traffic and exposure for your work. But of course, don’t give up just because these are the most searched topics. Wallpapers, cooking, hairstyles, and many other topics are also highly searched.

Additionally, Pinterest Trends provides demographic information about the audience searching for the keyword you’re studying. For example, when researching the term “music,” we can get the following information:

You can see the average weekly searches, the gender of users (in this case, 78% female), and related keywords to your search. Another interesting feature is that Pinterest Trends shows the most popular Pins related to your keyword research. This helps you shape your upcoming Pins.

Regarding the profile of Pinterest users, it’s worth mentioning that the majority of social network users are women, according to Statista (accessed in July 2024). The research showed that 69.4% of Pinterest users are female.

Okay, recap of what we’ve covered so far:

- Creating a Pinterest profile

- Researching trends and defining your target audience

Now let’s look at how to engage on the social network.

Creating Attractive Pins

If you followed the previous steps, you saw that one of them was to analyze successful pins. They are typically high-quality images with interesting, concise, and to-the-point text. The text depends on the goal of your site. For example, a site about guitars would have aesthetic pins of guitars, eye-catching pins like "5 Genius Riffs for Indie Rock," among other things. This is where your creativity comes in. Think about your reader. What are they looking for? Create something based on that.

Did you write an article on your site about a topic? Create several different pins for that article. This increases the chances that one of them will stand out among the numerous pins, thus increasing the likelihood of generating traffic on Pinterest.

Use image editing tools. I use Canva because it is very practical and has ready-made templates for this purpose. Additionally, you can save some templates to streamline your creation process.

Besides Canva, there are other tools like Photoshop, Stencil, and more. These tools are mentioned in this Forbes article.

Pin Ideas and Pinterest Content Strategies

There are various ways to create engaging content and make your profile appealing to users. I will explain each one here, aiming to be as instructive as possible. Let’s assume you have, hypothetically, a site in the Home and Garden niche. This is one of the most lucrative niches if you have a site monetized with AdSense, and you can see the Top-3 list in this other article.

Starting with content strategies, you might have:

• Tutorials and How-To’s: Description: Content that teaches something step-by-step in the Home and Garden niche. Example: “How to Start a Home Garden” or “Step-by-Step Guide to Renovating an Old Furniture Piece.” Tip: Use sequential images showing each step of the tutorial. Casual Note: "Turn your practical tips into irresistible visual guides that any Home and Garden enthusiast will love!"

• Lists and Compilations: Description: Posts in list format that deliver value quickly. Example: “10 Easy-Care Plants for Beginners” or “7 Creative Decoration Ideas with Recycled Materials.” Tip: Use numbers in the pin images to attract attention. Casual Note: "Who doesn’t love a good list? Quick to read and full of practical tips to transform any space!"

• Infographics: Description: Graphics that condense information in a visually appealing way. Example: “Month-by-Month Plant Care Guide” or “Sustainable Gardening Strategies.” Tip: Keep the design clean and easy to understand. Casual Note: "Transform your most valuable tips into infographics that people will love to share and save!"

• Quick Tips and Tricks: Description: Small snippets of valuable information.Example: “5 Quick Tricks to Extend the Life of Your Plants” or “Quick Tips for Efficient Kitchen Cleaning.” Tip: Create images that highlight the main tip with an eye-catching design. Casual Note: "Small doses of wisdom for easier home and garden life can make a huge impact!"

Add a bit of suspense at the end, leaving space for the reader to want to know more, so they’ll need to click the link included in the pin to get the full information.

Lastly, but very importantly: using keywords

At this point, you should have researched the keywords you will use. Include them in the Title and descriptions of your pins. For example: If your keyword is “indoor plants,” a good title would be “Best Indoor Plants to Purify the Air.” Keep the descriptions natural, without seeming forced.

Using hashtags on Pinterest to increase the discoverability of your pins. Tip: Use 3 to 5 relevant hashtags in each pin, such as #GardenDecor, #HomeDIY, #EasyPlants.

Remember: your description should help the reader. That should be the focus. Keywords are very important, but they should be enlightening and capture the reader’s attention naturally. Use phrases that genuinely relate to the content, and at the end, encourage the reader to take action (in this case, visit the site), meaning, include a CTA.

You will also be able to include your pin in various categories when you publish it. This helps it be found by people searching for that topic.

Here is an example of a pin I created for a post on the site:

Now let’s discuss posting consistency, another crucial step.

The Importance of an Editorial Calendar

Having a publishing routine is as important as the quality of your content. Think about it this way: you had an amazing pizza, but you never know when that pizzeria opens, they often don’t respond, or you’re unsure if they’re even delivering. Over time, you’d start forgetting about it and look for other places. The same principle applies here. You’ll be able to generate traffic on Pinterest with greater consistency in posting and engagement. Have a posting schedule and stick to it. Set aside specific times during the day or days of the week solely dedicated to this.

And this applies not only to Pinterest. This could be a whole article on the site. Having an editorial calendar helps you organize and optimize your work and content development. I really enjoyed reading this article on HubSpot about the topic.

Conclusion

There is a saying: "never put all your eggs in one basket." This applies perfectly to your website’s traffic. Never rely on just one source of visits. A recent fact is a perfect example of this. In recent months, with Google’s algorithm updates, many blogs have seen a significant drop in their traffic. Pinterest is a great alternative traffic channel, and when used correctly, it can considerably boost your website's traffic.

Well, that was today's article. Now you know the basics of:

• What Pinterest is and how it can drive traffic to your site or blog
• How to create a Pinterest profile
• Researching keywords and search trends
• Creating a Pin with the potential to drive traffic
• Engaging with others on Pinterest
• The importance of an editorial calendar

I hope you found this read useful and beneficial. I’ve included some links below that might interest you. Thank you very much, and see you next time.

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