Pinterest.

The blogger’s goddess of search engine plus visual aid to create an experience of both pleasure for the eyes and lust from the soul. 

It’s just about every blogger and business owner’s dream to create a loyal following and one way that many have bragged about that happening is through Pinterest.

I decided to get into Pinterest after hee-hawing around about it for some time in June of this year after taking Jenna Kutcher’s Pinterest course. And today, while I am waiting on a friend to meet me in downtown Denver on a sunny, 80-something degree day, sitting at a crooked table that needs to be cleaned outside in the cool shade and crossing my fingers that no one messes or talks to me, I want to share with you some things I am learning about Pinterest thus far. 

Just in case you’re worried about me sitting outside on this beautiful day, I want to let you know a lot of people are around me, so I think I’m fine (hopefully).

I want you to have a realistic idea of what I am learning and discovering about Pinterest as I am currently in the trenches of it (how Amy Porterfield says it). This way, you can take what I am learning and apply it to your own Pinterest strategy, especially if you’re new to Pinterest strategy.

Graphics 

Graphics are super important to Pinterest (duh). It’s the glue that holds Pinterest together and it’s the support system that makes it so hard to look away and stop scrolling.

So, what are some rules about graphics that I am finding?

You definitely want to use longer graphics because you want to take up as much space (or property as some people call it) as you can with every single post. You want to use longer graphics instead of graphics that are squared. Canva has Pinterest ready graphics for you and that is where I create my graphics at.

Now I have not mastered what kinds of graphics work the best, but what I have discovered is that larger lettering works best with the longer graphics with a relevant picture. I have seen and used both overlays covering the entire picture so the words will pop out and using text over pictures. 

I feel that it’s more of how you write your content on your graphic that matters. If you can capture someone’s attention from what you say on your graphic, no matter the picture in the background or the lettering, you got it down. 

DesignWizard is another tool to use when designing graphics. They are an extremely viable alternative to the likes of Canva, Snappa, Crello, Animoto, Magisto etc, with all of the features of Canva. There is a free and subscription base versions, so try out both Canva and DesignWizard to see which one you enjoy using the most.

Pinterest has released videos as part of their marketing now and Lumen5 is a social video marketing tool that has been noted by Social Media Examiner as one of the best tools to make videos. Since video is the future, get started with advertising on Pinterest (as well as your own social media accounts) with Lumen5!

Hashtags

When you type in something in Pinterest and those colorful boxes at the top appear giving you more details on your search, those can be used as hashtags.

Just like Twitter or Instagram, hashtags are important for your description for your Pin (which is your graphic you just created using Canva). You want to also make sure you’re using keywords in your description of your Pin so Pinterest can pick up on it using their algorithm.

Yes, SEO is important to Pinterest. Pinterest is a search engine after all.

Relevant hashtags are just as important because they are part of the SEO strategy you need to ensure your Pins are getting found.

How do you find hashtags for Pinterest? I’m haven’t considered looking up the answer to that and since I am currently using my phone for a hotspot, you’re not going to get the answer to that.

I am on a few Tailwind Tribes where I steal their hashtags and use hashtags from other entrepreneurs who are using Pinterest and are in the same business category.

Pinterest Groups

Pinterest Groups are where other Pinners share their Pins inside of a merged board. I have been invited to two Groups thus far and I am just discovering the beauty of having them.

Groups are one way to get your Pins liked, shared, and Pinned to other people boards. Thus, their followers will see your content on their boards because they follow this person! More easy exposure for you!

There are rules to many of these Groups; the groups I am in rules are a 1:1, which means that every one Pin I post from my blog, I need to repin another person’s blog.

That doesn’t mean that you need to read the blog (you can), but if it’s a topic that you or your audience will benefit from, then repin it! 

I am learning how powerful groups can be and I am going to start looking for more groups to be in. One way to find these groups is going to PinGroupie.com and applying to be in groups.

Another way is by going to Facebook groups and asking if anyone has a group that is active and is open to new members. 

Or ask your favorite influencer if he or she has a group that you can be a part of.

Conclusion

In my three months of using Pinterest thus far, my business account went from several hundred monthly viewers just posting randomly to 11K as of August 16, 2019. Of course, I am using Tailwind to push out more of my content so it’ll get seen. 

As I continue to get better and seeing what works, I realize it may take longer than two months to learn what works and what doesn’t work. I will be investing more time and money in learning Pinterest as I grow my skill and my audience.

Let me know via Facebook or in the comments below what challenges you’re coming up against with Pinterest or if you’re successful at it, what is one thing people can incorporate into their strategy now?