With annual social commerce revenue projected to surpass $1 billion in 2024, it’s an opportune time for merchants to use social media to promote their brands, products, and services. If you’re looking to add another revenue stream to your ecommerce business, you could turn to Pinterest, one of the most visual and engaging social media platforms. Pinterest gives users an opportunity to create and share compelling content that can increase conversions for your brand, a sponsored brand, or an affiliate partner.
What is Pinterest?
Pinterest is a social media platform designed for users to share and catalog information using descriptions, images, videos, and links. Pinterest users, also known as Pinners, post about a wide variety of topics, including recipes, DIY projects, home décor, and style inspirations. The platform works like a visual search engine, giving users the power to look up original content and pin it to boards, organizing pins together in a folder like digital scrapbooks or bulletin boards.
About 465 million content creators, online influencers, customers, and brands use Pinterest every month. Women make up 60% of Pinterest accounts, and nearly half of Pinterest users have a yearly household income of at least $100,000. With 80% of weekly Pinners saying they’ve discovered a new brand or product on the platform, online business owners and merchants leverage Pinterest to create more brand awareness and earn conversions on actions like subscription numbers or product sales.
How to make money from Pinterest
There are a few strategies to consider when trying to make money on Pinterest:
Affiliate partnerships
An affiliate relationship includes one brand or individual promoting another company’s products or services. Pinterest affiliate marketing involves posting content for another brand that includes an affiliate link. When users click on the pins you’ve posted with direct affiliate links, you can earn a commission from those conversions. Become an affiliate marketer by joining an affiliate program or network that connects brands. Making money from affiliate sales requires you to have a Pinterest audience that aligns with the brand you are promoting.
Pinterest advertisements
Pinterest offers merchants the chance to place their pins in users’ home feeds, category feeds, and search results. Pinterest ads are a versatile format, similar to other cost-per-click (CPC) systems that let you set your specific budget.
Use Pinterest Ads Manager to create and manage your promoted pins, hone your target audience and keywords, and monitor analytics measuring how your ads perform. Pinterest ads are a great way to get your brand in front of potential customers and drive traffic to your ecommerce site for sales conversions.
Blogs
Pinterest is a useful platform for driving traffic to your brand’s blog. Create a Pinterest board for your blog and post content with visually engaging images. Make sure each blog post contains useful information and links back to your website’s landing page or a product’s sales page. Choose a blog niche that’s specific to your brand and relevant to your customer base. Building a profitable blog can take time, but a loyal readership built through regular posting of engaging, quality content can lead to sales for products or paid subscriptions.
Sponsored content
Another way to make money on Pinterest is to create sponsored posts with direct links to another brand’s website, products, or services. Whereas affiliate partnerships include posting generic links that earn commissions, sponsored content involves a brand paying you directly to create content.
Use Pinterest’s paid partnership tool to create pins that feature branded content. These posts receive a paid partnership label after Pinterest approves the tag for the brand. Sponsored content can also integrate into idea pins, which are collections of images and videos that users can click through in a manner similar to Instagram Stories.
Group boards
Pinterest has an active community that collaborates through Pinterest boards. These group boards allow more than one person to pin images, videos, and other content. Collaborate with your customer base by creating a group board or join group boards focused on topics connected to your brand. By contributing to a relevant board along with a community of like-minded users, you can find a larger audience for your content and earn more organic traffic for your ecommerce store or website.
Tips for making money on Pinterest
- Set up a business account
- Create rich pins
- Focus on SEO
- Post quality pins regularly
- Add Pinterest “save” buttons to your website
Creating pins with entertaining and useful information can help your brand garner Pinterest followers who convert by purchasing a product or subscribing to a service. Consider these general tips as you develop your own Pinterest strategy:
Set up a business account
Set your Pinterest account as a Pinterest business account to give you access to the necessary analytics tools and features. Business accounts can create idea pins, video advertisements, product catalogs, and more. Personalize your Pinterest profile with a branded image, claim your brand’s website, and apply to the Verified Merchants Program to receive a blue checkmark next to your profile. Download the Pinterest app on Shopify’s app store to publish product pins, update your catalog, and track conversions.
Create rich pins
Rich pins include contextual information on your branded pins while syncing directly to information from your website. Product-rich pins connect directly to your ecommerce store and include updated information about product pricing, availability, and features. If you’re running a blog, article-rich pins include information from your blog post like its headline, description, and author information. Rich pins can help your content stand out and rank higher on Pinterest results pages.
Focus on SEO
The Pinterest search bar works like a search engine. Optimizing your on-page SEO can help your pins find their audience. Perform keyword research to find the most relevant keywords you should include in your pin description, metadata, and content. Pinterest allows up to 100 characters for titles and up to 500 characters for descriptions. By optimizing your pins for the Pinterest search engine, you can reach more users who are trying to learn about a topic relevant to your brand.
Post quality pins regularly
Create Pinterest content that offers exciting and applicable information specific to your target audience. Post unique and original pins on a regular schedule—at least once a week. Pinterest allows you to schedule pins up to two weeks in advance.
Post eye-catching pins by including visually appealing images in a 2:3 aspect ratio and captivating videos running between 15 and 60 seconds. By releasing engaging content on a consistent timeline, you can increase your chances of earning more Pinterest traffic to your content, ecommerce store, or website.
Add Pinterest “save” buttons to your website
Along with optimizing your Pinterest page, consider adding a “save” button to your site that allows customers to save products or pages to their Pinterest boards directly from your ecommerce website. These buttons make it easy for customers with a Pinterest profile to engage with your material and post about it on the platform.
How to make money from Pinterest FAQ
Can you get paid on Pinterest?
Yes, you can make money on Pinterest in a variety of ways, including receiving commissions from affiliate link clicks, getting paid for creating sponsored content through Pinterest’s paid partnership tool, and using Pinterest ads to generate sales for a product or service.
How many followers do you need to make money on Pinterest?
There is no minimum number of followers required for you to make money on Pinterest. The more followers you have, the more likely you are to earn commissions from affiliate partnerships, get paid for paid promotions, and convert on advertisements.
Can an individual make money on Pinterest?
Yes, an individual can make money with a variety of Pinterest strategies, including promoting pins for other brands, posting affiliate links, and advertising your brand through idea pins and product-rich pins.
Do you need previous marketing experience to make money on Pinterest?
No, you do not need marketing experience to make money from Pinterest. Similar to other social media platforms, Pinterest is a user-friendly site that lets you begin creating content for your brand quickly and easily.
Can Pinterest become a profitable side hustle?
Yes, with the right content and pinning strategy, Pinterest can become a profitable side hustle that allows you to earn money from affiliate partnerships, paid promotion tools, and advertising.
