We all know about Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. But there’s a huge opportunity for your digital marketing efforts that you may not have considered but is well-equipped to give your business huge results.
Pinterest: An underutilized platform
Social media marketing is no longer new to marketers. Every day, we are bombarded with ads and sponsored posts selling products and services all over the internet. Indeed, Facebook, Youtube, Twitter, and Instagram have been now used for years to perform ad spending, increase engagement and provide real results for brands and businesses. But these major platforms aren’t the only players. In fact, during a time when Facebook and Instagram are oversaturated with content and targeted ads, it’s important to diversify your strategy.
Pinterest is a visual discovery engine designed for inspiration. It’s basically your web-based vision board. Launched in 2010, Pinterest allows users to save their favourite outfits, recipes, weddings, vacation destinations, and more, with the click of a button. Because of the niche nature of Pinterest’s content, users are often more engaged and focused on what they see, and visit the platform for specific planning and purchasing goals. Although not as flashy or crowded as other platforms, with nearly 300 million users (spanning multiple age groups and geographies) and 200 billion pins saved to date, Pinterest’s growth and popularity are not to be dismissed.
Why Pinterest marketing is good for your business
In recent years, Pinterest has shifted its focus to businesses that seek to advertise on the platform. This means that as users pin their ideas and save products on their pinboards, you can now provide them with tangible, ready-to-purchase items at both the planning and decision-making stage. This also means that you have a real opportunity to both reach and engage with your target customers in a genuine way.
Although many believe that Pinterest is only for women or a primarily female platform, 40% of its new users are men, as the opportunity to engage both males and females increases on the platform. But the benefits of Pinterest for your business go far beyond gender:
Almost 100% of Pinterest users have tried something they discovered on the site – this demonstrates an opportunity for companies to influence user behaviour by providing provide new products, services, techniques, and approaches to willing audiences.
61% of Pinterest users have purchased something after seeing a promoted pin – not only are users saving ideas, they are also willing to act on those ideas and by spending money when the time is right.
48% of US Pinterest users specifically come on Pinterest to shop – users (particularly from the US) use Pinterest to purchase items, which is a HUGE opportunity to make sure you’re marketing efforts are engaging, strategic, and targeted.
78% of Pinterest users say it’s useful to see brand content on the platform – it is extremely important to note that users embrace the presence of brands on the platform. Because of their tendency to try and buy, users appreciate easy access to brand products and services.
Pinterest marketers stand to make $2 for every $1 they spend on the platform – in addition to creating your strategy, you evidently want to see monetary results. And with a $2 return on a $1 investment, you can feel confident knowing you’ve made a beneficial investment in your marketing efforts.
These are only a few of the very real opportunities that Pinterest presents for your business. Users are ready and willing to try new things and buy new products. That’s why you need to be prepared to clearly communicate the value you can provide to users.
For more insights on Pinterest’s users, check out the infographic below:
Pinterest vs. Instagram & Facebook – the fundamental differences
There’s no doubt that Pinterest is a primarily visual platform. Filled with beautiful images, users are drawn to the aesthetic nature of Pinterest content. But how does it differ from its similarly visual Instagram and Facebook competitors?
Pinterest vs. Instagram
Pinterest users skew older than Instagram users – while 53% and 34% of users aged 18 to 29 use Instagram and Pinterest, respectively, users aged 30 to 64 use Pinterest more than Instagram. And while it’s been found that Millennial Pinterest users spend 17% more than non-users of the same age, older adults are still equipped with more disposable incomes and are more inclined to purchase higher-end items.
Instagram users share, Pinterest users discover – Instagram users capture and share their original photos, provide meaningful captions, and share them with their followers. They also follow and engage with brand content, and gain insight into the goings-on of a brand. Pinterest users, on the other hand, seek to discover new products and services. They are drawn to strong visual images, but also want to learn how the content may be valuable to them, should they decide to make a purchase. Therefore, it’s important to provide instructions, tips, and other useful information to entice users to save your content.
Pinterest allows users to save images from anywhere – For those who are always on the hunt for useful content and images and particularly looking to save them for later, Pinterest Save extensions allow users to pin any online image without even leaving the webpage. The extension adds a Pinterest icon to pinnable images on desktops. And for mobile Pinterest users, one can easily “share” an image to a pinboard. Instagram is much more internal, making it easy to save Instagram content to a private “Saved” section of users’ profile, but not so simple for external content, especially over desktop.
Links are more powerful on Pinterest – Instagram only gives users the ability to share one link in their bio (without the use of apps like Linktree). What’s more, swipe up links are only given to users with over 10,000 followers. Thus, the lack of live links in posts prevents marketers from directly driving traffic to their company’s site from their Instagram content. It also prevents marketers from measuring engagement and traffic from specific posts in order to inform future content. That said, links are the bread and butter of Pinterest. The majority of images are loaded with a direct link to the web source, making it ideal for marketers to direct users to product information and resources, and gain insights on what type of content appeals to your audience.
In short, while Instagram is undoubtedly a useful platform and both are visual, Pinterest is an extremely effective tool for converting traffic to your website and appealing to users ready to make purchases.
Pinterest vs. Facebook
Pinterest leads in social commerce – Facebook is a powerhouse when it comes to social media, and since it owns Instagram, both platforms benefit from shared features. That said, while Facebook is a huge influencer of user behaviour, Pinterest takes the cake for social commerce. A study by Cowen and Company and visualized by emarketer.com shows that Pinterest is the go-to for finding and shopping for projects at 47%. Facebook is second-highest, but there is a whopping 32% difference between the two platforms.
Facebook is the search for people, Pinterest is the search for products – although the Facebook Marketplace has become popular and useful for users looking for apartments, automobiles, and secondhand items, Facebook’s search functions are fundamentally for people. Additionally, users are exposed to new items are primarily through targeted ads and remarketing. The Facebook algorithm is strong, but still, there is is very little control given to the user. In contrast, Pinterest allows users to search for new products, services, and ideas from seasoned brands. They are intentional with their searches and marketers are better able to meet their demands through appealing and strategically placed advertising.
Pinterest content lasts longer–like, much longer–than Facebook posts – Pinterest isn’t known for its organization for no reason. In fact, the function of Pinterest boards is what makes the platform’s content so much more accessible than Facebook’s. Pinterest makes it easier for users to retrieve information days, weeks, and even months later than they pinned the actual content. This is emphasized by comparing the half-life, or, the time in which you earn 50% of all clicks and views, of Pinterest and Facebook. Facebook posts are said to have a half-life of about 90 minutes, but Pinterest? Pinterest’s half-life is approximately three and a half months! This means that users can come across content by searching for a particular product, finding it on someone else’s board, or seeing it repinned from someone they follow. There are so many more touchpoints on Pinterest, allowing your content to be seen for approximately 1,680 times longer than a Facebook post! Evidently, it doesn’t matter how many people are using a platform if there’s little chance they’ll actually see your ads.
Check out Facebook and Twitter’s half-life performance…
…vs. the half-life of Pinterest.
Results you can achieve
We’ve shared with you some object information on the power of Pinterest and how it can help your business. Now, let’s take a look at how we’ve already used Pinterest marketing to help businesses. Check out the screenshots below to see how we’ve transformed our clients’ Pinterest presence!
Next steps: Are you ready to boost your business?
Pinterest isn’t slowing down, and it’s the perfect time to jump on the Pinterest marketing wagon. Look to diversify your digital marketing by developing your strategy for this product-driven, brand-loving, conversion-creating platform that often isn’t given enough credit. We’ve helped various businesses develop their Pinterest marketing strategies with real results. Let us help you. If you’re ready to take advantage of Pinterest to advance your business’ marketing results, get in touch today.
For other inquiries on how Creative Boost can provide results for other aspects of your business, contact us for a free 30-minute consultation. After discussing your branding, digital strategy, social media marketing, and web design goals, we will decide on the best service package for your needs.
What is your favourite part about Pinterest marketing?