Pinterest has the power to take your content to the next level, but if you’re making these mistakes, you might be holding back your reach and success on the platform.
It is no secret that Pinterest is my favourite platform… other than perhaps, my blogs.
Pinterest competes with Google as my primary traffic-driver, I leverage it for brand deals (like this one with COVERGIRL), and my growth there has opened up opportunities to work with Pinterest themselves (like being part of their 2021 Canadian Creator Class)
But while this platform has been so instrumental in my success and that of many others, I see a LOT of people approaching the platform in ways that limit their success.
And that brings us to the purpose of this post.
*Some of the links included in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click on them and make a purchase, I will make a small commission at no additional cost to you.*
5 Pinterest Mistakes You’re Probably Making
Over on YouTube, I made a video titled 5 Pinterest Mistakes You’re Probably Making in the hopes of helping out my fellow content creators or Pinterest marketers.
In this blog post, I’ll be breaking down each of the five mistakes (plus a bonus one), but if you’re someone who prefers watching video over reading text, I’ve embedded it below!
One of the biggest misconceptions about Pinterest is that it is a social media platform. And this misconception gets in the way of content creators and marketers using it efficiently.
But Pinterest is not a social media platform, it is a search engine.
I most often describe it as a visual Google.
People usually open up Pinterest when they are seeking (i.e. searching) for something, not to get social with their family, friends, or community.
Sometimes they might be looking for a specific how-to or resource, other times for the perfect inspiration or visuals for a mood or vision board.
This means that simply posting a cute photo and some hashtags won’t get you very far.
And this ties into the second mistake I see people making on Pinterest..
2. Not using keywords
Because Pinterest is a search engine, we need to include Search Engine Optimization (SEO) in our strategy.
(People get overwhelmed by the concept of SEO, but it really just means that we are setting up our content so that it is more likely to get in front of those searching for it).
That’s where keywords come into play.
Including keywords that accurately describe our content in our titles and descriptions will tell Pinterest what our pins is about. That way when someone types in a query, looking for content like ours, Pinterest will know to show it to them!
Note: You don’t want to keyword-stuff with a random string of words and phrases. Include them naturally.
3. Not using Idea Pins
This mistake extends past Pinterest, where I see a lot of content creators not trying a platform’s new features.
When a platform launches something new, they are going to push it hard in the hopes that it succeeds. *cough* Instagram Reels *cough* Youtube Shorts *cough*.
So when you are one of the early adopters of said features, your content is likely to get more reach than your ‘standard content’. This is because there is a smaller pool for the platform to pull from.
This is the same thing we see with Idea Pins.
Idea Pins have been around a little while now (first named ‘Story Pins’), but Pinterest is still excited about them.
If you’re not familiar with Idea Pins, they are the vertical, multi-slide story telling format that we’ve grown accustomed to on Instagram.
Except they have the added benefits of being permanently on your profile (i.e. not gone in 24 hours) and being searchable.
Here’s one I did in partnership with Pinterest Canada:
4. Not using call to actions (CTAs)
Call to actions help drive the engagement you’re looking for.
You may not think people need to be told what to do, but prompting your audience to interact with your content a certain way really does work.
Some call to actions I use for Idea Pins:
- Leave a comment
- Save for later
- Follow
Call to actions for standard pins:
(These look different as you are trying to get people to click them, driving traffic off platform).
- Click
- Shop
- Find
- Discover
Some examples from my ComfyGirlCurls’ Pinterest.
I do also pin images without titles or CTAs, but I do so strategically. These pins are targeted towards pinners creating mood and vision boards, they are likely to save pins without CTAs, but not click them.
Need help designing eye-catching pins?
I’ve been using Canva Pro for years, but recently have begun using the Tailwind Create Tool… and I am obsessed with how easy it is.
5. Not linking to a blog
I encourage creators to point pins back to their blog or website whenever possible.
If I pin the same image twice, linking one to my blog and the other to Instagram. The pin pointing to my website ALWAYS. PERFORMS. BETTER.
I think this is because Pinterest wants to be useful. It wants to drive pinners to quality links that have quality information.
And a blog is usually going to have more in-depth content than an Instagram post.
… and if you don’t have a website as a content creator… go do that now.
* Bonus Pinterest Mistake
Not enabling Rich Pins
This ties directly into the last point, because enabling Rich Pins allows for all the juicy metadata from your blog to sync with Pinterest.
This way Pinterest doesn’t need to take you and your keywords’ word for what your content is about. It can pull titles and description information itself.
This is good for all websites, but especially for food bloggers (it’ll pull your recipe information), and product sellers (it’ll pull product descriptions and pricing).
Need a bit of extra help?
Check out my Pinterest Starter Guide, which includes a self-audit template, or sign up for a personalized audit from me!
Final thoughts on Pinterest Mistakes
If you’re someone who’s been feeling a little stuck on Pinterest, I hope this post helped you rethink your strategies a bit. There is of course no ’wrong’ way to approach a platform, but if you have a specific goal, there will always be things that get you closer to it, and bring you further away.
Thanks for reading! If you found this helpful, share with a friend!
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