The best kept blogging secret is out!
Pinterest is the platform every new blogger needs to be focusing on to build those pageviews!
However, just slapping up some pins a few times a day with your blog’s url is not enough to get real, income making blog traffic.
There is a formula for how to use Pinterest for blogging. This formula will generate clickable pins that will bring you jaw dropping amounts of traffic to your baby blog.
Keep reading to learn these must-know Pinterest for blogging tips!
How to Use Pinterest for Blogging 101
As a new blogger, gaining traction can be tough and seemingly impossible at times and using social media platforms to do so can be volatile to say the least.
However, Pinterest is different, because it is not a social media platform, it is in fact a visual search engine.
Why does this matter?
Because it requires less social influence and more strategy.
After you’re done reading this article, you will see how I used Pinterest to gain 25k sessions per month on a BRAND NEW blog in less than four months with no prior experience!
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Setting Up Your Pinterest Account “Right” from the Start
This is a crucial moment in your Pinterest blogging career. Setting up your account the right way will launch you into success in a shorter period of time.
Remember, you need to tell Pinterest who and what you are from the very beginning.
Don’t make it guess!
Check out the list I left below for a quick reference on how to create a dynamite Pinterest business account.
- Create a business account so you can claim your website and access analytics.
- Establish searchable Pinterest boards with keywords as titles and in the descriptions (no keyword stuffing).
- Don’t waste your time making pretty board covers.
- Choose a profile picture of either your smiling and happy face or your logo.
- Use two or three keywords in your niche in your business account name. Ex: Love Our Littles | Pumping | Breastfeeding
- Use these same keywords in your account’s description (no keyword stuffing though!)
Finding Keywords for Board Titles and Descriptions
I think it’s important that I touch on this topic for a moment as this is imperative to your blogging success with Pinterest. As I explained, Pinterest is a search engine, like Google.
That being said, choosing relevant keywords in your niche to describe your board titles, descriptions and pins is the MOST IMPORTANT thing you do on Pinterest.
To find keywords for your boards, you can actually use Pinterest. Just go to the search and discovery bar at the top and type in your niche.
Pinterest will begin to list options from that query that are relevant and regularly searched on the platform.
Here’s a visual example:
As you can see, Pinterest is already pulling ideas for your board titles and clicking on those queries leads to more ideas!
Observe below.
You can continue filtering down these keywords as far as you can go and by the end of this process, you should have dozens of ideas for board titles and descriptions.
Do note, that these keywords are not necessarily SEO friendly. These are specifically for Pinterest’s search engine.
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How Often Should I Be Pinning?
I’m sure this was naturally your next question.
Of course every new blogger wants this magic number. Unfortunately, there is no formula for how often you should be pinning on Pinterest for epic traffic growth.
The name of the game is consistency.
I’ll tell you my jaw dropping secret, I only pin maybe 2-5 times per day and I currently get 100k page views per month from Pinterest.
How is that possible?
Because I am always giving Pinterest new and fresh ideas for it’s users. I rarely pin the same image more than three times and never duplicate that image to the same board more than twice.
Will this strategy work for every niche? I honestly don’t know.
My approach was to use Pinterest as genuinely as possible and not flood my business account with content I did not truly read or care about.
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Creating Pinterest Images that Create Clicks
How do you use Pinterest for blogging that will generate real click-throughs to your blog by interested and targeted readers?
First of all, remember that Pinterest is smart and it’s main goal is to serve the user with fresh and relevant ideas for them to be inspired by.
Always keep this in mind when you are creating content and your pin images. As a matter of fact, use the ideas you find on Pinterest as your inspiration for content creation.
Find other accounts and pins in your same niche and see what is performing well already. As an example, do you see certain pin topics that are always getting huge amounts of re-pins and saves?
If you follow that pin through to the site and see that the article has had thousands of saves, that is a really good indication this topic is popular in your niche!
The Perfect Pin Image Formula
I have to say, I love creating pins! This part of the creative process is where I really shine, and you can too!
I’m going to give you some pin graphic creation tips that will help you generate beautiful pin images every time that people will want to click!
- Choose a pin size and stick with it! I went with 600 x 900 because that is what Pinterest recommends. You can however, choose any 2:3 ratio. Ex: 1000 x 1500, 600 x 1260 and so on.
- The text on your pin should identify the content behind it. Asking a question or making a strong statement is a good idea to encourage curiosity.
- The image you choose needs to be relevant to your topic. This is very important! Let the user see first what your topic is about before they read your pin – you only have split second to make an impression!
- Use bold and easy to read fonts. Once you become more advanced in your pin design, then you can play around with prettier font choices.
Where to Create Your Pin Images
Along with knowing how to create a clickable pin image, using the right tools is just as important.
Blogging requires a lot of time and effort as is. Spending hours and hours on one single pin image is counter-productive to your blog’s growth.
I recommend using Canva online or PicMonkey to create and edit your pin images. Canva is my tool of choice because it allows me to be more in control of every styling aspect of my graphic design.
PicMonkey, however, is more user-friendly and has more lay-out options. Both of these online design tools require a paid membership to gain access to all of their features.
I do know that PickMonkey offers a free 7 day trial if you’d like to give that a test run!
Also check out the other must-have blogging tools I use and recommend!
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To Sum Up
Using Pinterest for blogging really worth the time and effort. It may feel like you are babysitting the platform at times, but that’s ok.
You will not feel resentful for doing so once you start seeing real blog traffic that is generating passive income.
My advice on how to use Pinterest for blogging is to focus on creating really good and fresh content that you already know is popular in your niche.
Using the tips above to create beautiful and effective pin images that will quickly begin driving traffic to your blog will only ignite your fire to keep moving forward and learning more!
Don’t forget to check out my recommendations and add your name to my list for more blogging tips sent straight to you!