40Tech is pleased to present a guest post by Molly Borter.
It’s no secret that Pinterest has taken over the social networking sphere. Recent studies show the site is generating more referral traffic to websites than LinkedIn, Google+, and YouTube combined, and with over 10 million registered viewers—the majority of which are female—it seems like brands everywhere are cashing in on the virtual pinboard craze. A soaring amount of traffic to your site just for pinning cool stuff? That’s pretty awesome if you ask me, and a lot easier than other link building and social networking tactics.
Here are three easy ways to build followers on Pinterest and increase traffic to your brand:
Follow Your Niche
The simplest way to build your followers on Pinterest: follow users who actively pin items, ideas, and interests in your niche. Does your brand target middle-aged women? Follow these users! Also, brainstorm and find other brands that they might be interested in—Michaels, Martha Stewart, HGTV, Real Simple—and follow that brand’s followers. By following pinners in your niche, you are giving them the opportunity to discover something similar to their interests: your brand.
Pin Their Interests
Along with following those who might be interested in your brand, you should create boards and pin items that your niche is interested in. Pinterest frowns upon solely pinning products from your site, and Pinterest users can see right through these spammy tactics. Instead, channel your niche and create general boards that they’ll want to follow. If you’re selling women’s accessories, create boards pertaining to fashion, beauty, classics, and trends. If you’re selling travel products, create boards pertaining to your favorite places, dream destinations, cool souvenirs, and travel tips. The more well-rounded and thoughtful your pins and boards are, the more followers you’ll have who trust your brand.
Create Pin-able Content
The key to building your Pinterest fan base is creating awesome, pin-able content. Swoon-worthy images and graphics are Pinterest gold, so make sure to include them in your brand’s blog posts and pin those. One cool picture or interesting piece of content could get you anywhere from 5 site visits to 30,000 site visits or more, so take your take your time when creating the best content. Charming images, colorful infographics, and crafty designs are the way to go. “Pin It to Win It”-style contests are popular, too, and help you build followers while increasing traffic to and conversion for your site. Pinterest is a win-win.
About the Author: Molly Borter works as a social media specialist for Reading Glasses Shopper. When she’s not creating social waves on Pinterest or tracking the latest glasses trends, she enjoys running, trying new recipes, and reading suspense novels.
