Pinterest for Ecommerce

One of the fastest growing social sites is Pinterest. In the world of social media, it’s a fairly new site. However, it has already proven itself to be an effective tool when it comes to driving traffic to eCommerce retailers. Shareaholic’s Referral Traffic Report noted that Pinterest generated more referrals than Google+ and YouTube combined. The site already boasts nearly 10 million active users, which is up from just under 2 million in early 2011. Pretty impressive stats. Maybe there is something to this Pinterest thing after all.

Targeting Your Customer Base

Pinterest allows you target your customers more so than social media giants Facebook and Twitter. Traffic to your Facebook page, for example, mostly comes from people who are interested in your business – but not necessarily a particular product at the moment. Traffic to your Pinterest board comes from people who are interested in the product they saw that took them to your board in the first place. They may not have even heard of your business, but they like the product they saw. This means a higher conversion rate. Most users who “pin” something are doing so on purpose. You aren’t likely to get many people pinning stuff from your website by accident. This makes it easier to target your customer base.

How to Best Use Pinterest for Your Business

Remember, Pinterest is visual. Customers or potential customers can only “pin” pictures and videos of your product. You want to make sure that your product image isn’t loaded with rich media that can’t be found by Pinterest when someone “pins” your content. The best way to use Pinterest for your business is to make it as easy as possible for someone to “pin” your product. Include a “pinit” link next to your product images on your products pages. Most retailers tend to put the link next to either the product description or price to make it convenient. Go back and check your products on your website, blogs, and other social sources to confirm that you have images associated with each product that can be easily pinned.

What Customers Love Pinterest?

People who use Pinterest tend to focus more on products over brands. In other words, somebody may “pin” a product from your website and another from your competitor’s website and simply purchase the one that is cheaper. This is why you want to establish your brand on Pinterest. When you create you account, don’t just pin stuff from your website. This sends a message that you’re only promoting yourself. Include a mix of product from various sources. This makes your board a gathering spot for people interested in the products listed on your board, which means you have a better shot at generating more conversions.

How to Grow Your Business Using Pinterest for Free

Unlike other marketing efforts, Pinterest can grow your business for free. Talk about a bargain in today’s streamlined business world. Just like Facebook users can “like” something and share it with others, Pinterest users can “pin” something on your board and “repin” or share it with others. Conversely, you can use the Pin It bookmark to add items to your board to boost your content. This, in turn, makes your board more appealing. When an item you are selling on your website is “pinned” by a Pinterest user, it can also help grow your business since the visual pin also functions as a direct link to your product page. This means more traffic for you.

When you signup for an account, you are assign a unique URL. This allows you to use Google Analytics to track pins and other details. This lets you know which items are popular and where you should put your focus when looking to generate more conversions. You’ll also be able to track referral traffic to see where your “pins” are coming from. With careful monitoring and minor adjustments based on the stats you are getting back, Pinterest can be a valuable marketing tool for your eCommerce business.

By: Shirley Tan

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