5 Reasons Pinterest Isn’t Working For You
Oh! That is so frustrating! I have totally been there. There was a time when I would think to myself, “Pinterest isn’t working for me, there must be something special about my business.” That other people had something going for them that I didn’t. I couldn’t figure it out. I thought, well, maybe Pinterest is just not for my business. And then I made excuses for myself.
I was wrong. Pinterest can work for almost any business. And I mean that. Almost every single business can benefit from Pinterest, if done right.
So, if you are saying to yourself, “Pinterest isn’t working for me!” This post is for you. Let’s talk about why that might be and what you can do to fix it. And if you want to skip ahead and just read about the “tricks” of Pinterest, take a look here. Or, if you haven’t even set up your account yet or really started your Pinterest profile, take a look here.
Oh! That is so frustrating! I have totally been there. There was a time when I would think to myself, “Pinterest isn’t working for me, there must be something special about my business.” That other people had something going for them that I didn’t. I couldn’t figure it out. I thought, well, maybe Pinterest is just not for my business. And then I made excuses for myself.
I was wrong. Pinterest can work for almost any business. And I mean that. Almost every single business can benefit from Pinterest, if done right.
So, if you are saying to yourself, “Pinterest isn’t working for me!” This post is for you. Let’s talk about why that might be and what you can do to fix it. And if you want to skip ahead and just read about the “tricks” of Pinterest, take a look here. Or, if you haven’t even set up your account yet or really started your Pinterest profile, take a look here.
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Here are 5 reasons Pinterest isn’t working for you:
1. You haven’t been consistent
I mention consistency a lot. You have to show up on Pinterest, just like everywhere else, to do well. The most successful Pinners pin upwards of ten times a day, most even more. We pin about 20-25 times a day.
The most important thing you can do on Pinterest is show up.
Obviously, showing up without a real plan or strategy isn’t going to make you super successful but it is the first step. In my early days of pinning on purpose, I was surprised at how just being on Pinterest consistently increased my traffic. It wasn’t an over the top change, but I certainly saw a difference by just being active.
That brings me to the second reason Pinterest isn’t working for you:
2. It isn’t clear what your business is
Maybe you haven’t optimized your profile or your boards don’t line up with your business. Maybe you haven’t done any descriptions at all. Or maybe your profile is all over the place.
It is really easy to get carried away pinning. That DIY greenhouse would look awesome in your backyard, and you’ve always wanted to learn how to do cat eye makeup. You really want a zero-waste kitchen and you have been trying to pick a color profile for your brand for months now. And so, you’ve pinned all of these things to your public Pinterest profile. But none of them are on brand.
This can be confusing to potential clients and readers.
One of the reasons Pinterest doesn’t work for some businesses is because they treat their business account like their personal vision board and pin everything that is appealing to them.
Your Pinterest profile needs to reflect your business. You want the people who see your profile to immediately know what you do, why you do it, and who you serve.
Your Pinterest profile needs to clearly reflect your business.
If your Pinterest boards are all over the place, take a look at a few ways to clean up your board or let us help you with our board clean up services. Ask yourself why you have each and every board. Does it reflect your business? Does it add value to your potential clients or readers? If the answer is no, then you need to hide that board.
I have about 15 secret boards that run the gamut from gardening and home improvement to skincare and fun things to do with toddlers. None of them are on my public profile, because none of them have anything to do with this brand. Maybe you are interested in gardening too, but your brand is a haircare brand. Well, hide those gardening boards and pins because when your ideal client sees your profile, you want her to know exactly why she’s there and what she can learn from you.
If you’ve been Pinning for awhile and your profile is a bit all over the place, take a look at a few tips to clean up your profile.
3. You aren’t pinning with your dream client in mind
When you start pinning, think about who you are trying to attract. Who do you want to visit your site? Buy your product? Read you posts? Pin with her in mind. What is she looking for?
You don’t want to stray too far from your specific business (I just made that point ⬆️), but you do want to serve your audience. What else is she looking for that is relevant to your business?
For example, if you sell eco-friendly pillows, maybe you can help your client find eco-friendly couches to put them on or ways to style throw pillows. She might be interested in eco-friendly laundry detergent as well. Maybe some tips on styling a bedside table and ways to make the rest of her home eco-friendly.
Keep your pins relevant and valuable.
In the beginning when you don’t have a lot of your own content, this is a great way to consistently pin and add value without having to create a lot of new content right away.
4. Your boards aren’t optimized
If your boards aren’t optimized, you are missing out on people who are looking for YOU! You need to help them find you! By optimizing your boards with keywords people are searching for, you are helping your potential audience find you.
98% of Pinterest searches are unbranded, which is awesome for small businesses. People are searching for a specific item or tip, not who gives it to them. Optimize your boards so that Pinners can find what you are selling (or writing about).
You have something unique and interesting to offer the world. But, if they can’t find it, you can’t be of value. So help them find you!
5. You haven’t given it enough time
Pinterest is not a short-term strategy. When developing your Pinterest plan, you need to be in it for the long haul. You are likely not going to see any results for a few months. Give yourself at least three months of consistent, branded pinning on your optimized profile and if you are still not seeing results, reevaluate your strategy.
Don’t expect tons of traffic to start rolling in immediately. And, even after a few months, most pinners will only see modest growth. Those bloggers with millions of views each month and traffic in the hundreds of thousands from Pinterest alone? They’ve been at it for YEARS! They built a profile, were consistent, and then saw what was and wasn’t working and made adjustments.
You have to be patient with Pinterest. It will work with you with time, consistent pinning, and an optimized profile. If you pin with your client in mind, and help her find you, and then give her what she is looking for, over time, you will have Pinterest success. But, you must have patience and show up.
If you’ve given your profile some time, cleaned up and optimized your profile, and have been consistently pinning and still are struggling with Pinterest, take a look at 5 More Reasons Pinterest Isn’t Working For You or reach out. We would love to help you develop a strategy to use Pinterest to grow your business, whatever your goals are.
And for weekly tips on Pinterest and small business strategy (and your free five day Pinterest clean-up guide), click here.
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