The Benefits of Pinterest for Small Businesses

According to Hootsuite, “ Pinterest is not just a social network — it's also a visual search engine and productivity tool.” This is a great tool, though slept on to add to your Digital Marketing Strategy, and when done strategically, it can lead to great results. As a Lifestyle Blogger and Digital Content Producer, Pinterest has become one of the significant drivers of traffic to my site as well as increasing my earnings.

If you are a business owner looking for ways to create awareness of your brand and build your digital footprints, keep reading as we share 3 benefits of using Pinterest as a Business.

Before I go into details, let’s look at what Pinterest is, as there are a few people who still don’t know.

What is Pinterest?

Pinterest is a visual discovery engine for finding ideas like recipes, home and style inspiration, and more - Pinterest.com. Bigger than that, Pinterest is actually a search engine that people constantly visit to get ideas on just about everything.

Now that you are all caught up on what Pinterest is let’s finally get into the benefits:

1. To grow a brand’s online presence and reach a new or targeted audience.

You can have the best business in the world with the best products and customer experience, but if it does not have an online presence, it’s like it doesn’t exist. In today’s society, Gen Z, those who were born between the mid-1990s - 2010, were from this group; 97% use Social Media as their top source of shopping. This group is mainly online, so it means your business needs to be set up to meet them online. Having Social Media accounts like Pinterest set up for your brand will make your offerings readily available and searchable.

Gone are the days when people would physically go into a store to see what was being offered. People today are using specific keywords like “gluten-free bread” (for example) to find bakeries that offer exactly what they are looking for. Imagine you have delicious gluten-free bread for sale in your bakery, but you are not online – this would mean losing a huge chunk of your audience.

2. To drive more traffic to a website

Whether you know it or not, businesses need a website. This is a great way to build Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and another way to make your business searchable. For today’s Business owner, your main goal should be “ To be found in as many places online as possible.” In the broad spectrum of things, having a website is a great way to drive traffic to your products and services and to make you more credible.

Let’s use me as an example. Let's say I’ve moved to a new city and I’m looking for nail techs in my new area; the first thing I would do is type “Nail Techs near me,” then look for images and read reviews, then look for a website where I can actually book that appointment. I can also create a Nail Inspiration board on Pinterest which is a central place I’ve curated that I can use as a reference to share with my Nail Tech. If you are a business, you need specific boards that showcase different offerings so people can physically see and even save your offerings to their own boards.

Having a website in the world of Digital Marketing is also called “Owned Media” and means you own all the content on the site vs. building a strong presence on Social Media platforms where though you invested time and energy into creating content, you do not own it. If you are a business owner, always strive to have a website regardless of the type of business, and be sure to pin it multiple times per day.

3. Drive sign-ups to Newsletters and more

I know you are probably thinking, “why would I even need a Newsletter in the first place” I would reply by saying, “ It’s an important part of the sales strategy and sales cycle. As a Blogger, whenever I have a new product, service, or even Blog post, I always add a Pinterest Strategy to my content. I want more eyes on the content without hard selling people on what I have to offer, so I’ll create a Blog post and include a Pinterest Cover with a link back to the site, asking people to sign up to stay in the loop.

If you are looking to bring more attention to your business and appeal to new audiences, having a Newsletter is the way to go! It makes people feel like a part of your brand story, and they are always involved in all things new. I have found valuable resources I use for my own Blog from Newsletters I’ve found on Pinterest while searching for something specific.

Conclusion

In conclusion, If you are a Business owner looking for inexpensive ways to promote your business, get on Pinterest and include a Pinterest Strategy as part of your overarching Digital Marketing Strategy.

Want more tips and tricks to increase your business's success? Don't forget to follow Tsunoda Stylings on social media, too, and subscribe for more blogs and newsletters just like this at this link below!