Pinterest is a social media platform that is often compared to digital scrapbooking. 

You can add links and photos to your Pinterest page. You save these “pins” in a specific section of your page called a “board”. A board is a collection of similar posts that fit under a shared category. 

For instance, jewelers may have pictures of various diamonds in a folder called Engagement Ring Diamonds. The images of diamonds are uploaded as pins. The overall folder of diamond images is the board. 

How to make your business look credible on Pinterest

Companies that look credible on Pinterest are companies with robust profiles and consistent traffic. 

Unlike other social platforms, Pinterest shows the number of monthly visitors to your page. A star is a business that establishes solid traffic for their page. Consistent traffic to your page not only reflects well on your business, but also enhances the reach of your brand. 

For most small local retail businesses even a few hundred visitors per month is a great start. That may be enough to make you a star.

Your page traffic reflects your star status on Pinterest. It’s achieved through consistent efforts and updates. 

Pinterest Paid Ads

Pinterest offers an advertising portal for businesses. However, you cannot do them all. Pinterest ads can be at least as effective as the other major platforms. Yet, I recommend waiting to begin advertising on Pinterest. First, make sure you’re comfortable with the platform and how it works for your business. 

When you are ready to advertise on Pinterest there are admin tools available for placing ads. Here’s a screenshot of the admin panel for ads. 

As an advertiser you can choose the criteria for your paid post. Your options include awareness campaigns, engagement campaigns, traffic campaigns and promoting apps & videos.

Depending on your goals and your target market these may be good options for your business. Remember, Pinterest is very image driven. That means that your content for your ads will need to include high quality images.

Pinterest for Customer Service?

Customer service happens on Pinterest too. It’s different than what you might expect. The other major social platforms will likely be your go-to for customer service. However, on Pinterest, you can provide visual customer service in the form of a board. On Pinterest, you can create boards that answer customer questions and solve common issues. These boards may be visually appealing and easy to follow. Incorporating customer service oriented boards can fit neatly into your customer service operations.

Check out this great FAQs Pinterest page for example. Caldera Spas sells hot tubs. On Pinterest, they have a whole board dedicated to customer questions. The board answers questions ranging from financing to maintenance to physiological effects.

This content allows customers to engage with their business. Customers can learn about their products and services in depth. It’s easy to see how this content helps with customer support and interaction.

When you build out this section of your Pinterest page link it back to your website.  These questions and answers should link back to the FAQ section on your website or your company blog. This part of your Pinterest page will grow over time. In the long run it should prove invaluable. In addition, your customer service and employee training will become more efficient. As you build this reference area for customers and employees you will have a single resource for information.

What engaging small business content looks like on Pinterest

To highlight the best ways to engage we’ll take a look at Taylor Rental of Tampa Bay. This company is an independent brick and mortar business that rents and sells products for weddings, events and DIY projects.

First, notice that their page gets over 600 monthly viewers! Next, you’ll notice how often they make updates and how organized their page is.

Their customers can easily identify the different departments of the business. It’s easy to engage with the content that is most relevant. 

The best way to engage on Pinterest is to be authentic. Taylor Rental Tampa not only includes ideas and links to other websites, but also their own. They incorporate images from events that used their equipment, tents and products. This highlights what is available at their store in their market area. Potential customers can actually see what Taylor Rental Tampa’s tents look like set up at a large event. 

Consumers use Pinterest to generate ideas. Pinterest is where consumers generate ideas for projects, events, and large purchases. They use Pinterest to find ways to solve problems. Your store also offers unique solutions to problems. Engage with customers by providing images and descriptions of people using your products. Show people using the products you sell. 

You may show an engaged couple wearing a diamond ring you sold them. Show a dog playing with a new dog toy you started selling. Show a couple relaxing in their new hot tub they bought from you. These are the types of posts that support people as they search for ideas on Pinterest.