Here’s Why Selling on Pinterest Needs to be Part of Your Ecommerce Strategy

Let’s face it: we’re living in a world where marketing trends are everywhere. It seems like there’s some hot new “must do” every week. If you’re feeling like keeping up is impossible, you’re not alone. All the options can leave our heads spinning, wondering which fads are worth investing in and which are nothing more than just…well…a  fad.

When it comes to Pinterest, though, there’s some solid stuff at work.

Pinterest is about the furthest you can get from a “marketing fad.” In fact, it’s one of today’s strongest and most promising marketing vehicles, even when compared to Facebook and Instagram, and using it can offer some outstanding benefits for your brand.

Not convinced? Previous studies have found that each pin you put up on Pinterest will generate an average of $.0.78 in sales. What’s more, the average order value of Pinterest users is $123.50, which is a massive 126% higher than the average order value of Facebook users.

Used by big brands and small companies alike, Pinterest represents a potent marketing opportunity for any modern brand that sells online.

If you haven’t started selling on Pinterest yet, this post is going to break down exactly why starting right now is your best possible bet.

2018 Pinterest Ecommerce Statistics

Why Pinterest, why now? It’s a great question and one that many marketers can’t help but ask. The fact is, though, that Pinterest has more than 200 million active monthly users, and has quickly become one of the fastest-growing social media networks out there.

Highly visual, it’s perfect for our deeply image-loving marketing culture. Designed for mobile platforms, it’s easy to surf, discover, and shop on-the-go. Despite these compelling attributes, though, many companies have yet to take advantage of the platform, and it remains relatively uncrowded as a result.

Ready to start selling on Pinterest? Here are seven ways to get it done:

When you combine all of these Pinterest ecommerce facts, you get a powerful ecommerce sales opportunity that’s just waiting for you to step in and make it your own.

1. Create a Pinterest Business Account

First things first: if you don’t have a Pinterest business account, it’s time to get one. If you already have a normal account on the platform, it’s free to update, and doing so will add dozens of great business features to your Pinterest experience.

Pinterest business accounts allow you to access ads, analytics and more in just a few minutes. Once you have one, you can start selling on the platform and making the most of everything Pinterest has to offer for ecommerce companies.

2. Enable Rich Pins

Rich Pins are pins that include additional information, like price and seller details. If you’re using a platform like Shopify, you’ll be pleased to know that Rich Pins are already automatically enabled. All you have to do is turn them on through Pinterest. Once you’ve enabled Rich Pins, your customers will be able to interact more effectively with your pins right in the app.

3. Make Your Pins Buyable

Buyable pins make it possible for customers to purchase your products without ever leaving the app. When used correctly, these pins can have a significant positive impact on your sales, traffic, and more, and can make it ridiculously easy for customers to purchase items from your company.

4. Double-Check Product Links

Few things are more devastating than missing out on a sale simply because a customer can’t find the product they’re looking for. So make sure to keep your product links up-to-date as you dive into using Pinterest for Business. Keep in mind that product pins that you display as Buyable Pins won’t show up on Pinterest if the product is out-of-stock.

5. Use High-Quality Images

When it comes to using Pinterest for business, your images are everything. Since Pinterest is a visual platform, great photos are what set you apart from the rest. With this in mind, be sure you’re optimizing your image ratio as you post your products.

Here are a few guidelines to Pinterest ad formatting to keep you on track:

• Remember that vertical pins take up more space and stand out more than other images.
• The ideal aspect ratio for vertical pins is a 2:3:3 ratio: 600 pixels wide x 900 pixels high.
• Pins that are taller than 1260 pixels will get cut off, people won’t see them unless they zoom in.
• Pinterest optimizes pins that already fit in within the preferred image ratio.

6. Promote Pins

Did you know that you can use Pinterest to advertise? Assuming you have a Pinterest business account and have claimed your website, you can advertise on the Pinterest platform. When you promote your pins, you can increase engagement and boost your ad spend ROI on your top-performing products.

To promote a pin, just select the Pin you want to improve and fill in all the ad campaign details. Set a daily budget, define a target audience and watch as your pins explode.

7. Offer Discount Codes

Make the most of Pinterest as a business platform by adding discount codes to encourage buyers to interact more fully with your products. Discount codes will be added to the product description or as a text overlay and will work well for a wide variety of Rich and Buyable pins.

Why use discount codes? Just look at these 2018 promo code statistics:

• 68% of customers report that coupons build brand awareness
• 60% of customers say they love getting digital coupons
• 50% of customers say they’re more likely to visit a store if they’ve received a coupon from that store
• 62% of smartphone users say they’re likely to use an e-commerce coupon in the near future
• 55% of smartphone users rely on their phones to find coupons before they make a purchase
• 18% of global customers use mobile coupons or apps while they shop in stores

Get More Pinterest Sales

The world of social commerce has exploded in recent years, and it shows no signs of slowing down any time soon. If you’re looking for a high-quality platform that will support your social commerce efforts and help you create the results you want, Pinterest is it. Boasting higher conversion rates, higher per-order values, and massive potential for organic reach, Pinterest is a no-brainer for the modern ecommerce store owner.

Need even more tips? We’ve got you covered with this infographic on 2018 social shopping statistics.