The Hostpapa Blog

Increase Sales Using Pinterest

By HostPapa

• October 18, 2012 12:31 pm
• Social Media Marketing
• 0 Comments

Do you have zillions of followers on Pinterest but haven’t seen any increase in sales? You’re not the only one. Learn how to make the most out of social marketing—before everyone else figures it out too.

The same age-range (25-44) known for their compulsive shopping habits, are the overwhelming majority on Pinterest. Businesses have been quick to hone in on this, using the simple pin-boards as a free marketing device. Still for many businesses, the idea has yet to pay off, with loads of followers and nonstop pins, there’s still little increase in actual sales.

Just last week, while enjoying a beachfront dinner, one of my friends suddenly asked, “Am I pinning too much?” She demanded we tell her the truth before going on to gush, “My boss just wants us to pin everything from the store!”

Pinterest is like a virtual heaven- where all of the things we love, are attracted to, and envy get ‘pinned.’ But my friend’s question made me stop and think - ah hah - there really is an art to pinning.

Later, at home and leisurely scrolling through Pinterest, I took note of my friend’s excessive pins. Let me tell you, I don’t know how I missed it before. My friend wasn’t joking around when she mentioned her boss’s desire to pin the world in its entirety.  Quickly, I noticed how one-sided these pins were; some had 1 or 2 likes and repins, while most were getting no action at all.

What does this mean for the fancy clothing boutique my friend works for? First of all, their marketing techniques are getting them next to nowhere - being socially active is only good marketing when others are re-pinning, sharing, and creating a world of new customers for you.  

Common fails, such as this one, have inspired many sites to start popping up, all in the name of helping clients make the most of Pinterest. Just to name a few - Klout, Curalate, ShareAsImage, ShotPin, and the list goes on and on. In John Brandon’s Inc. article, “7 Tools to Get More Out of Pinterest,” these sites are addressed as a way to “turn those ‘pins’ into sales.” A promising phrase for hungry businesses left wondering when - and if - their new 3,000 followers will ever pay off.

For the stubbornly independent it might seem silly, paying money for a site to “manage” your pins - for isn’t that what you hired an employee to do? But in reality, it might not be so silly at all — in fact, it could be the exact opposite, like turning pennies into gold.

“What’s Your Klout Score?”

Klout is quick to address a large misconception with its clients: it isn’t about how many followers someone has; it’s about how many of those followers actually care about the brand. This is why your Klout score only increases when your pins are appreciated and shared.  

Curalate is very similar to Klout, only I’m digging their ability to track the actual images you pin - no matter what happens to the image, even if the description or title changes, the image is still traceable, allowing you to see exactly how many people have re-pinned your product. From this, one can gather exactly how much attention a product actually draws. Are your items unique enough to be shared, obsessed, liked, and purchased? Curalate will help you find out.

Looking for a less evasive way to improve sales? Do you use a WordPress template for your storefront page? Then I suggest giving WP Pinner a try. An app created for one of the most common (and easy to use) website platforms, WordPress, it allows pins to be instantly placed in your WordPress posts and then easily shared onto your actual Pinterest boards. This quick convenience will not only save you time, but it will make all social media sites coexist - increasing the general popularity of your brand.

Sales Still Low?

So your followers do actively repin, comment, and share your merchandise and still, you wonder why sales haven’t increased. Many others are finding their popular Pinterest accounts have surprisingly low conversion rates, lower than both Facebook and Twitter. This has caused some experts to argue that Pinterest might only be good for creating referral traffic, instead of actual sales. Leaving one burning question: can enlisting the help of a site like Klout change that?

I dig a little deeper and find that many business do see an increase in sales after enlisting the help of these services. Only, it’s not necessarily because people suddenly want the items you’ve been trying to sell. Instead of promoting your own, original products, a lot of these sites are really just helping businesses understand what consumers want. In a way what could be better? Like a team of perfectionists chiselling away at your product until it becomes what others are actually seeking. On the other hand, it could mean starting back at the boating docks — learning that perhaps your products are not popular enough to gain the momentum needed to sail.

Who Does Pinterest Work Best For?

Businesses that are not reliant on sales but instead make their money through traffic are a perfect match for Pinterest. Known exclusively for its ability to increase traffic, Pinterest has bumped some small businesses traffic up 80%.

Free Advice

Remember, you can own the busiest shop in town, but if no one buys anything, you make no money.

Take note; are people liking, re-pinning, and even ‘tweeting’ about your pins? If so, you are on your way to success. For everyone else, make sure your products are neatly listed on a well-presented storefront website. Even if you have the most intriguing pins in town, a lousy site can instantly turn potential customers away. Lastly, don’t ‘follow’ the trend of purchasing followers. Like spam mail, they are completely worthless. Earned followers are more like fans, customers who care enough about your pins to repin, showing off your merchandise to a whole new world of potential clients.

Social Media Marketing, Pinterest Sales, Pinterest Marketing