You might have heard about Pinterest or have used it as a consumer but thought Pinterest marketing was just for bloggers or content creators?

I hear that all the time. It is likely because for years it was the go-to platform for those types of online businesses and many articles, trainings, blogs, courses and experts were focused on teaching Pinterest for content creators.

What about product-based sellers, is Pinterest a worthwhile marketing platform for us?

The answer is YES and I’m going to share why Pinterest is an excellent marketing solution for product-based small business owners to grow their brand. This is true for makers, artists, designers, resellers, manufacturers, sub boxes, digital products and more! If you sell a product online, it’s likely some of your ideal audience are hanging out Pinterest.

— In This Article —

Understanding the Pinterest User

One of the most misunderstood aspects of Pinterest is how people use the platform and how this fits into our marketing strategy. Let me explain with a little story.

Recently I got a wonderful marketing email from the author and digital product seller Susannah Conway. One small paragraph at the start of her email stood out to me because it clearly shows what type of person uses Pinterest, what they are looking for from the Platform and what stage in they are in the buying cycle.

email subject line: (Wo)manifesting the future ❤️

… “It’s likely I’ll talk about this lots in the coming months as that’s how I make things happen — I talk, I make lists, I create a Pinterest board, I start a “moving” journal, I buy mugs for my future morning coffee that I picture myself sipping from whenever I use it (just me? :-)” - Susannah Conway

This sweet quote perfectly illustrates the way loyal users act on Pinterest.

Pinterest User Motivations

They are dreaming and manifesting their future.
They are looking for inspiration and aspiration. What could my life look like?
They are planning for big life events - like going off to college, moving to a new home or city, getting married, milestone birthdays, launching a business. etc.
They are planning for more mundane everyday life events and holidays - creating the perfect Halloween costumes, updating their closet, living more sustainably, planning Thanksgiving dinner.
They are looking for specific solutions like: How to braid long hair? How to style cowboy boots? How to make, do, create, cook, DIY….just about anything!
The are fine tuning their style, clothing, home, work, personal aesthetic.
Looking to discover new ideas, products, brands and solutions.
They like to read, do their research and think about it before making a purchase.

Loyal Pinterest Characteristics

Dreamers, planners, particular, picky, HSPs, introverts, quiet, researchers
They don’t tend to be impulsive, loud, looking for validation or attention

What does this mean for Marketers?

Once we understand that Pinterest users aren’t looking to be agressively marketed to we can learn how to show up for them in their feed.

Pinterest users want the fun, excitement and joy of discovering products and brands that they didn’t know existed. They want to find something new that solves a problem they didn’t know they had.

Once we are “discovered’ by the user they will then take an action:

📌 click on the pin for more info - price, read the description

📌 save our pin to their inspiration board

📌 visit our Pinterest page profile to learn more about our brand

📌 Click the outbound link to visit our website and read, explore, sign-up, learn more

📌 Visit our pin on a board once they have made a decision to buy and make the purchase

Notice how all of these are very top of funnel activities?

We might get lucky and get an immediate purchase because they found that elusive perfect fit product, but more likely they will convert later much later on via your email list, other social posts or from a Google search.

If your brand is struggling with being DISCOVERED by your ideal customer, if you need more visibility, traffic and leads to your email list then Pinterest is a great marketing platform for your small business.

How to Market Successfully On Pinterest

This is just the beginning of Pinterest marketing, in order to get discovered on Pinterest you need a strategy that works for product-based sellers today! That’s why I’ve created a Tiny Course with easy-to-follow step-by-step instructions to maximize your results on Pinterest.

Ready to get started? Join my course here.

Read what one of my students had to say about the material in Pinterest for Product Sellers Tiny Course.

“ Your Pinterest marketing training completely transformed my perspective on the platform. You showed me how Pinterest is not just a social platform, but a powerful search engine that drives organic traffic.
In just a few hours I was able to understand Pinterest and get started. Your teaching was straightforward, making it easy to understand and implement strategies.
What I loved most was how little time it took compared to Instagram or Facebook—it felt less like a chore and more like fun marketing.
I was able to grow my brand quickly, going from no presence to making my first sale and seeing a 1,000% increase in key stats.
The strategies you taught were actionable and delivered real results and fit perfectly with my busy schedule. I highly recommend Tina’s Pinterest Course to anyone serious about growing their eCommerce business.”

Rachael owner @ www.Herlowe.com

PINTEREST FAQ’s ANSWERED

Before I created this course I started by asking what questions small business owners had about using Pinterest.

Here are the FAQ’s I’ve collected along with my best answers.

QUESTIONS:

Q. How long it takes to make sales from digital products?

A. This is an awareness platform so don't expect a lot of direct sales, no matter what your niche. It can take at least 4 months of regular focus before you see results in terms of regular, quality traffic to your product.

Q. Which businesses are most likely to be successful and which aren't?

Businesses that do well tend to be inspiring and have great visuals. Think fashion, art jewelry, home, DIY, or even service businesses.

Q. How to do SEO on the platform?

SEO is the key to success. I teach how to do Pinterest SEO in my tiny course. Learn more here.

Q. How to grow following?

Following doesn't matter, impressions are a better metric.

Q. I've been hesitant to go all in on Pinterest is because it seems like it is a platform that works best for people who can do before and afters in their business. What do you think about people who are life coaches or business consultants using it?

I think it can definitely work for coaches and consultants. I am using it for my coaching business. You just have to approach your strategy a bit differently. The pins you create need to address the problems and transformations you offer clients. If you have blog content or videos you want your outbound links to go there so they can learn more. Here is a great example account for a coach (I have no affiliation with this one, btw). I would just use her pins for inspiration. https://www.pinterest.com/LauraKHerde/

Q. what do you think is the #1 benefit of being on Pinterest for coaches?

Ex: Consistent traffic, digital product sales, authority building

A. Pinterest is best for building awareness and traffic.

Q. I'm really interested in Pinterest, but I once took a course that emphasized the importance of using the right keywords and having a solid strategy upfront. I just don't have the bandwidth to figure out the perfect strategy that will work. Would you agree with that? Is it what it takes? Or do you have a process that builds gradually, with actionable steps, without requiring a fully developed and elaborated strategy upfront?

A. I believe there is a simpler way to get started and see results. The existing training and courses are geared toward VAs, bloggers, and social media managers who do Pinterest full-time.

My tiny course training is for anyone willing to spend up to 1 hour a week, or a small percentage of their marketing time setting up and maintaining their account. It is a simpler strategy, that takes less time but still brings compounding results.

Q. I need a beginner's guide to marketing on Pinterest...the courses I’ve found are all too complicated and expensive!

A. I agree! The Pinterest experts and training courses I’ve taken myself or seen marketed are designed for full-time content creators such as bloggers or Pinterest VA’s. The content is good but overly complicated , easily overwhelming and time consuming for beginners and not always relevant for product sellers of physical and digital products.

That is why I’ve created a simple but effective Tiny Course that is perfect for beginners! Learn everything you need to know from set-up to ongoing workflow in just 1.5 hours!

Q. How to make it relevant when Pinterest feels like a much slower platform?

Slower to make sales but also people linger there and explore. It's not a fast browse like IG.

A. Exactly right! Think of it like planting seeds in your garden. You won't see any activity from your effort for 4- 6 months but after that, those pins can grow much faster and bring traffic for years to come.

Don't expect sales from Pinterest, look at it as a place to for awareness, traffic and leads if they join your email list.

It is a long-term approach.

Q. I wonder if Pinterest could be effective/worthwhile for authors of non-fiction books?

A. I think Pinterest is a great platform for authors! Pinners are avid readers, and researchers who love discovering new things! Keywords and strong pin visuals - just like a book cover will bring them to your website, e=mail list and eventually lead to book sales.

Q. What about Pinterest Ads?

A. I haven’t figured out a good strategy for Pinterest ads. At this time I think Meta and Google are better ad platforms for product-based sellers.

Q. I would love a "get started in a weekend" or 5 Day Pinterest Set Up type course/guide/challenge.

A. If this is what you are looking for my Pinterest Tiny Course is the best place to start. Short easy lessons you can binge in 1.5 hours! Set aside a few more hours for implementation and you are on your way to having a Discoverable brand on Pinterest!

Why Pinterest is Good for Small Business