If you want to learn how to make money on Pinterest without a blog, we’ve got you covered. I’m going to show you how to turn your passion for Pinterest into an opportunity to make money. Believe it or not, it can be done.
If you already spend time on Pinterest collecting your favorite home decor inspiration photos or diving into the visual search engine to find a recipe for your family’s dinner, then you have the skills you need to make money on Pinterest.
Like other social media platforms, Pinterest can be an opportunity to make money. You can build an audience, make a name for yourself, and turn it into a chance to earn revenue.
Pinterest is an ideal platform for people who do not have the time or desire to maintain a blog but still want to earn money in some sort of online capacity.
What’s Required to Make Money on Pinterest
To get started, there are a few basic requirements.
- Internet access. You will need access to the internet. A stable internet connection is required since you’ll be on Pinterest quite a bit.
- Computer. You’ll also need a computer or access to a device with internet, like a smartphone or tablet.
- Something to sell. You need either a product or service to sell. This can be your own stuff or someone else’s through an affiliate program. We will also talk about sponsorships. These don’t require an actual sale to make money, but you’ll be “selling” the fact that you have an engaged following.
- Time. Consistency and planning are key components of making money, both of which require time and effort.
While you don’t need a blog, most of the options for earning money on Pinterest require you to send a potential customer somewhere.
Depending on what you choose, this could either be a landing page, sales funnel, digital storefront or marketplace (such as Amazon or Etsy), or another platform like Instagram or TikTok.
How Many Followers Do You Need on Pinterest to Make Money?
There is no minimum follower requirement to make money with Pinterest. That’s the beauty of using Pinterest to make money online.
However, for some of the strategies shared below, the more engagement you have, the more money you can possibly make.
Pinterest is different from other social platforms because “followers” are not necessarily the goal. Instead, your pins need to engage pinners with clicks, saves, and close-ups.
5 Options to Make Money on Pinterest Without a Blog
There are several ways to make money on Pinterest without a blog (some do require a website, though.)
Here are the various ways you can monetize your Pinterest account:
- Affiliate marketing
- Selling products
- Selling services
- Pinterest Virtual Assistant
- Sponsorships
Let’s take a closer look at how you can make money with each opportunity without the help of a blog.
#1. Affiliate Marketing
Simply put, affiliate marketing is earning a commission by selling someone else’s product. It’s a product you promote through your own marketing channels and efforts. In return, when someone purchases through your unique link, you earn a commission.
Pinterest allows affiliate links on its platform. That means you can direct Pinterest traffic directly to an affiliate offer without sending people to your own blog or website.
One of the best strategies to start with regarding affiliate marketing is to pick a niche. This actually serves two purposes.
First, it keeps you from going crazy trying to decide which affiliate programs to join. It helps reign in the choices and gives you direction. Otherwise, there are so many affiliate programs available that it can become overwhelming.
Secondly, it helps with Pinterest SEO. This is how your pins are ranked in the Pinterest results. Choosing a niche is better for keyword search and the performance of your pin. So, do yourself a favor and settle on the niches you are most interested in.
Choosing Affiliate Programs
If you want to make money on Pinterest using affiliate programs, you have to pick an affiliate offer. To do this, you should belong to an affiliate program.
Here are some affiliate networks to check out:
Aside from joining an affiliate network, you can also join a private affiliate program managed directly through a merchant.
You will often see affiliate program information listed directly on a company’s website, or you could contact the merchant directly and ask for details about affiliate opportunities.
For example, Bluehost offers an affiliate program. To join, just find their affiliate program application located in the footer of their website and apply.
If you’re stuck on figuring out what affiliate programs to join, think about the products you use every day. Then search for those companies online and join their affiliate program.
After you join an affiliate program and have the affiliate offer to refer to as well as your affiliate link, it’s time to post to Pinterest.
How to Post on Pinterest With Affiliate Marketing Links
In order to post (or pin) to Pinterest, you need a Pinterest graphic. But, before you get started on the template, make sure you’ve set up your Pinterest business account.
There are many ways to design Pinterest graphics easily and free. I recommend you check out Canva.
Canva is a graphic design software tool that you can use on a desktop computer or on your smartphone or tablet with their convenient app. It’s free to use and is one of the most popular graphic design tools for everyday use.
Join Canva for free, then go to their Pinterest templates.
You’ll quickly notice how you can pick your favorite Pinterest template, easily change the graphic, edit the text and colors and save the pin to your device. In a matter of minutes, you can create the pin and then download it for the next step.
From here, you can pin to Pinterest by writing a catchy, keyword-rich headline and caption describing the pin and posting your affiliate link in the URL section.
You can also pin directly to Pinterest from Canva.
When you create a pin on Pinterest, there is a section for a link to a site. This is where you insert the unique affiliate link you’ve been given.
The link can go directly to the company website you’re promoting or the product itself. This works for both digital and physical products.
There may be a link to a service, such as web hosting, graphic design, or a business service. The bottom line is that if there is an affiliate program, then there is a way to link it to a Pinterest pin.
That’s how you do Pinterest affiliate marketing with no blog. Just rinse and repeat with as many affiliate offers as you have. Make sure to pin other relevant content to your Pinterest account and not just your affiliate links so that your account does not look spammy.
Also, don’t forget that you must also add the hashtag #affiliate to the pin to comply with the rules of Pinterest.
Bonus tip: You can use the same link with different graphics. For example, you can have four different templates all going to the same link. This is a great way to test out the responsiveness of each graphic. Change up the headline, picture, font, or anything else to make it different.
#2. Selling Products
To make money on Pinterest using products, you will create Pinterest graphics that will direct Pinterest traffic to your product sales page. When users make a purchase, you earn money.
While a blog or website is not required, you should have a space on the internet dedicated to your business, like an Etsy page or Amazon storefront.
For example, if you have an Etsy store selling handmade jewelry, you can create pins of your products, pin them to Pinterest, and have that traffic funnel back to your Etsy store.
If you want to learn more on how to advertise your Etsy shop on Pinterest, you can review this free guide.
This can work with physical products or digital goods.
Some examples of physical products include:
- Furniture
- Rugs
- Coffee mugs
- Pillows
- T-shirts
- Dresses
- Toys
- Consumer electronics
- Lighting
- Automotive goods
- Office supplies
A few examples of digital goods include:
- Ebooks
- Digital courses
- Printables
- Calendars
- Organizers
- Planners
- Worksheets
- Templates
- Web design
- Infographics
- Digital art
To make money with Pinterest while selling your products without a blog, you’ll direct the Pinterest traffic to your business presence online.
Alternately, you can direct traffic to your sales funnel using a tool like Clickfunnels or Leadpages.
Create pins about your products using Canva, write a captivating, keyword-rich headline and caption, link with your product link in the URL section, and post to Pinterest!
#3. Selling Services
Making money with services on Pinterest is similar to earning cash with products. You will make pins to appeal to consumers in need of your services. Then, they will visit your website and buy your services, earning you money.
Examples of services include:
- Plumbing
- HVAC
- Bookkeeping/accounting
- Auditing
- Tax services
- Copywriting
- Graphic design
- Consulting
- Coaching
- Interior design
- Illustration and more
Lead Pinterest traffic to your space on the internet or your sales funnel. You can also direct leads for services (and products) to your lead magnet or email list.
Pinterest is an excellent place for capturing leads.
#4. Pinterest Virtual Assistant
Speaking of services, being a Pinterest virtual assistant is a flexible way to make money. It involves pinning to Pinterest and managing your client’s Pinterest accounts to help them reach their marketing goals.
It’s way more than just playing on Pinterest, but that doesn’t mean it’s not fun!
Imagine getting paid to work on Pinterest all day while making a pretty lucrative living doing it.
Pinterest is powerful. It has over 444 million users and is a great place to cultivate an audience, make sales, and create brand awareness.
Companies outsource Pinterest work to virtual assistants like you.
You can help them with tasks like:
- Setting up business accounts
- Pin graphic creation
- Optimizing Pinterest accounts
- Writing keyword-rich, compelling pin headlines and captions
- Setting up rich pins
- Scheduling pins and more
Pinterest VA’s can earn $15 to $30 per hour. You can also charge a flat monthly fee starting at $500/month or more.
Businesses that need Pinterest virtual assistants can include podcasters, bloggers, eCommerce stores, creative businesses, and more.
You will be a great Pinterest VA if you are:
- Good at communication
- Well-organized
- Social media-savvy
- Diligence
- Driven
- Proficient in the nuances of Pinterest
- Willing to keep up with Pinterest updates
This job is perfect for stay-at-home parents, side hustlers, those looking for additional income streams to supplement their income, retirees, and existing virtual assistants, among others.
If this sounds interesting to you, you can learn how to become a Pinterest VA with this course.
To learn more about becoming a Pinterest VA, check out our full article here.
#5. Sponsorships
Lastly, you can make money on Pinterest with sponsorships. A sponsorship is an agreement between two parties, like an influencer and a merchant, where the influencer is paid money to showcase the merchant to their audience.
This is common in blogging, and sponsorships also exist for podcasts, radio, television, fundraising, and more.
If you have a strong social presence on Pinterest, brands will want to work with you to showcase their products to your Pinterest audience. This is where having a larger amount of monthly views will help you.
To find brands to work with, you can:
- Share your email on your Pinterest account so brands can contact you
- Do cold pitching
- Join a sponsored network
First, the easiest way to open the doors to sponsorships and brand deals is by sharing your email address publicly. This can be your existing business email address, or you can create a new personal email address for sponsorship business only.
Brands can easily contact you and share their interest to work together if you use this strategy.
Next, look at doing cold pitching. Instead of waiting for companies to email you, be proactive and contact them!
You will want to find the brand’s PR/marketing/media email address and craft a thoughtful, short email expressing your interest in working together through a paid sponsorship.
Lastly, you can join sponsored networks for free. After you fill out your profile, you’ll be contacted when the network finds a sponsorship that’s a fit for you, or you can search their library of brand deals on the network site and apply to the ones you want to participate in.
All this can help you make money with Pinterest with no blog required.
Final Thoughts on How to Make Money on Pinterest Without a Blog
As you can see, there are many ways to monetize your Pinterest account without having a blog or website.
You’ll need something to sell, either your own products or services or someone else’s, and have the ability to make creative, eye-catching pins. Then, spend time on Pinterest getting the word out!
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