Pinning on Pinterest is a fun way to pass the time, but what if you could earn money doing something you do every day? If you’ve ever wondered how to monetize Pinterest, you’re in luck. Here are six ways you can take your Pinterest skills to the next money-making level.
And you don’t need to have a blog to monetize Pinterest. You can sell physical products, services or do affiliate marketing.
You can get started right away and there’s no limit to what you can earn. While Pinterest isn’t a get-rich-quick scheme or guaranteed instant success, you may be surprised at the multiple (and exciting!) ways to monetize.
Before you learn how to monetize Pinterest….
Before we go through our favorite steps to earn money with Pinterest, let’s review why the Pinterest platform is so powerful.
According to the Pinterest IPO, there are over 2 billion searches a month through Pinterest. Wow, that’s a lot of pins about choosing the perfect paint color.
But when you look closely it becomes more clear — people are turning to Pinterest for more than picking out favorite paint palettes or adorable Fall porch ideas. Pinterest can spot the trends in holidays, activities, ideas, and even big life changes (think changing careers and having children).
Pinterest is great for both the casual pinner and business owner. A Pew Research study found that 41% of people using Pinterest, earn $75,000 or more per year. These are people looking for inspiration and probably have the money to spend on what they find.
More importantly, Pinterest provides insight as to what’s on the hearts and minds of millions around the world. These insights are what makes Pinterest so impressive. It’s these same insights that can help you learn how to monetize Pinterest in the most effective ways.
Set up a Pinterest Business account
A Pinterest business account gives you access to pin performance, audience analytics, engagement statistics, and a host of other resources.
Thankfully, setting this up is an easy process.
Login to your personal account first, then you choose the option to add a free business account. Once there, follow the steps to claim a website (if you have a blog or e-commerce site).
You have to answer a short series of questions, then you’ll be on your way. You can get the complete setup details through Pinterest.
How to monetize Pinterest — 6 ideas you can use now
Once you have your business account established, let’s take a look at how you can make money with Pinterest. Here are several of the top ideas for earning an income through this platform:
- Drive traffic to your blog
- Affiliate marketing
- Sell products
- Sponsorships
- Capture leads for services
- Become a Pinterest Virtual Assistant
1. Drive traffic to your blog
Hands down, Pinterest is one of the best ways to promote your blog and drive new readers to your site. How does this make you money? If you’ve monetized your blog, then additional traffic could potentially equal additional sales.
If you haven’t set up a blog, there’s never been a better time to get started. There’s still plenty of blogging income to go around, as people continue to turn to the internet for content.
Whenever you create a blog post, it’s important to let Pinterest users know your new content is available.
How do you do this? First, create a pin linked to your blog post. But don’t let this opportunity go to waste. There are key elements to include in your pin so it gets noticed in someone’s newsfeed.
Use a sweet graphic. Don’t be tempted to grab a picture from your smartphone and think it’s pin-worthy. Pinners like eye-catching, professional graphics. But this doesn’t mean you have to be a graphic designer either!
Use a product like Canva to create free pins. You can use stock photos that represent your blog post.
Use keywords and easy-to-read fonts. Another overlooked aspect of a pin are the keywords and fonts used. You can use one, two, or three different fonts to show off the point of your pin. Use keywords in the same manner you would with your blog, so the pin is part of the results of a search.
Make your website name easy to read. Don’t forget to let people know the name of your site! Even if they don’t click on the pin, there’s a chance they could see your website name as they’re scrolling through their feed.
Here’s a great example of a pin that uses professional-looking graphics, easy-to-read keywords, and the website name is clear:
One final tip when you create a pin to drive traffic to your blog, you can create more than one pin for a single post! If you have three or four ideas to promote the same post, then go for it. The beauty of Pinterest is you can compare all your pins side by side, so you can see which pin performs the best. Take these insights and apply it to your next series of pins.
Worried you don’t have time to create these pins and then keep scheduling? Using a scheduling service such as Tailwind to save yourself valuable time.
2. Affiliate marketing
Affiliate marketing is another creative way to get Pinterest to work for you. Are you already a member of an affiliate marketing service? Then you can make it work for you on Pinterest, and not just a blog.
Popular affiliate marketing programs are found through sites such as:
Once you become a member, or if you already have an account set up, you can use your links on Pinterest to promote a product. If the product is purchased by the pinner through your unique link, then you earn a commission.
If you don’t belong to one of these programs, you can work directly with brands to become an affiliate.
To create the pin, follow the same easy steps you would if you were promoting a blog post. Except instead of linking to a blog post, you’d link to the product you’re promoting.
Try to focus on products you have an interest in promoting. For instance, if you enjoy home decor or fashion. You can add these pins to your own Pinterest boards, and begin building your own brand and identity within Pinterest.
Imagine being able to capture a commission simply by getting someone’s attention in their newsfeed from a pin you created. It really is that simple with affiliate marketing on Pinterest.
Related: Pinterest Affiliate Marketing for Beginners
3. Sell products
The internet is proof people can sell anything. Whether it’s a physical product, like car parts or furniture. Or maybe it’s digital products like printables and ebooks. Whatever it is, there’s likely an audience for it somewhere.
If you’re not a member of an affiliate marketing group or a direct company affiliate, you can still sell your unique products through Pinterest.
For instance, if you’re an e-commerce site owner, you can use pins to sell products from your own website.
You can also pay to promote your pin on Pinterest, further targeting potential buyers and leading them straight to your site.
This method works best if you have a product page set up somewhere. Whether it’s a blog, e-commerce store, or a place such as Etsy. You can use Pinterest to drive new potential clients to your product selection.
Related: How to Make Money on Pinterest Without a Blog
4. Sponsorships
Sponsorship is simply an agreement between you and a company to promote the company’s product. With Pinterest being a perfect place to showcase new or existing products, you can partner with a brand to introduce your audience to a specific item.
If you have a solid amount of monthly viewers and are engaged with your Pinterest community, then use this to your advantage and seek out sponsorship opportunities. Soon you can promote products (and get paid), not to mention build your own exposure on Pinterest too.
You can solicit companies directly and propose your idea for a brand partnership. You don’t have to wait for a company to solicit you.
Here are tips for upping your chances to secure a brand sponsorship.
- Make your business email easy to find throughout your Pinterest profile
- Cold pitch a company’s PR or media department introducing yourself and idea
- Join a sponsored network (these are usually free to join) and apply for the sponsorships you’re most interested in
5. Capture leads for your business
Let’s say you own a business not related to blogging or affiliate marketing. Why not take advantage of Pinterest’s power and use it to promote your services?
You can create gorgeous pins that identify with your company brand, use keywords for your target audience, and link it directly to your website.
Not sure if this would work for your business model? Think of all the keywords you can use to create pins around popular services:
- Skincare
- Wellness products
- Home repair services
- Lawn services
- Financial services
- Coaching
- Interior design
- Salon products
Almost any business could benefit from pinning on Pinterest.
Here’s an example of a medical spa using a pin to capture new leads. If you click on the pin, it takes you to the medical spa’s website.
One more thing, don’t limit this to only businesses where you have a storefront. Use the same idea of promoting on Pinterest if you offer freelance services or have a side gig. Create pins to promote your skills, such as:
- Copywriting
- Graphic design
- Social media planning
- Organization
- House cleaning
- Digital advertising
- Bookkeeping
There’s virtually no limit to what you can promote on Pinterest. So why not take advantage and use it to drive potential new customers right to you?
6. Become a Pinterest Virtual Assistant
If you see success from your Pinterest efforts, why not turn it into a side hustle or career? You can help other businesses grow and realize their own success by managing their Pinterest strategy for them.
Someone who manages someone else’s Pinterest account is known as a Pinterest Virtual Assistant. And it’s more in-demand than you might think.
A Pinterest VA isn’t there to find pins on how to organize your sock drawer. No, this type of VA helps formulate and execute a successful Pinterest strategy in order to drive more traffic to a business.
Some of the duties performed by the VA are:
- Creating pins based on keywords and target audience
- Tying pins and boards to a unique brand strategy
- Scheduling pins
- Create video pins
- Review analytics and make recommendations based on findings
This list doesn’t represent all the possibilities. You can set yourself apart from other Pinterest VA’s by developing a niche. Specializations include becoming an expert at Tailwind, Pinterest SEO, or auditing a business’ current Pinterest boards.
If you’re interested in earning money through this route, we love the Become a Pinterest VA course from Kristin Larsen. You will learn everything from getting started to promoting your services.
Final thoughts on how to monetize Pinterest
As you can see, there are several ways to make Pinterest a lucrative venture for you. Whether you have your own blog or eCommerce site, it doesn’t take much to start using the power behind Pinterest to your advantage.
No matter which course you choose, there’s no doubt Pinterest can drive quality traffic to a site in ways other platforms might not. So what are you waiting for? It’s time to start pinning and start earning!
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