If you hear the phrase “Rich Pins” and think it means fancy brooches, then I have so much to teach you! When we think of social media platforms to use for marketing, we typically think of Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram first, and these are powerful, but that’s an opportunity missed. Pinterest should also be considered with the power three social media platforms, but, unfortunately, many businesses can’t see the intrinsic value of Pinterest because they just aren’t sure how to use it to their advantage. That stops now.
Created as a photo sharing site that launched in March 2010, Pinterest was born to make its users want to go out and do things rather than interact with others like most other social media formats. CEO Ben Silbermann has described the seven year old social media giant as a “catalog of ideas” rather than just another social media site. Since its inception, Pinterest has evolved from a photo sharing site into a marketplace where users can catalog ideas and buy products right from their app. How can businesses harness the power of the product placement in a user’s feed? Enter Rich Pins.
What Are Rich Pins?
Rich Pins are Pinterest pins that have extra pieces of information that tell the pinner even more about the item featured on the pin. They’re similar to rich snippets on a website, which is an HTML markup adding more detail to the text beneath the URL in a search result. This information can include information such as ratings, reviews, and availability. Rich Pins contain more of the same and there are six types from which to choose when building your Pinterest marketing strategy.
Product Pins
From clothing and makeup to office supplies and furniture, product pins include information about where to buy the product, what the product costs, and the availability of that product in your area. Plus, if a user pins one of these pins, Pinterest will let them know if and when the price drops. Bargain hunters love this and can relate that kind of service right back to your brand.
App Pins
An App Pin often includes an “Install” button, which allows pinners to download the app without going to another page. You may also see a “Visit” button directing you to the App Store to install. At the moment, App Pins are only compatible with iOS apps, but it wouldn’t surprise me if this changed soon.
Article Pins
Instead of finding stories that matter to you and saving them in your “Favorites,” cluttering your browser, Article Pins allow for news stories and blogs to be saved in a Pinterest board. These Article Pins include details like headline, story description, and author name. Whether your business has a killer blog or you’re looking into ways to get more eyes on your page, this is absolutely something you should be taking into account in your content strategy.
Recipe Pins
Fans of Pinterest already know and love Recipe Pins, whether they’re aware of it or not. Personally, if I find a recipe on Pinterest that doesn’t have the details on the pin itself, the likelihood of me clicking through to the website to find out more decreases dramatically. Recipe Pins include information about cook time, serving sizes, and the actual ingredients.
Setting Up Rich Pins on Pinterest
Adding metadata to the content on your website is relatively easy and Pinterest includes this information in their Set Up page. Each Rich Pin has a different priority, so it’s important to understand that aspect before getting started. Once it’s set up on your site, you just need to apply for Rich Pins in Pinterest’s validator. Seriously, a two-step process? It almost couldn’t get any easier.
Measuring Success the Success of Pins
Pinterest Analytics is an easy-to-use tool, imperative to your social media marketing campaign because it allows you to learn things about your audience, like what they find pinnable and how that can translate into a conversion or visit for your business. For example, if you’re a business that sells craft supplies and a large segment of your audience has been pinning origami-related material, you might think about writing a blog about the art of origami, then add that blog as a Rich Pin.
Pinterest is quickly becoming a tool I urge my clients to use based on the fact that it’s one of the top traffic drivers to a website. With over 150 million users and user specific content, Pinterest has the potential for massive reach. On top of that, 35% of those users have a household income $100,000 and above. Rich Pins turn regular Pins into actionable Pins. Active Pinners on average have an income that’s 9% higher than non-Pinners. Lastly, approximately 5% of referral traffic to websites is from Pinterest;that makes Pinterest conversions second only to Facebook. When you’re thinking of how to rule social media, don’t neglect Pinterest.
Marketing on Pinterest can be a give and take. Just like any social media platform, it’s always a good idea to provide consistent, relevant, fresh content on Pinterest to keep your users interested and engaged. It’s also important to keep in mind all of the ways your business can use the content from other users to create opportunities for yourself. Keep an eye on your followers’ boards. What they’re pinning could be of use, informationally, to you. Don’t forget your competitors, either. What they’re pinning, who they’re following, and who’s following them can be of value to your Pinterest marketing plan as well.
Are you using Pinterest in your business’s social media marketing strategy? Share your success in the comments.
