The Benefits of Using Pinterest for Advertising

If your brand values advertising that is highly visual, Pinterest advertising could be a paid media channel worth exploring. With plenty of ways to customize the advertising goals and a robust analytics component, Pinterest offers an advertising experience unmatched by other social media platforms.

In fact, Pinterest promises ads with a 2.3x more efficient cost per conversion AND a 2x higher return on ad spend (ROAS) for retail brands compared to social media.

What sets Pinterest apart from other social media marketing channels in terms of advertising opportunities? The Pinterest Ads experience, the audience, and the platform – let’s jump in. 

The Uniqueness of the Pinterest Audience

According to Pinterest, 433 million people use the platform every month to find ideas and inspire their next purchase.  Though the size of the Pinterest audience isn’t nearly as large as that of Facebook or Instagram, the basic purpose of the platform sets it up to draw more leads than other social media networks.

Pinterest users are unique in that product discovery is at the heart of their use of the platform. The discovery of products, projects, and brands is what draws Pinterest users to fill boards, and brands have the unique opportunity to fit seamlessly into those boards. This user experience actually makes it seem more like a search engine than a social media platform. 

 

Here’s a breakdown of Pinterest’s current user demographics:

• Women make up over 60% of the global audience, and 80% of female users are moms
• Millennial users (born between 1981 and 1996) have increased by 35% year-over-year
• 45% of people in the US with a household income over $100,000 use Pinterest
• 50% are SMB (small to medium-sized business) owners

What’s the best part for brands considering advertising on Pinterest? This audience comes to the platform ready to buy. In one survey, it was found that 85% of users go to Pinterest when they are ready to start a new project, and 80% of users have discovered a new brand or product on Pinterest. Further, Pinners are twice as likely to say they can find a brand they trust on Pinterest vs. people on other social media platforms.

 

Why Using Pinterest for Advertising Works So Well

The key to advertising on Pinterest is its seamless integration with organic content. Ads can be formatted in a variety of ways, all showcasing strong visuals.

Types of Pinterest ad formats

Standard. Images are presented in a vertical or square format.

 

Video. Videos are presented in a vertical or square format.

 

Carousel. This format allows users to swipe through multiple images in a single ad.

 

Shopping. Pins formatted as products make it clear that a purchase is possible from the ad content.

 

Collections. This format allows products to be displayed with both lifestyle imagery and video.

 

Idea. This format looks more like that of Instagram Stories and allows users to tap through multimedia in a way that lends itself to storytelling.

 

Authenticity is at the heart of social media marketing success, but Pinterest ads allow some wiggle room to break that expectation. Advertisements can benefit Pinterest users during the project ideation phase as much as an organic content piece which is why they are welcomed more than on other platforms.

 

 

A Powerful Advertising Tool: Pinterest Ads Manager

For digital marketers who are used to managing campaigns on Google Ads and Facebook Ads Manager, Pinterest Ads Manager should feel familiar. Pinterest Ads Manager is a one-stop shop for the creation, management, and analytics reporting of Pinterest campaigns. Also, it allows for the creation of individual ads, ad groups, and campaigns within a Pinterest Business account. Further, each campaign objective has a specific use case, and performs differently, so it’s important to understand this and factor it into your Pinterest strategy. 

Pinterest Advertising Goals

• Build awareness. Expand reach and get more eyes on your brand.

• Drive consideration. Get more traffic on Pinterest or to your brand’s website.

• Get conversions. Conversions could include online sales, email signups, or on-Pinterest leads.

Your choice of advertising goals determines some of the smart presets Pinterest advertising promises–things like automated audience targeting, hyper-specific demographic targeting, interest-based search results, keyword targeting, and lookalike audience targeting.

Understanding Pinterest Advertising Analytics

Tracking campaign performance is a key aspect of campaign optimization, and fortunately for Pinterest advertising, the built-in Pinterest analytics options are robust. With sections for audience insights, conversion insights, and trends, pulling the metrics that matter most for your brand is made simple.

All the usual campaign metrics are reported within Pinterest Analytics, along with creative-specific insights. Collecting campaign data and tracking trends with the attractive graphs built-in to the analytics platform makes performance easy to understand. We’ve worked with many campaign management platforms and have to say that Pinterest’s analytics UI is one of the easiest to navigate.

 

Getting Started With Pinterest Advertising

Pinterest advertising can be an effective way to drive traffic to your website and increase conversions. This is especially true for brands that have a strong visual component to their marketing, such as retailers or other product-focused businesses. For a customized overview of how Pinterest Advertising could benefit your brand, request a consultation today!

Frequently Asked Questions

How many types of ads are there on Pinterest?

Pinterest permits ads to be posted in six different formats, but all must include only a 500 character description. Standard Pins, Video Pin Ads, Shopping Pins, App Install Pins, and Carousel Ads are the primary ad types on Pinterest.

Are Pinterest ads cheaper than Facebook?

Pinterest Ads are usually a little cheaper than Facebook Ads. The average Pinterest Ad range is 10 cents to $1.50 per engagement while the average Facebook cost per click is 50 cents to $2.00. There are many factors that go into ad costs, but the amount of competition on each platform has an impact.

Are Pinterest ads worth it?

Depending on the business type, Pinterest Ads are definitely worthwhile. They've been noted to have an ROI more than twice the amount of other social media channels.