How to get more followers on Pinterest
Pinterest is a platform that revolves around inspiration and discovery and can be a great place to build a social media presence due to its growing user base and popularity amongst a variety of demographics. If you’re a business, and especially if you’re a small business specializing in handmade items, you’ll want to immediately get started on Pinterest as a means to sell your products and reach new audiences.
As for growing your following, the methods you use for growth on other social media channels may not work the same in the Pinterest-sphere. Check out our 20 foolproof tips for expanding your reach, increasing your chances of engagement, and ultimately growing your Pinterest account.
20 ways to get more followers on Pinterest
1. Focus on a specific audience and niche
By sticking to creating content around a particular topic, and by seeking out a particular audience, you are giving your Pinterest account a clear direction in which to grow. Those who try to tackle too much and lack consistency in their content will ooze with uncertainty and find growth to be slow.
2. Use eye-catching and original imagery
Pinterest is a very visual space, so it’s important to keep your media high in quality and appealing to the eye. Using original imagery will also go a long way to helping you stand out from the crowd and gain more followers as a result.
The best Pinterest posts:
- Use high-resolution/high-quality images
- Use lifestyle images as opposed to product shots
- Aren’t too busy or crowded
- Are vertically oriented
- Have an aspect ratio near to 2:3 (600px wide x 900px high)
Create fun and aesthetically pleasing Pinterest content right away with thousands of templates available on Adobe Express:
Further reading: Guide to types of Pinterest aesthetics
3. Convert to a business account
Converting your Pinterest account into a business account can give you access to additional features that will help your channel grow, such as advanced analytics, more content formats, shopping features, and the ability to create an ad account.
4. Be active and engaged
While the content you are posting is an important part of building your presence on Pinterest, it’s also important to be a participating member of the platform. Engage with the content of others and follow other accounts. This will help you to get noticed and build connections with other Pinterest users.
5. Add the “Save” button to your website
Adding the Save button to your website allows your visitors to share any image from your website on Pinterest, which automatically increases the reach of your content and spreads brand awareness via Pins from your website visitors.
6. Claim your website
If you’re a business, it’s important to claim your website. Once claimed, whenever a Pin is saved from your website, your profile picture will appear alongside it, the Pin will link to your Pinterest profile, and people will see the option to follow you on Pinterest. This action will also give you access to website analytics so you can understand what is being pinned from your site. Claiming your website also makes it easier for others to find your website for more information.
7. Use keywords
Using keywords in your board names, Pin descriptions, and even in your Pinterest username can help you to reach your intended audience and make it clear what your content is about from the offset. Keywords will help you show up in search results and bring more eyes to your Pins and account.
8. Post consistently and at the right times
According to research, the best times to post on Pinterest are between the hours of 2pm-4pm and 8pm-9pm, while the optimum posting frequency is between 4-10 times per day Following this guidance will help your content reach as many people as possible in order to grow your following. As with any social media channel, publishing content consistently is important if you’re trying to grow. It’s crucial to maintain a steady stream of consistent content to continue to attract new users while maintaining the interest of the following you currently have.
Further reading: Why small businesses need to post on social media at least once a week
9. Schedule your Pins
Scheduling your Pins in advance using a tool such as Content Scheduler in Adobe Express can make it significantly easier to plan your content in advance, as well as staying consistent with your content publishing. All you need to do is connect your Pinterest account to Content Scheduler, create your Pin, and then set your content to automatically publish at your chosen time and date.
10. Install the follow button
To get more Pinterest followers, add a “Follow” button to your website, newsletter, email signature, or anywhere else that might attract attention. Check out these installation instructions to get started. Alternatively, you can easily link to your Pinterest profile instead and include this link in your bios on other social media platforms.
11. Use topic tags
Topic tags can be used in a similar way to how one might use hashtags on other social media platforms. With Idea Pins and Video Pins, you can use topic tags to tag your content to help your Pin reach the people who will be most interested in your content.
12. Gather intel from “Pinterest Trends”
Those with a Pinterest business account will automatically have access to “Pinterest Trends,” which is Pinterest’s keyword research tool. Pinterest Trends allows you to see which keywords and topics are trending on the platform currently, which is incredibly useful for finding out what content your audience is searching for. Pinterest also does a yearly report to predict key trends for the year known as Pinterest Predicts.
13. Use Pinterest sections to organize boards
Pinterest sections allow you to categorize your boards under headings, making it significantly easier for users to browse your content and find out their common searches. This, in turn, could mean an increase in engagement and followers.
14. Add text overlays to Idea Pins
Including text on an Idea Pin can help your audience to immediately understand what your Pin is about in a single glance. As a bonus, any text on an Idea Pin is searchable on Pinterest so be sure to use keywords to help your Pin find its mark.
15. Use Pincodes
Pincodes are similar to QR codes but are exclusive to Pinterest and can be scanned using Pinterest Lens. Pincodes can lead users to your profile or to one of your boards. These can be useful for adding to items such as business cards, brochures, print ads, or packaging.
16. Promote your Pins
If you’re interested in expanding the reach of a particular Pin, you can easily put some money behind it to boost its presence on the platform. This can help with broadening your horizons and reaching new users.
Further reading: How to make money on Pinterest
17. Set up Rich Pins
While free to use, Rich Pins do require a little bit of setup as you’ll need to add meta tags to your website and submit an application to Pinterest. However, once approved you’ll be able to create Product Pins, Recipe Pins, and Article Pins that will automatically update according to the information on your website. If you’re a business and want to add product listings to Pinterest, setting up Rich Pins is a must.
18. Don't take Pin descriptions for granted
Although Pinterest is a primarily visual platform, adding a description that is interesting, valuable, informative, or thought-provoking will only increase the likelihood of your Pin receiving engagement and your account gaining new followers.
Further reading: 10 Pinterest ideas for posts
19. Join relevant group boards
Group boards are Pinterest boards to which multiple users can contribute. Search for the top Pinterest group boards using keywords that are relevant to you and ask to join. Not only does contributing to a group board help you get more exposure, but it will also help you form supportive connections with other contributors.
20. Remember what’s important
No doubt about it, Pinterest can be a powerful platform on which to build a following, especially if you’re a small business owner. Nonetheless, it’s important to remember what’s really important: creating high-quality content that is a positive reflection of you or your brand. Rest assured that when you put effort and care into your content, engagement and followers will surely come to you.