Want to Get More Pinterest Followers? Here’s how…
Table of Contents
If you own a website or blog you most likely already know how important it is to have a solid Pinterest marketing strategy to grow your traffic and business.
Part of that strategy is growing your Pinterest followers.
Before we get into the 10 steps to help you achieve this, let me reiterate just how important it is to use Pinterest as one of your key traffic driving strategies…
The Value of Pinterest: Stats
- 300 Million people use Pinterest every single month
- 50%+ of Pinterest’s traffic comes from outside the US, so the value of Pinterest is truly global
- 80% of Pinterest users are accessing via their mobile device
- Pinterest is responsible for driving 73% of this website’s traffic and 77% of my lifestyle blog’s traffic
- I currently gain approximately 250 to 350 Pinterest followers per month for my marketing services website (this site!) – follow me here
- I also average 800 to 1200 Pinterest followers per month on my other Pinterest account
In addition to the metrics above, what makes Pinterest stand apart from any other social media network is the lifespan of its content.
The average lifespan of a pin is 3 months, although can be well over 1 year+ for extremely high performing pins. Compare this to Facebook at 5 or 6 hours, Twiter at 18 minutes and Instagram 48 hours, you can see why Pinterest can make such a massive impact to your website traffic and business.
Now that we understand the value of Pinterest, let’s talk about how to grow your followers.
Related: 2020 Pinterest Planner & Strategy Guide
How Do People Get So Many Followers on Pinterest?
Simply put…
They create and share excellent solution-based content and understand how to use Pinterest.
How to Get More Pinterest Followers in 10 Steps
This post contains affiliate links. Disclosure here. This means I may receive a small commission at no extra cost to you.
Want more Pinterest followers? Follow my 10 simple steps to dramatically increase your following. #pinterestmarketing #pinteresttips Click To Tweet
#1. Create High-Quality Content
People go to Pinterest to seek inspiration, to find an answer or to solve a problem. Therefore you must ensure that your content and specifically your pins cater to this.
Providing solution-based, problem-solving content also means that you know what people are looking for before you write an article.
How do you know what content Pinterest users want?! Because you do keyword research. See screenshots in Step #3.
- Use Pinterest’s search bar to get see the actual words people are using to search – see the auto results suggestions
- Look at the recommended colored boxes at the top of your search results page. These keywords are what people are using to find content.
- Also, use SEO tools like Ubersuggest to understand what people are searching for. This is meant for search engines like Google, however using this tool can also help you confirm that the content you are writing is indeed being sought out in search engines and on Pinterest.
Doing a little prework before you write a blog post will help you out in the long run.
#2. Design Great Looking, Helpful Pins
Pinterest is a visual platform and people want to look at nice images! That is the truth.
By designing pins that look great and are helpful will get you one step closer to gaining more Pinterest followers.
In order to make sure your pins are helpful remember that you are talking to people. These individuals are looking for an answer, so make sure your communications are about them – not you!
Get tips on how to design high performing Pinterest pins and put these best practices into action now.
Want some help with your Pinterest designs? Sign up for my free Pinterest templates here.
#3. Get Smart with Pinterest Keywords
Pinterest is different from other social networks as it has cutting edge search technology to help people find what they are looking for.
You, therefore, want to optimize your Pinterest account for search. You can do this by including relevant keywords throughout your account in places such as your:
- Profile
- Board names
- Board descriptions
- Pin descriptions
We know that using the right keywords in your pin description can get your pins seen more on Pinterest and this is the same with your Pinterest boards and Pinterest profile.
By using keywords in the board name and board descriptions more people will find your boards when searching.
This means there is a much higher chance of them following specific boards too.
Here are a few ways to find the right keywords.
Use the Pinterest search bar and see the autofill suggestions.
Review the search keyword results at the top of the results page. Click on different keyword suggestions to get more detailed search queries.
#4. Create Niche Boards
The more niche specific your boards are the more chances you have of increasing your Pinterest followers.
For example: If you have a board called “Goals”, think about how you can be even more specific with this content.
This works especially well if you write a lot of content about goals.
You could, therefore, go even more specific and name it “Life Goals”, “Personal Goals” or “Relationship Goals”.
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People have the choice to follow your profile (all boards) or specific boards.
If you have descriptive keywords in your board descriptions this will be found for those looking for specific content. You will, therefore, grow followers one great niche board at a time.
#5. Create Your Own Group Boards
Open a few of your Pinterest boards to contributors. In order for people to contribute to your group board they must follow you. This is a Pinterest requirement.
This can be a great way to increase your followers when you are starting out, however, keep in mind that you don’t want to add too many people to your group boards so you can control the quality of the pins being submitted.
Here is an example of one of my group boards.
#6. Ask for Followers!
This is an easy one. You want Pinterest followers? Just ask!
I like to add a section at the bottom of every blog post that mentions to follow me…
Sometimes you just need to tell people what you want! It is really that simple.
#7. Promote Your Pinterest Account
There are a few ways you can promote your Pinterest account. Here’s what I recommend:
Use MiloTree to Get More Followers on Pinterest.
Try their 30-day free trial and see how it works for you.
What I like about MiloTree is you control where it lives on your website. I recommend the bottom right corner so it’s not intrusive.
You can also use it for other purposes, such as Facebook followers or to grow your email list.
Promote Your Pinterest Account on Other Social Platforms
‘Hey! Wanna pin together? Let’s connect on Pinterest’.
Don’t be shy. Ask your Facebook or Twitter followers to give you a follow on Pinterest.
#8. Use Tailwind
Automating your content keeps you active on Pinterest. Being active means more people will interact with your pins and follow you.
My Top 3 Tailwind Automation Tips:
- Set up detailed board lists adding your personal and group boards. Make sure to keep them updated.
- Use Tailwind Tribes. Find Tribes that are relevant to your niche and add all new pins to your Tribes. Make sure to reciprocate pins related to your content.
- Keep an eye on your Tailwind insights and specifically board insights. Look at the Virality score and anything under a score of 1 keep an eye on. You want to contribute to boards that have the best performance possible.
Not on Tailwind yet? CLICK HERE to get 30 days free plus $15 off when you sign up for a Plus account.
#9. Facebook Groups
Some Facebook groups have Pinterest Follow threads. This can be a great way to get your followers up when you are starting out.
If you are part of a reciprocation Pinterest thread, just make sure to follow accounts that relate to your content. This will make it easier to repin related content to your Pinterest account.
Related: Best Facebook Groups for Bloggers
#10. Follow Those in Your Niche
Follow and pin from accounts with similar content to yours or content you feel your target audience is interested in.
Follower tip: Follow Pinterest accounts with a smaller following and interact (comment on pins and repin). People with smaller accounts will notice your interactions and will many times follow back.
There you have it. 10 steps to get more Pinterest followers.
Have you been focused on getting more Pinterest followers?
Share your experience or ask questions in the comments below.
Related Pinterest Articles:
- Before Designing New Pin Images Do These 3 Things
- Best Pinterest Group Boards to Join, By Niche
- How to Get Accepted to Pinterest Group Boards – 5 Tips
- Pinterest Account Audit – Custom Analysis
Let’s connect on social media!
Pinterest | Twitter | Facebook
-PIN ME-
Thanks! I appreciate every single share 🙂
Deborah Kos says
I was not aware of MiloTree. I am going to have to long into this. I also to try using long-tail keywords. Thanks for the great Pinterest tips.
yolanda says
Hi Deborah! MiloTree is a great little tool that reminds people to follow you when they’re on your site. Definitely worth a try 🙂 Long tail keywords are SO important as well so glad to hear you’ll be implementing this.
Lucie says
Such a thorough post, thank you!! I will definitely consider creating my own group boards. I always thought no one would want to join but I guess if I invite people to boards which are already a bit filled up it could work!
yolanda says
Hi Lucie – thanks – glad to hear it’s helpful 🙂 Yes, you can definitely create some group boards! My only advice is to make them niche and make sure contributors have great content for that specific niche.
Patricia @ Grab a Plate says
Great tips! I do some of this, but there are still many that I need to implement! Thanks for the help!
yolanda says
Thanks Patricia! I hope they are helpful to you.
Jen says
Great idea to create niche boards!
yolanda says
Yes! It’s something that seems to be really working these days on Pinterest.
Julie says
Great tips. I do most of these things, but I could work on number 10. I need to comment on some pins!
yolanda says
Thanks Julie 🙂
Karen says
I just heard about MiloTree a couple of weeks ago. These are all good tips. I really need to work on my Pinterest plan! Thanks for the great info.
yolanda says
Hi Karen, I hope they are helpful for you 🙂
Kelly Bolen says
I love Tailwind and have pinned this! Absolutely great advice!!!
yolanda says
Hey Kelly! Thanks so much 🙂
Jennifer Morrison says
Thanks for these great reminders. I had been receiving a few hundred new followers a month on Pinterest, and then a few months ago it just completely stopped. I need to try a few of these tactics to get moving again.
yolanda says
Hey Jennifer! I’d love to know if these tips help you grow, so report back when you have a moment (after you implement all the steps). Thanks!
JOHN MULINDI says
This is a good guide especially for Pinterest Beginners, your post shares good details on how to grow your Pinterest account.
yolanda says
Hi John, Thanks very much!
Whackitnat says
Great post, easy to follow, I’m off to implement each stage now! X
yolanda says
Excellent! Best of luck.
Kyra says
Great blog post. I found the tips you gave we’re really useful.👍
yolanda says
Hi Kyra! Thanks so much. I’m glad it was helpful 🙂
susie liberatore says
Content and graphics are critical, I know that first hand. I couldn’t agree more.
yolanda says
Hi Susie – oh yes! More important than people realize, especially with Pinterest as people are there for visual inspiration 🙂
Anne-onedeterminedlife says
I already do all of these and I find that it does work. I am not getting a hoard of followers, but about 10 per week. Over time, that adds up.
yolanda says
That’s great to hear! As your followers grow and you release even more content you’ll find the 10 per week will grow!
yolanda says
Hi Anne! That 10 a week turns into 20 and then 50 and so on! So keep it up! As your followers grow it will continue even more steadily.
Dawn says
Great tips! Thanks
Corinne says
These are all great tips to be successful on Pinterest. I have Tailwind but I need to pay more attention to the analytics. Thanks so much for this post 🙂
yolanda says
Hey Corinne! Pinterest Analytics are a gold mine for fantastic information! That and tailwind shares some good data too 🙂 Take care! Y