If you have a creative business (or ANY business really!) and you’re not using Pinterest – you’re leaving a lot of traffic (and money) on the table.
Pinterest is unique in that it is a visual search engine almost entirely built up of pins that link OFF the platform. Whereas Facebook acts like a jealous boyfriend when you add links to your posts and will reduce your post’s reach, external links are literally the way that Pinterest was designed to work. What is also nice about Pinterest is that your pins are basically “evergreen” – meaning they can be found for years to come. On Facebook, posts get pushed down within days, even hours.
I started pinning listings from my Etsy shop several years ago and I still see my old pins surfacing every now and again. I promise it’s not too late for you to jump in if you haven’t already! Just think where you could be a year from now if you really work your Pinterest account now?!
Outside of Etsy itself, Pinterest is the top driver of traffic to my Etsy shop. And if you’re worried that you don’t have enough followers on Pinterest read this:
I have about 5,600 followers on Pinterest and about 83,000 on Facebook.
And still Pinterest sends TWICE the amount of traffic that Facebook does. Because it’s not about followers on Pinterest – it’s about the content you upload and the keywords that you use in your pins and boards.
Here’s my Etsy stats from 2019:
And here are the Etsy stats from 2020:
If you want to learn more about how to use Pinterest to drive traffic to your Etsy shop I have an entire course just for creatives like you. You can find more info on that HERE.
Now that I’ve hopefully convinced you that Pinterest is where it’s at when it comes to marketing for your creative business, there’s one more piece that will help you achieve this goal.
And that is Tailwind.
People ask me ALL the time – how do you do it all (with also working a full-time job, having a family, etc)? And the truth is I don’t. I have help – whether it’s from people or from programs and applications. My secret is that I know how to use my time wisely. And one trick I use is to batch my content. That means instead of logging in to Pinterest every day, multiple times a day, and pinning relevant content (and then likely going down a rabbit hole of pretty fall decor ideas for my home lol) – I use Tailwind to schedule out my pins. I can open Tailwind and schedule out weeks of content at a time. And the best part? Tailwind has analyzed my account and knows when the best times are for me to pin to my account for maximum reach. No more spending an hour a day on Pinterest, no more guessing WHEN to pin, no more trying to plan out which pins to pin to which boards – Tailwind literally does all that for me through their scheduler. All I have to do is tell it which pins to use and where I want them and they take it from there.
Tailwind will also schedule your Instagram content as well! I just haven’t dived into that part as much yet.
If you want to check out Tailwind for yourself they do have a FREE trial available HERE. You can use it to schedule your first 100 pins or 30 Instagram posts. It’s worth getting in there and seeing what all the buzz is all about. All the successful entrepreneurs in my niche use it for their business as well. Tailwind is an official Instagram and Pinterest partner so no worries about the security of your account.
My Handmade Sellers University students know that at the bare minimum I advise to pin straight from your Etsy shop. It’s easy, it just takes a few clicks, and you’re done. If that’s all the bandwidth you have then at least start there. However, when you have a little more time you’re going to want to create a few of your own pins from scratch. Here’s why:
- When you pin straight from Etsy and down the road your listing sells then customers will see “sold out” when they click that pin. They may or may not click over to see what else you have available. When you create your own pins you can link them to your shop as a whole or even just a certain section, rather than individual listings.
- In 2020 the Pinterest algorithm changed and now favors new/fresh pins more than ever. Users were tired of seeing the same images over and over. Pinterest will now actually reduce your reach if you use too many of the same pin image. And when you pin straight from Etsy it’s always going to look the same. The only way to make your pins look different in the feed is to create your own.
But creating new pins all the time can feel daunting. I get it. I am NOT a graphic designer, I’m an accountant by trade. It used to take me hours to create a couple new pins for my account.
But I have found the solution! Tailwind has now come out with Tailwind Create.
With Tailwind Create you can create multiple, high-quality pins, at the same time, from within your Tailwind account – making your creation and scheduling process quicker and easier. After all, your goal should be to work smarter not harder.
Whether you have the paid version OR even the free trial version of Tailwind already, you can go to https://www.tailwindapp.com/create/pinterest-templates to request early access to Tailwind Create. If you use the code CREATEPARTNER2020 on your request form you’ll even move UP the waitlist (as a Tailwind affiliate they gave me the super secret code to give to you!). Yes please! Remember, if you don’t have Tailwind yet make sure to signup for it HERE first before you can get access to Tailwind Create.
When you get into Tailwind and open Tailwind Create it will ask you for the pin’s destination link, a pin title, and a few images (stock photos or your own photos). Simple click “Create Images” when you’re done and watch the magic happen! You’ll get a new page of hundreds of new pin ideas. Upload your branding colors, fonts, and logos for even more personalization.
When I first tried Tailwind Create I figured they’d give me 5-10 images to choose from. Oh no. There are TONS. Like hundreds. And you can edit any of the templates they provide. It’s a great starting point. I don’t know about you, but this was huge for me. I used to stare at a blank screen and wonder “what the heck do I design for this pin?!” It was serious analysis paralysis friends. But now I can load up Tailwind Create and let it do it’s magic for me and then make simple tweaks from there if need be. What used to take hours, now takes minutes. It’s THAT good. Listen, just try it out and see for yourself. I really think you’ll be hooked like I am.
P.S. If you want to see a little preview of Tailwind Create you can watch a screen share video I made HERE
**This post contains affiliate links, meaning that if you choose to click through and purchase Tailwind, I will receive a small commission at no cost to you. But rest assured I would never recommend a product or service unless I have personally used it myself. In this case I use both Tailwind and Tailwind Create in my business.
