How to Use Pinterest Like a Pro: A Guide to Pinterest for Designers

Do you want to promote your design business, grow your audience, and build a strong brand online? Thanks to social media, we have endless possibilities to create, share, and grow. From Facebook and Twitter to Instagram and TikTok, social media platforms provide designers with a ton of tools for content creation, scheduling analysis, and community building. 

Pinterest is one of the most popular and effective channels for promoting yourself as a designer due to its design-focused, visually aesthetic nature. Plus, according to a Hootsuite analysis, Pinterest now has over 445 million monthly active users – that’s a lot of potential clients!

So how can you leverage Pinterest to promote your brand or business to its full potential? Read on for our top strategies for how designers can use Pinterest like a pro. 

​​Pinterest is a highly visual virtual pinboard site that lets you “pin” or collect images in one place. You can create boards to help you categorize Pins you love and keep your ideas organized and easy to find. Most of these images – or pins – link back to the original post so you can easily access them later. With billions of Pins on Pinterest, users can easily find ideas to spark inspiration.

Pinterest is an excellent platform for gaining exposure for your business and driving traffic to your website. With so many active users with an eye for design, you can reach new potential clients increase brand awareness, and build buzz around your business. 

You can also run targeted ads to promote your most effective Pins – for businesses, advertising on Pinterest costs around $2 to $5 per thousand impressions, on average.

Lastly, Pinterest provides analytics reports allowing you to track metrics such as impressions, pin clicks, conversion insights, etc. This data lets you determine what works and shift your Pinterest strategy accordingly. 

Ready to dive in? Here’s how to get started as a designer on Pinterest. 

The first step for using Pinterest as a designer is to create a business profile. Or, if you already have a personal account, you can turn it into a business account in a few simple steps. 

If you’re new to the platform, here are some basic terms to remember: 

An essential element to remember is your Following, which you can use to connect with other designers on Pinterest and build a follower base for your design business. You can manage your content through your business profile, from creating a new board to checking comments. 

One common challenge of using Pinterest as a designer is knowing how to reach your business goals. Here are some tips for setting your business profile up for success. 

Now that we’ve covered the “why” of using Pinterest for your design business, it’s time to get into the “how.” If you’re keen to learn how to Pinterest like a pro, here are five ways Pinterest can boost your design business.

As with any social media channel, Pinterest needs its digital marketing strategy to foster and support business growth. Start by defining your objectives, whether increasing brand visibility or attracting potential clients. Make these goals as detailed as possible, and use them to guide your content, audience, and all other aspects of your business. 

Secondly, learn about your target audience as much as possible. Use different channels (social media, email, surveys) to engage with your community. Learning about their interests and needs will give you the insights to create more personalized content and attract a wider audience. 

Speaking of content, this is the final – and perhaps, most crucial – part of your Pinterest marketing strategy. As a designer, creating eye-catching and captivating content on Pinterest is essential to attract attention and engage your audience.

Here are some tips for creating a great Pinterest content plan: 

Next, it’s time to promote your Pinterest profile to showcase your creativity and attract potential clients. It’s important to note that Pins usually have a three-month lifespan – so it’s essential to make the most of your content by promoting it as much as possible. 

As with all social media platforms, hashtags are the key to making your content discoverable. You can use them in your Pin descriptions so that your post will appear in search results. 

Here we have an example of using hashtags strategically: 

Paid ads are another cost-effective way to strategically target the right audience for your business. Additionally, implementing influencer marketing can help you collaborate with other creators to reach relevant audiences and drive traffic to your Pinterest profile.

It can also help to research the best times to post on Pinterest to give your posts the best chance of success. 

Lastly, actively engage with your community. Follow other designers, reply to comments, create boards of other user’s content, and connect with your audience on other platforms. Maintaining good communication will make it much easier to grow a following. 

To maximize your impact on Pinterest, carefully plan your boards and try different Pin formats. You can strategically organize your boards to benefit your Pinterest business profile. 

First, focus on your niche. If you design websites, this is what most of your boards should be about. Or, if you’re an interior designer, you can create multiple boards on home decor, Scandinavian design, etc. 

The next thing is focusing on content. Find the perfect intersection between what your audience wants and what you love creating, and strategically curate boards that reflect this on your profile. 

Don’t forget to play around with different Pin formats, such as videos, story pins, carousels, etc., which will help you provide more storytelling and engagement. 

Pinterest is a visual search engine, so optimizing your pins for SEO is crucial. 

Conduct keyword research to identify popular search terms related to your design niche. Incorporate these keywords naturally into your Pin descriptions, and add targeted keywords into your board titles and descriptions to further improve visibility in search results.

Besides the Pins you share, you should also optimize your Pinterest business profile. Add key terms in your bio, feature a detailed biography, and use CTAs to prompt users to get in touch or access your website.

Also, don’t forget to incorporate video! Videos are highly engaging, easier to digest, and will help to draw more attention to your designs on Pinterest. You could post clips of your creative process, how you bring your designs to life, or even tips and hacks for other designers. 

Undoubtedly, Pinterest can be a super helpful visual platform for designers. It can assist you in gathering inspiration and researching ideas, promoting your design brand, and expanding your overall digital marketing strategy. Good luck!

While you’re here, check out our top Social Media Trends and Graphic Design Trends for the year! Or, head to Envato Elements to browse our massive selection of graphics templates.

Header image created using Everyday Pinterest Templates by Sko4.