The Pinner’s Mindset is all about the AUDIENCE on Pinterest

Think about how you feel when you’re scrolling through Pinterest. Are you looking for inspiration? A solution? A plan of action? A next step? Or maybe you are about to do something big – get married, have a baby or make the financial and life leap into becoming a homeowner. The Pinterest audience is a very special one that marketers tend to not take time to get to know and adapt their strategy for – which is leaving money on the table. In this blog post, I am going to teach you how to unlock the power of your Pinterest audience with a few powerful insights and mindset shifts.

What is your Pinterest audience doing?

I am going to share something incredibly powerful about your ideal customer or audience on Pinterest – they aren’t any different than you. They are using Pinterest to do the same things you are doing, albeit they are less aware of the potential marketing strategy behind all that inspiration. When users open up the Pinterest app, Pinners are in the discovery mindset, which is incredibly powerful! Why? Because, unlike when you’re scrolling through Facebook or Instagram, and you’re completely closed off to someone’s ad that pops up, this discovery mindset means that you’re incredibly receptive to the information that’s put in front of you. In fact, 78% of those using Pinterest as a typical user report that they find brand content useful (including Pinterest ads!).

You came to Pinterest to find a solution to a problem that you’re having, which means your mind is open to options, seeing what’s out there and surveying the possibilities. You’re not just mindlessly scrolling through content and when presented with a solution that has nothing to do with your scroll (we tend to describe this as a disruptive social media experience). Is there anything more jarring then watching your friends Instagram Stories about their kids when a video car ad pops up between friends? Typically, users on the Pinterest and are acting with intention. The Pinterest audience spends time looking through solutions in search of the one that jumps out the most – they assess relevancy (does it answer their question) and visually (does the picture represent their worldview or want to be worldview? Therefore, when it comes to the content (or Pins) that’s presented in the Pinterest feed, it’s a level playing field for content creators and businesses/brands.

This is one of the reasons why Pinterest is such a powerful platform when it comes to your marketing as a small business owner. When Pinterest is used correctly, best practices for Pinterest marketing are followed and you focus your energy on creating content that is helpful and valuable to your audience, it is bond to be a hit on Pinterest.

Pinterest marketing is ideal for small business owners

Gone are the days where you needed to increase your bid amount for advertising in order to get in front of more people. You know what I’m talking about! In order to compete with bigger companies for ad space, you need to increase your ad spend. Pinterest isn’t like that. It genuinely offers equal opportunities for everyone to be discovered by their target audience.

As long as your Pins are optimized for search, Pinterest will give you the screen time. By optimizing your Pins you are helping Pinterest to categorize your account so it can identify the relevant topics for users that are actually searching for the content. If you aren’t sure how to create optimized Pins, head to this blog post to learn everything you need to know. Pinterest WANTS to put your content in front of its users, but it has to know what kind of content you have. That comes with optimizing your pins WITH your audience in mind. 

This marketing platform wants it’s audience to leave the app

Unlike other platforms, Pinterest doesn’t necessarily want its audience to be on the platform 24/7. It wants to put the right kind of content in front of them so they can find the solution to their problem and go live their lives. This is why every Pin you create for your content or website has the capability of having a link directly connected to it. We aren’t just creating content to engage it’s users in the platform, Pins are intended to be a visual means of attracting them OUT of the platform.

As business owners, this is what we want too. We don’t want to be constantly scrolling without finding our solution. That’s why the Pinner’s Mindset is all about the audience! When we think about our audience and we focus on solving pain points, our content will be seen by more people. This is why I teach the importance of understanding the Pinner’s Mindset – so that you can shift your own understanding of how they are different and how these differences are a marketing superpower.

If you are reading this and nodding your head, you are going to want to make sure you get on my email list! I share powerful insights into Pinterest on a weekly basis.

Your Pinterest audience wants to be inspired, they want to aspire, plan, and take action. Pinterest knows that our audiences are going to find the solution and leave the platform to start implementing that solution. Take that trip, get the nursery decorated, look up puppy training or plan out cute outfits for spring. Pinterest does it’s absolute best to scan your content (sophisticated image detection in fact) and put it in front of relevant people FAST! That way they can grab what they need and leave having been connected with content that is recent and relevant.

Focus on what your Pinterest audience wants

As a business owner using Pinterest marketing to grow your audience, ask yourself the following questions:

• What does my audience want?
• What is my audience doing and how can I help them?

I’m sure you’ve heard this before, but that’s because it’s as true today as it was yesterday. Your content should always be working to solve a pain point your audience is having or to provide them with information that will make their lives easier.

Some keys to making sure your content does this is to constantly be making it useful. Give them quick wins! Offer them solutions that they can take and apply right away. Try to give them educational information that offers a reason behind why your solution will work for them. This could be in the form of statistics, personal stories, or stories from your other audience members. Marketing these days has become so robotic and automated – stand out from the crowd by being human. This is why we are as an age of constant digital consumers, so drawn to influencers, content creators and bloggers online. They are story tellers. They sell us TRANSFORMATION with their real lives.

Let’s not forget to keep it simple! Your audience doesn’t want to leave more confused than they were when they first started searching for your content. It can be tempting to provide more information because there is so much that we could provide to them, you are an expert after all. But, keeping it simple and basic is always better. 

Beginner level content on Pinterest is key to growing your audience

People who are more advanced may come looking for your content to get confirmation on what they already know. They know the how and the why, they just want that extra “yes, you know what you’re talking about.” They don’t necessarily need your solution. You’re just a second pair of eyes on their business.

When you focus on beginner level content for your website or blog, you’re speaking to the people who really need guidance. They want a roadmap for success. They want to know your expert plan for how to get the thing solved. This means that the more applicable your content is, the more helpful it is. In my experience working with hundreds of brands, businesses and bloggers – the viral content? ALWAYS basic/beginner/entry level.

I see a lot of people over complicating things or focusing too much on their product. The product will sell itself. What you need to focus on is the transformation. If the product provides the transformation then it will sell itself. That’s why people love stories. Stories are relatable, make it human and become the vehicle to sell your product/content. Donald Miller, the absolute branding genius shares this beautifully:

Everybody wants to change. Everybody wants to be somebody different, somebody better, or, perhaps, somebody who simply becomes more self-accepting.

Donald Miller, Building a Story Brand

Want to get to know more about your Pinterest audience?

If you’re looking to gain more insight into your audience so you can continue to create more relevant content that they’re searching for on Pinterest, make sure you read this article from Tailwind that’s all about Pinterest Audience Insights – what they are and how you can use them! If you want to learn more about how to reach your ideal customer or audience on Pinterest, join my email list! I share a weekly email that shares insights just like these along with tips and tricks for using Pinterest marketing to grow your audience.