Affiliate marketing is a way of earning commissions by promoting other people’s products or services on your website, blog, social media, or other platforms.
Pinterest is one of the most popular and effective platforms for affiliate marketing, as it allows you to create and share visually appealing pins that link to your affiliate offers.
In this article, I will show you how to do affiliate marketing on Pinterest step by step, and answer some of the most common questions that beginners have about this topic.
I will also provide you with some examples and tips on how to follow the rules and best practices of Pinterest affiliate marketing.
How to do affiliate marketing on Pinterest
The first thing you need to do is to sign up for a Pinterest account if you don’t have one already.
You can choose to create a personal or a business account, depending on your goals and preferences.
A business account will give you access to more features and analytics, but a personal account will work fine too.
Next, you need to join some affiliate programs that are relevant to your niche and audience.
There are many affiliate networks and platforms that you can choose from, such as Amazon Associates, ShareASale, ClickBank, CJ Affiliate, Rakuten, etc.
You can also look for individual brands or products that offer affiliate programs on their websites.
Affiliate Marketing on Pinterest for beginners
Once you have your affiliate links ready, you need to create some pins that will attract your target audience and entice them to click on your links.
You can use tools like Canva or PicMonkey to design your pins, or you can use the templates and images provided by Pinterest or your affiliate programs.
Your pins should have catchy titles, clear descriptions, relevant keywords, and high-quality images that showcase the benefits and features of your products or services.
You should also include a call to action that encourages your viewers to click on your link and buy from you.
You can then upload your pins to your Pinterest account and pin them to your boards.
It is vital to create boards that are related to your niche and topics, and organize them in a logical and user-friendly way.
Pinning other people’s content that is relevant and valuable to your audience also helps you build trust and authority in your niche.
You can also use Pinterest’s features like group boards, communities, hashtags, stories, video pins, etc., to increase your reach and engagement with your audience.
Don’t forget to follow other influencers and users in your niche and interact with them by liking, commenting, repinning, etc.
Does affiliate marketing work on Pinterest?
Yes, affiliate marketing works very well on Pinterest, as long as you do it right.
Pinterest is a great platform for affiliate marketing because:
- It has over 450 million monthly active users who are looking for inspiration, ideas, solutions, and products for their needs and interests.
- It has a high conversion rate compared to other social media platforms, as 89% of Pinners use Pinterest for purchase inspiration.
- It has a long-lasting effect on your traffic and sales, as pins can be discovered and clicked on months or even years after they are posted.
- It allows you to showcase your products or services in a visual and creative way that appeals to your audience’s emotions and desires.
However, affiliate marketing on Pinterest also requires some work and strategy from your part.
You need to:
- Provide value and solve problems for your audience through your pins and content.
- Be honest and transparent about your affiliate links and disclose them properly according to the FTC guidelines.
- Follow the rules and policies of Pinterest and your affiliate programs regarding spamming, cloaking, redirecting, etc. .
- Test and optimize your pins and links for performance and conversions.
Do you need followers on Pinterest for affiliate marketing?
No, you don’t need followers on Pinterest for affiliate marketing.
Unlike other social media platforms where followers are essential for reaching your audience, Pinterest works more like a search engine where users can find your pins based on their keywords and interests.
This means that you can get traffic and sales from Pinterest even if you have zero followers, as long as you create high-quality pins that match the search intent of your audience.
Of course, having followers can help you boost your credibility and visibility on Pinterest, but they are not a requirement for success.
However, if you want to grow your followers on Pinterest for affiliate marketing purposes, here are some tips that can help you:
- Pin consistently and frequently.
- Use keywords and hashtags in your titles and descriptions.
- Join group boards and communities in your niche.
- Engage with other Pinners by liking, commenting, repinning.
- Promote your Pinterest account on your website, blog, email list, and other social media platforms.
Pinterest affiliate marketing examples
To give you some inspiration and ideas for your own Pinterest affiliate marketing, here are some examples of successful Pinners who are making money from promoting affiliate products or services on their pins:
- Chasing Foxes is a lifestyle blog that covers topics like travel, food, home, and money. They use Pinterest to drive traffic to their blog posts that contain affiliate links to various products or services that they recommend to their readers. They have over 1.3 million followers and 10 million monthly viewers on Pinterest.
- Making Sense of Cents is a personal finance blog that teaches people how to make money, save money, and pay off debt. They use Pinterest to promote their own products and courses, as well as affiliate products or services that they use and trust. They have over 100,000 followers and 4 million monthly viewers on Pinterest.
- The Busy Budgeter is a blog that helps people manage their money and live a better life on a budget. They use Pinterest to share tips and tricks on budgeting, saving, earning, and organizing. They also include affiliate links to products or services that they use and love in their pins and blog posts. Over 400,000 followers and 9 million monthly viewers on Pinterest.
Pinterest affiliate marketing rules
Before you start doing affiliate marketing on Pinterest, you need to be aware of the rules and policies that govern this practice.
These rules are meant to protect both you and your audience from any legal or ethical issues that may arise from your affiliate activities.
Disclose your affiliate links properly according to the FTC guidelines
This means that you need to clearly and conspicuously inform your viewers that you may earn a commission if they click on your link and buy something from your affiliate partner.
You can do this by using words like “affiliate”, “sponsored”, “ad”, etc., in your pin title or description, or by using a hashtag like #ad or #sponsored.
Do not use shorteners or cloakers for your affiliate links
These are tools that hide or change the appearance of your original affiliate link, which can be misleading or deceptive for your viewers.
Pinterest does not allow these practices and may remove your pins or suspend your account if you use them.
Do not spam or overdo your affiliate pins
This means that you should not post too many pins with the same or similar affiliate links in a short period of time, or pin them to irrelevant boards or categories.
This can annoy your audience and lower your credibility, as well as violate the terms of service of Pinterest and your affiliate programs.
Conclusion
Pinterest is a powerful platform for affiliate marketing, as it allows you to reach a large and engaged audience who are looking for products or services that can help them achieve their goals and dreams.
By following the steps and tips in this article, you can create amazing pins that showcase your affiliate offers in a visual and creative way, and generate traffic and sales from Pinterest.
However, you also need to be careful and respectful of the rules and policies that govern affiliate marketing on Pinterest, as well as the interests and needs of your audience.
By doing so, you can build trust and authority in your niche, and grow your online business with Pinterest.
I hope you enjoyed this article and learned something new about how to do affiliate marketing on Pinterest.
Zowan Fayzan is a digital pathfinder specializing in SEO aficionado, e-commerce enthusiast, and connoisseur of marketing analytics.