Mistakes Make Magic

041: Alex Evjen: Tips for Topping the Pinterest Charts

April 25, 2018

I’m Catherine.
A New Orleans based wedding photographer and educator. We are excited you are here and cannot wait to connect with you!.
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On the podcast today, I have an Arizona based Pinterest expert or “pinfluencer!” She is a stylist and founder of AVE Styles that has grown a following of one million on the Pinterest platform! She was even selected by Pinterest to be an ambassador for them in 2015! InStyle, Huffington Post, and Business Insider have named Alex one of the top pinners to follow, and she has used her knowledge to teach thousands of people how to use Pinterest as an effective marketing tool for their businesses. She is the mother of two children that does an amazing job of creating real connections online. She is honest and open to sharing the raw side of life and I cannot wait to chat more with her today! So welcome to the podcast, Alex Evjen! 

WHAT YOU WILL HEAR ON THIS PODCAST:

  • Why choose Pinterest?
  • How does Pinterest create a longer lifespan for content?
  • How to make money on Pinterest
  • Mistakes made on Pinterest
  • Mistakes others are making on Pinterest


Why choose Pinterest? 

Earlier in her career, Alex was a stylist who used Pinterest solely as an organizational tool. She was using Pinterest to organize ideas and collect inspiration for her clients. Now, years later, Pinterest is still a place for Alex to discover ideas, organize thoughts and she considers it a place of the future. All of the trends that Alex sees on Pinterest, she then sees the same trend 1-2 years later on other social media platforms. Pinterest is where you can find great content before it is posted elsewhere. There is no other place for people to anticipate the future like Pinterest, and a place to meet the customer at the beginning of their shopping journey. Alex does not consider Pinterest as a social media platform, but more of a great search tool or a “curated google”. 

How does Pinterest create a longer lifespan for content?

Content added to Pinterest, does not die over a short period of time. If you add something to Pinterest, it takes about 30 days for it to reach half of its’ potential, and a over a year for it to reach its’ full potential. There are pins that Alex pinned three years ago, that are still some of her top pins. The more time pins are on Pinterest, the more the pin will grow. This is encouraging for content creators (photographers, bloggers, etc.) or anyone adding content to Pinterest. Social Media platforms such as Instagram and Facebook, bury your posts shortly after they are posted. But, on Pinterest, your pins will show up whenever anyone searches the particular topic of your pin. This is better for both the user and the user who puts the content on Pinterest!

How to make money on Pinterest

The best way to make money on Pinterest, is to make sure you are taking the time to share your content. The particular content that you are pinning is also very important. Be sure you are pinning optimal images, vertical images, 600×900 pixel images, and clear and colorful visuals that fit within the Pinterest community. Also, offer as much information as possible on your pins. Include the price, why it is a helpful product and how it will enhance the user’s life, and why they should click on your image. It is easy to pin things and expect them to perform, without really taking the time to optimize the pin. Your pin descriptions should be lengthy! Also, incorporate rich pins on your Pinterest account. There are a few types of rich pins, and you must apply for them, but the algorithm optimizes itself for the rich pins. When you apply, there is a real person taking time to check out your blog and then provide the code to pin to your site, allowing it to perform better.

Mistakes made on Pinterest

The biggest mistake Alex made was branding her Pinterest name as Alexandra Evjen, rather than her actual business name. Although you can change your username at any time, if you have been linked to different websites online, changing your name will break those links. Anytime you are joining the next big social media platform, use your business name! Alex also was not consistent with sharing on Pinterest. If you are choosing Pinterest as a place of traffic for your company, it is important to login each day and be active because Pinterest notices how often you login and how much you are sharing. It is easy to go through pinning “seasons”, but always remember that if you are approaching Pinterest as a business, treat it just like Instagram and Facebook where you login each day and engage with the community. When first starting out, Alex did not want to bother people with her content, when in reality, she had an audience of people listening, but did not use her influence to promote. Never feel ashamed to tell people about your business and never feel bad about it!

Mistakes others make on Pinterest

A common mistake people are making with Pinterest is logging in and using it solely as a tool to self-promote, rather than engaging with others by posting  content outside of their own. Put the community first and yourself second! If you are pinning consistently, but not many are engaging with your content, consider changing what you are sharing. Always aim to share great content and also think about what is on trend in the community. Avoid click bate! Click bate is offering value for the community within your pins, but when you get to the actual site it is not what users want to see. This is frustrating for the user and Pinterest also keeps track of your bounce rate (when someone quickly gets off of your site because they didn’t find what they were looking for).

If you are interested in learning more about Pinterest, I encourage you to hop on over to Alex’s site. Not only does she have course offerings but she also has a few free videos if you sign up for her email list!  

“The best way to multiply your happiness is to share it with others.” Keep on Pinning! 

LINKS REFERENCED: 
Popular Pays
Pin Collective
Tailwind
Ahalogy

CONNECTING:
Website
Instagram
Pinterest

SPONSORS:
Showit – User-Friendly Web Design Platform: Use code MAGIC for 10% off your subscription!
Black River Imaging High Quality Online Print Site: Use code MAGIC for 20% off your order!

If you enjoy the content that we are putting out here at Mistakes Make Magic, please take just a few minutes to SUBSCRIBE to the podcast and leave a review! We appreciate and value you!!

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