How To Make Money On Pinterest [9 Strategies for 2024]

Get ready to use the power of Pinterest to supercharge your lead generation, sales, and business growth. Learn exactly how to make money on Pinterest with these 9 strategies for 2024. Pinterest is a treasure trove of cookie recipes, entertaining memes, and fantastic last-minute gift inspiration. However, did you know that you can also turn it into a source of income?

If you’re feeling a bit uncertain about monetizing Pinterest, don’t worry. Keep reading to discover how to transform this visual search engine into a money-making machine.

During the first quarter of 2023, Pinterest witnessed a global monthly active user (MAU) count of 463 million, marking an increase of 13 million users compared to the preceding quarter. The platform’s highest MAU count was recorded in March 2021, with 478 million users worldwide.

It still boasts an impressive user base of 478 million worldwide. What’s more, these users are watching nearly 1 billion videos daily on the platform. This presents substantial revenue opportunities for both businesses and influencers.

Can you make money on Pinterest?

Certainly, especially if you’re a blogger, influencer, or eCommerce business. Pinterest offers various avenues to generate income, and the most effective strategies depend on your specific business and approach.

For eCommerce or businesses selling products, Pinterest is an excellent platform to capture the attention of customers in the early research stages. An impressive 85% of Pinners, as Pinterest users are affectionately known, consider it their first destination when embarking on a new project. They come to Pinterest for inspiration, making it the perfect platform to showcase your products.

For bloggers and influencers, Pinterest can be a valuable tool for driving traffic to your website. Instead of viewing Pinterest as a traditional social media platform, consider it as another search engine, similar to Google. To make the most of Pinterest, employ SEO strategies and create captivating pins that help Pinners discover your content and click through to your website.

Once visitors land on your site, you can guide them to subscribe to your email list, make purchases, or take other desired actions.

That is, if your target customers are using Pinterest, it’s a strong indicator that they may be ready to make a purchase. Pinterest’s demographic data reveals that 45% of U.S. adults with a yearly household income exceeding $100,000 are active users on the platform. Furthermore, a significant 83% of Pinterest users make purchasing decisions influenced by what they discover on the platform.

These are just a couple of ways you can leverage Pinterest to generate income. If you’re a business or influencer aiming to monetize your Pinterest presence, continue reading for proven strategies to start implementing today.

How to make money on Pinterest

1. Drive traffic to your eCommerce products.

For businesses operating e-commerce platforms, Pinterest offers a prime opportunity to not only drive traffic but also boost sales.

You can effectively utilize pins to showcase your product catalog, directing your followers back to your website for seamless shopping experiences. Alternatively, take advantage of Pinterest’s shopping tool, enabling users to make direct purchases without leaving the app.

It’s important to note that the in-app checkout feature is currently accessible to a select group of merchants, enhancing the convenience of shopping directly on Pinterest. This streamlined process eliminates the need for users to navigate away from the platform when making a purchase.

To become eligible for in-app checkout, businesses must meet specific criteria:

Utilize the Shopify app.
Maintain a Shopify store with a U.S. billing address.
Exclusively employ Shopify feeds, ensuring no active non-Shopify feeds are uploaded to Pinterest.
Accept returns.
Provide a valid email address for customer support inquiries.
Exceed the monthly checkout conversions threshold.
Comply with Merchant guidelines.

Once approved for the in-app checkout feature, your product pins will prominently display a “Buy” button beneath them. When users click on it, they can refine product details like size or color before seamlessly proceeding to a checkout page within the Pinterest app.

Even if the in-app checkout feature is not yet accessible to your business, you can still make a significant impact. By creating visually appealing pins and incorporating keywords aligned with your target customers’ searches, you can entice viewers to visit your website and make purchases.

Additionally, it’s crucial to enable Rich Pins before sharing your products on Pinterest. Rich Pins automatically sync the latest product information from your website into your pins, including real-time pricing, inventory status, and product descriptions. The beauty of Rich Pins is that they’re cost-free and require only a minor code addition to your website. Typically, new requests for Rich Pins are swiftly approved, often within 24 hours.

2. Craft Pins for Your Affiliate Partnerships

Affiliate marketing has become a favored avenue for those seeking passive income, allowing affiliates to earn commissions when someone makes a purchase through their unique referral link. Pinterest presents a valuable opportunity to harness the potential of affiliate marketing.

To make the most of Pinterest for your affiliate endeavors, consider crafting pins that seamlessly connect to your affiliate links or link to blog posts and YouTube videos that incorporate these referral links. This strategy allows your affiliate links to be easily discoverable by users searching for specific products, potentially leading to commissions upon purchase.

When venturing into affiliate marketing on Pinterest, adhere to some essential best practices:

Transparent Disclosure: In accordance with FTC guidelines, ensure clear and conspicuous disclosure when sharing affiliate links within your content. Transparency builds trust with your audience.
Direct Linking: Pinterest discourages the use of link shorteners or tools that obscure the final URL when sharing affiliate links. To maintain credibility, share direct links that openly represent the destination.
Keyword Optimization: Leverage Pinterest’s search engine-like functionality by optimizing your pins with relevant keywords associated with affiliate products. Pins featuring user-searched keywords are more likely to attract clicks and engagement, potentially leading to increased sales.

Remember that affiliate marketing isn’t confined to blogs; it extends to Pinterest as well. By sharing affiliate links on Pinterest, you open avenues to earn commissions when Pinners make purchases. Additionally, you can direct users to affiliate-related content, such as blog posts or videos, to warm up your audience before they make a purchase.

Success in affiliate marketing on Pinterest involves several key strategies:

Board Themes: Avoid haphazardly grouping unrelated affiliate links on a single board. Instead, curate pins around a central theme to offer Pinners a cohesive visual experience that aligns with their interests.
Thoughtful Descriptions: Craft descriptions that convey the significance of your affiliate links or pins. Incorporate relevant keywords and hashtags to enhance discoverability through Pinterest’s search functionality.
Authenticity Matters: Strike a balance in your content. While affiliate marketing is a part of your strategy, create pins and boards that authentically represent your brand and provide value beyond just promotions.
Visual Appeal: Invest in high-quality media for your pins, as aesthetics play a pivotal role in engagement. Create visually appealing images and videos that resonate with your audience.
Compliance and Guidelines: Stay informed about Pinterest’s Affiliate Guidelines and abide by local regulations, such as the U.S. Federal Trade Commission’s Endorsement Guidelines, to ensure adherence and avoid potential platform restrictions due to spammy behavior.

By following these best practices, you can effectively integrate affiliate marketing into your Pinterest strategy, unlocking the potential to earn commissions while providing valuable content to your audience.

3. Send traffic to your blog.

Whether you depend on website traffic to make money from ads or as part of your inbound marketing strategy, you can make Pinterest part of your plan to increase traffic and revenue. Ranking high on Google can be tough and time-consuming, but on Pinterest, it’s often simpler and can bring in valuable traffic.

Pinterest says that 85% of its users use the platform to kickstart new projects or learn something new. If you create helpful content that matches what your potential audience is looking for, you can tap into this search traffic through Pinterest.

Here are some tips to boost your web traffic through Pinterest:

Use Pinterest Trends to find out which keywords are currently popular with Pinterest users.
Create multiple pins for each blog post. These pins should have catchy titles, descriptions, and images that match the keywords users are searching for.
Pin your content to boards with well-optimized titles and descriptions that also include the keywords users are interested in.
Make use of article Rich Pins on your website to include your blog post’s title, description, and author details in your pins.

4. Join the Pinterest Creator Fund.

The Pinterest Creator Fund presents an incredible financial opportunity that allows you to earn while benefiting from Pinterest’s vast resources and expertise. Here’s a breakdown of what this package includes:

Four-Week Workshop: Fund members gain access to a comprehensive four-week workshop where they can enhance their Pinterest skills and knowledge.
Hands-On Training: This program offers hands-on training to empower creators with the skills they need to thrive on Pinterest.
Topics Covered: The workshop covers a range of essential topics, including creating Idea Pins, harnessing Pinterest trends, and evaluating the success of their campaigns.
Personalized Consulting: Participants receive personalized consulting to elevate their Pinterest creative strategies and achieve greater success.
Financial Grant: Each eligible creator is awarded a substantial financial grant to support their content development and enhance their presence on Pinterest.

Now, you might be wondering, “How much does the Pinterest Creator Fund pay?” Well, the Pinterest Creator Fund generously provides $25,000 to eligible creators. This significant grant can substantially amplify a creator’s impact on Pinterest and open up new opportunities for content monetization.

In 2022, Pinterest allocated a substantial $20 million to this fund, highlighting their commitment to assisting underrepresented creators in achieving success on the platform. It’s clear that Pinterest is dedicated to empowering and supporting creators on their Pinterest journey.

5. Join the Pinterest Creator Rewards program

If you find that you don’t meet the requirements for the Creator Fund, there’s another opportunity you might want to explore: the Creator Rewards program.

Creator Rewards offers a platform for creators to earn income by crafting unique Idea Pins in response to Pinterest’s prompts. Here’s how it works, according to Pinterest: “Each prompt will outline specific engagement objectives, such as achieving a certain number of saves, reactions, or interactions on your Idea Pin. When you successfully meet these engagement goals, you’ll receive rewards in your bank account the following month.”

It’s important to note that Pinterest is currently in the testing phase of the Creator Rewards program, so only a select group of individuals are eligible to apply.

To qualify, you should meet the following criteria:

Maintain a Pinterest business account.
Utilize the Pinterest mobile app.
Be at least 18 years of age or older.
Be a legal resident of and physically located in the United States or the District of Columbia.
Have a minimum of 250 followers.
Create a minimum of 3 Idea Pins in the last 30 days.
Accumulate at least 150 saves on your published pins in the last 30 days.
Produce original content.

If you meet these qualifications, you can check the Pinterest app on your mobile device for a “Get Started” button to initiate the application process. However, if you don’t meet these criteria, you won’t find this option available.

6. Help people shop your look

Many people on Pinterest love to shop – in fact, 75% of weekly users are frequent shoppers.

So, if you want to tap into this shopping interest, here’s what you can do. Share images of stylish outfits or beautifully designed rooms to inspire others. Then, use Idea Pins to tag the specific products in your pictures. This makes it easy for your followers to find and buy those items. It’s especially useful for influencers and brands who want to showcase their products.

Idea Pins are like multi-page videos on Pinterest, but they can’t link directly to websites. However, you can tag products in them to make them shoppable. For example, Fenty Beauty often posts video tutorials on Pinterest to highlight their products.

Users can tag products using affiliate links, and businesses can tag their own products to boost sales. When you share Idea Pins featuring your products in action, it introduces potential buyers to what you offer. With over 400 million users looking for inspiration and ready to make purchases, using Pinterest as part of your business strategy can help you engage with your audience and potentially increase your revenue.

7. Partner with a brand

Influencers and brands are a great match, just like peanut butter and jelly. That’s why Pinterest offers a paid partnership tool to simplify collaborations between influencers and brands and ensure transparency in their partnerships.

Here’s how it works:

Create an Idea Pin using the app.
Tag the brand to add the paid partnership label.
The brand approves the tag.
Voila! Your pin now displays the brand name at the bottom.

Brands are willing to pay you to create this type of content and share it with your audience. They may even use your pin in their advertising campaigns.

The good news is that many brands are actively seeking creators to work with. For instance, Gatorade used the paid partnership tool to partner with some of Pinterest’s top fitness creators. They incorporated this content into their advertising campaign, which generated impressive results – the campaign received over 14 million views.

So, how can you land these valuable brand partnerships? To start, having an engaged and niche-specific audience is crucial. You don’t necessarily need a massive following, but you do need to know how to effectively pitch yourself to brands.

8. Manage Pinterest accounts for other businesses.

If you have the skills to effectively manage and expand a Pinterest account, you might want to consider offering your services to other businesses. Many busy entrepreneurs, despite recognizing the advantages of staying active on Pinterest, simply don’t have the time to handle their own Pinterest accounts.

In this role, your responsibilities could include:

Developing a tailored Pinterest strategy aligned with your client’s primary business goals, such as increasing website traffic or boosting conversions of shoppable pins.
Conducting keyword research to identify what their target audience is searching for on Pinterest.
Creating and uploading pins to their Pinterest account.

It’s beneficial to have a track record in this field. Consider building a portfolio that highlights the results you’ve achieved in growing Pinterest accounts, whether it’s for your own ventures or other businesses. This portfolio can be a valuable asset when attracting potential clients.

Have you heard of Tailwind?

What is Tailwind?

Tailwind is a comprehensive social media scheduling and analytics platform designed to simplify the management and optimization of content across various platforms, with a primary focus on Pinterest and Instagram. Tailwind offers a range of features that streamline the process of planning, scheduling, and analyzing the performance of your posts.

9. Use Pinterest Ads to reach new users.

Investing some money in your Pinterest strategy can yield significant returns. While organic reach is valuable, it may have its limits. To expand your reach and impact, consider allocating some ad budget to promote your pins.

Promoted pins offer a versatile way to enhance your Pinterest presence. They can be customized to align with various objectives, whether it’s boosting website traffic or growing your Pinterest followers. The best part? Promoted pins seamlessly blend in with regular pins, ensuring a natural user experience.

These ads are strategically placed in your target audience’s home feed, category feeds, and search results, maximizing their visibility. Additionally, Pinterest offers various ad types, including shopping ads directly sourced from your product catalog.

To determine whether ads are a worthwhile investment, let’s look at Nena & Co.’s success story. By transforming its product catalog into Pinterest ads, this sustainable handbag brand tapped into a fresh audience interested in zero-waste and ethically sourced products. The outcome? An impressive 8x increase in return on ad spend, all while costing 34% less than other advertising platforms.

If you run an online business, consider leveraging Pinterest ads to showcase your offerings to potential buyers. These ads maintain the appearance of regular pins but strategically place them where your audience is most likely to discover them, including home feeds and search results.

To kickstart your Pinterest advertising journey, ensure you have a business account. Once that’s set up, head to the Ads Manager to create campaigns and ad groups. From there, you can either craft new pins or select existing ones for promotion.

Take inspiration from Daily Harvest, a company that effectively utilizes paid Pinterest ads to reach new customers and expand its online presence.

Bonus Tips for How To Make money on Pinterest

Beginning your Pinterest marketing strategy is a smart move, no matter when you decide to start. The potential for earning income through Pinterest, as highlighted earlier, all hinges on one crucial factor: having an engaged audience.

Once you attract the attention of your target audience, you’ll find that clicks and revenue naturally flow your way. Here’s how it’s done.

Follow Pinterest’s Creative Best Practices

Pinterest is primarily a visual platform, and to excel here, your creative pins must meet certain quality standards.

The good news is that Pinterest provides a comprehensive guide called “Creative Best Practices.” This guide covers everything you need to know about properly formatting a pin and strategies to make it captivating for Pinners.

Ultimately, a successful pin accomplishes three key things:

It visually captivates the viewer.
It tells an engaging story.
It piques people’s curiosity, making them want to learn more.

However, it’s not just about creating great content; you also need a strategy to ensure your pins reach the right audience. This is where Pinterest SEO (Search Engine Optimization) plays a crucial role.

Implement Pinterest SEO

Keywords play a matchmaking role, connecting your content with potential users on Pinterest.

Incorporating relevant keywords in strategic places can help your pins get discovered, whether through direct searches or Pinterest’s recommendation system. Here’s where you should use keywords:

Pin description
Text overlay
Board title
Board description
Profile description

Now, let’s dive into how to find those keywords that Pinners are actively using:

Start with a broad term related to your content or business.
Enter it into the Pinterest search bar. For instance, if you’re a travel blogger planning to write about Mexico, type “Mexico travel.”

As you search, you’ll notice colored tiles suggesting related keywords. Scroll down further to explore “Related searches” for additional keyword ideas.

By clicking on these keywords, you can discover even more niche suggestions. For example, selecting “Mexico travel tips” reveals specific keywords that may not be heavily targeted by other creators but are still relevant to Pinners.

With these keywords in hand, you can create a variety of pins, such as travel packing tips, road trip advice in Mexico, or insights into all-inclusive resorts.

Remember, the key is to use these keywords naturally within your content, avoiding excessive stuffing. Craft rich, conversational sentences, and consider adding a few relevant hashtags to your descriptions for an effective Pinterest SEO strategy.

Create a media kit

If you’re looking to collaborate with paid partners or secure sponsorships on your Pinterest boards, creating an influencer media kit is a smart move.

An influencer media kit is essentially a document that showcases key statistics about your followers and engagement on the platform. It provides a concise overview of your brand and the value it can offer in a potential partnership. Additionally, it may outline pricing for specific advertising options.

To create one, you can use a graphic design template to craft an attractive PDF that’s available for download. Alternatively, you can feature this essential information directly on your main website or blog.

With your influencer media kit ready, initiating conversations about partnership opportunities becomes a quick and straightforward process.

Schedule your pins

Instead of uploading a large batch of pins all at once, it’s more effective to add new pins gradually over time. This approach helps you reach a broader audience on Pinterest.

To make the process smoother, consider using a scheduling tool like Hootsuite or Publer. It allows you to prepare your pins and release them at an optimal, consistent pace. This way, you won’t have to log into Pinterest multiple times a day.

Remember that, like with any social media platform, the key to success is creating high-quality content. Posting content that lacks value won’t yield positive results. Ensure that your content is both inspiring and helpful to your audience.

If you need further guidance on establishing your Pinterest page for business, refer to our comprehensive guide on how to start using Pinterest for business. This resource will help you transform your pins into profits.

FAQs on How to make money on Pinterest

How can I make money on Pinterest?
- You can make money on Pinterest through various methods, such as blogging, affiliate marketing, promoting your eCommerce products, participating in the Creator Fund, and more.
Is it necessary to have a blog to make money on Pinterest?
- No, while a blog can be beneficial, it’s not mandatory. You can make money on Pinterest through other means like affiliate marketing and promoting products directly.
What are Product Pins, and how can they help me earn money?
- Product Pins are pins that display real-time pricing, availability, and links to the product’s website. By using Product Pins, you can attract potential customers directly to your eCommerce site and increase sales.
Can I make money on Pinterest without a significant following?
- Yes, you don’t need a massive following to make money on Pinterest. Focus on creating engaging content, optimizing pins for keywords, and targeting the right audience to drive traffic and conversions.
What is affiliate marketing on Pinterest, and how do I get started?
- Affiliate marketing on Pinterest involves promoting products or services and earning a commission for each sale made through your affiliate links. To start, join affiliate programs, create valuable content, and share affiliate links strategically.
How does the Pinterest Creator Fund work?
- The Pinterest Creator Fund is a program that offers content creators financial support, training, and opportunities for brand sponsorships. To participate, you need to meet specific eligibility criteria and apply during open cycles.
What role does Pinterest SEO play in making money?
- Pinterest SEO is crucial for making money as it helps your pins appear in search results. By researching and using relevant keywords in your pins’ descriptions and titles, you can increase the visibility of your content.
Can I use Pinterest ads to make money?
- Yes, Pinterest ads, known as Promoted Pins, can help you reach a larger audience and boost your sales. You can strategically place these ads in users’ feeds and search results to increase brand visibility.
Is it necessary to have a Pinterest Business Account to make money?
- While it’s not mandatory, having a Pinterest Business Account provides you with access to valuable analytics and advertising tools that can help optimize your money-making strategies.
What are some common mistakes to avoid when trying to make money on Pinterest?
- Common mistakes to avoid include spamming with affiliate links, neglecting SEO optimization, inconsistent pinning, and not providing valuable content. Focus on user engagement and quality over quantity.

Remember that success on Pinterest may require time and effort, so stay persistent and adapt your strategies as needed to maximize your earnings.

Key Takeaways

In this article, you’ve discovered various ways to generate income using Pinterest. Here’s a summary of the money-making methods:

Start a blog on your website.
Produce unique, relevant, and expert content.
Set up your Pinterest Business Account.
Drive traffic to your eCommerce platform.
Create Product Pins.
Establish affiliate partnerships.
Explore opportunities with the Creator Fund or Creator Rewards.

Now that you’re equipped with these strategies for earning money on Pinterest, please share with us which approach you plan to implement first. We’re eager to hear from you, so please leave a comment below.

You may like to read How To Use Tailwind: A Comprehensive Guide to boost your Pinterest account.