How to Beat the Pinterest Algorithm in 2024
Are you struggling to make your pins stand out on Pinterest? Don’t worry, you’re not alone. With the constant changes to the algorithm, it can be challenging to keep up with the best strategies for success. But fear not, we’ve got you covered!
Let’s dive into the world of Pinterest marketing and discover the best ways to beat the algorithm and increase your reach and engagement.
How Does the Pinterest Algorithm Work?
Pinterest has a Smart Feed similar to the feeds you see on Instagram or Facebook. It shows you specific pins based on your interests and preferences. It’s similar to the home feed you are accustomed to on Facebook and Instagram.
Here are the four key factors that determine what you see on Pinterest:
Domain Quality
Pinterest looks at the domain quality of your website, meaning that it considers the performance of the page URL you link to in each of your pins.
How does Pinterest determine the quality of the content on your website? If pinners click through to your website and stick around to dive into your content, your domain quality on Pinterest will increase over time.
Note: If you haven’t done so, convert your Pinterest account to a business account and claim your website. Enabling rich pins can also boost your pin engagement and performance.
Pin Quality
Pin quality refers to how Pinterest measures the different ways that pinners react with your pins. Like social media platforms like Instagram, these measurements are usually called engagement.
The different measurements include saves, pin clicks, and outbound clicks on Pinterest.
How often are pinners engaging with your claimed pins? Naturally, you’ll have better results when you improve your engagement on each of your pins.
Pinterest will distribute them to your followers first when you publish new pins. If the pins resonate well with your audience first, they will push out your pins to other Pinterest users who share similar interests.
Pinterest first distributes your claimed pins to your followers to determine if it resonates with your target audience. Then, the algorithm will share your claimed pins with more people in their own Smart Feeds.
Pinner Quality
Another way to please the Pinterest algorithm is by establishing credibility directly with Pinterest. Like Google’s algorithm, you can establish credibility by creating quality content that your Pinterest audience loves. The more unique content you create, the more Pinterest shares your feed with others. Show Pinterest that you are a source of high-quality content and they will reward you for it.
Here are a few ways you can improve your Pinner Quality:
- Be an active pinner! Create a game plan where you’re able to pin new content weekly or even daily.
- Pin popular content. Pinning already popular content to your board will bring more viewers to your profile and introduce them to additional pins of yours.
- Increase sales of your content, pinning pins that resonate with your audience.
- Increase engagement and Pinterest traffic. By using Pinterest analytics to determine “trending” pins, you’ll have a head start to know the type of content your audience would like to see, helping to improve your overall Pinterest marketing strategy.
Relevance
The last piece of the Pinterest puzzle is relevance. Pinterest wants to show pin images that align with search trends and individual preferences.
In other words, applying keywords to every pin title, pin description, and even within the pin graphic will give Pinterest a good idea of the pin.
In order to be relevant on Pinterest, perform your keyword research first and have a content plan in place. Share relevant content in alignment with the seasons because seasonal searches are very common (like “Christmas sugar cookies” in December).
Note: You can use the Pinterest trends tool to give you an idea of when to publish certain blog posts and products. You can also head to the Pinterest search bar and see what keywords will generate as you type in a search term. You can also check the Pinterest “today” tab for daily inspiration on what pinners are searching for.
How Pinterest Calculates Engagement
First, we need to understand engagements on Pinterest. Engagements are called “actions” in the algorithm and include:
- Clicks (Outbound clicks)
- Long clicks (Outbound clicks with a dwell time of 30 seconds or longer [source, Definition 4.1])
- Close-ups (now called Pin clicks)
- Saves
How to Grow on Pinterest
Follow these best practices, and you’ll see significant progress with Pinterest!
Pinterest Profile
Your profile should include your claimed domain as well as a brief description of what your business is about. Give pinners an excellent reason to follow you!
Pinterest Boards
Each Pinterest board should have at least 2 or 3 words to describe the board’s purpose. For example, “best organic skincare.”
The board descriptions are also brief but rich with keywords.
Fresh Pins
This is probably the most important factor in the Pinterest algorithm so read this section closely. “Fresh pins” are essentially brand new pins that have never been seen on Pinterest before.
Creating fresh content (new blog posts, new products, and using new high-quality images) is the key to seeing growth in your Pinterest analytics and referral traffic.
More fresh pins = more chances to be seen on Pinterest
New images and new ideas shared on Pinterest will be well received by the algorithm. Avoid resharing duplicate pins because they won’t have the same distribution as the original pins do.
If you decide to republish older pins, republish content on Pinterest sparingly. There are a few exceptions to this strategy, but in general, I’ve only been republishing pins once or twice per year.
At the end of the day, publishing fresh pins every month should be a top priority if you’re going to invest time in Pinterest marketing.
Related: 17 Common Pinterest Mistakes You Need to Avoid
Schedule Your Pin Content
An easy way to hold yourself accountable and share new content on Pinterest every month is by scheduling pins ahead of time!
You can schedule pins directly through Pinterest but use third parties like Tailwind, Canva, or Planoly. A few benefits of using Tailwind include controllable distribution of your pins across different boards on your profile. But scheduling pins on Pinterest is free if you’re just starting.
Pinterest Advertising
Consider advertising one of your best-quality pins. Running promoted pins is relatively affordable (compared to Facebook anyway).
Related: Pinterest Ads vs Facebook Ads
The Bottom Line
- Share new content consistently that is high-quality and helpful to your audience.
- Incorporate video content into your pinning strategy.
- Make sure your website is as fast as possible, easy to navigate, and full of valuable content!
- If you want to see growth on Pinterest, spend 1 or 2 hours per week creating FRESH (brand new) content on the platform.
Did you find this Pinterest marketing guide helpful? Make sure you keep coming back for the latest Pinterest tips and tricks!
