It is no secret that social media has changed the landscape of the entire Internet. Capable of echoing a single message across the entire web with the click of a mouse, sites like Facebook and Pinterest have revolutionized the way we interact with each other. More importantly, however, are the benefits these sites provide for businesses of all levels. Assuming you are familiar with these platforms, it is imperative that you take advantage of the unique opportunities each provides.
Pinterest is perhaps too overlooked by aspiring entrepreneurs, particularly those in the real estate industry. However, Pinterest is every bit as valuable as equally popular social media platforms. Any business with a website, blog or landing page needs to make sure they are utilizing Pinterest to their advantage. Neglecting to do so can only hurt your bottom line; as Pinterest drives more traffic than Google Plus, YouTube and LinkedIn combined. Subsequently, Pinterest facilitates the direction of more traffic than both Bing and Yahoo. In doing so, Pinterest has become the world’s fourth-largest referral website and a necessity in the arsenal of any real estate investor.
Considering the benefits a free social media platform like Pinterest can provide, it is important to familiarize yourself with the intricacies of the site. Listed below are four tips that will help you drive traffic to your site with relative ease. The exposure created from a properly run Pinterest campaign can generate potentially limitless leads and therefore must be a priority.
Pin Content From Your Own Site
Avid “pinners” find themselves sharing content they see on third-party websites. However, for your particular needs, you will need to pin from your own site as much as possible. Pinning your own site on a “board” will serve to increase exposure and drive traffic to your site. This process is relatively easy if you have a blog, as a variety of categories can help you generate increasingly higher rates of traffic. Real estate investors may want to consider adding the following categories to their blog:
- Home décor photos
- Top 10 lists
- Neighborhood categories
- Miscellaneous categories that have nothing to do with real estate. It opens your blog up to a wider audience (past clients who are not currently interested in buying or selling) and also humanizes your page.
A myriad of relevant categories provides you with a healthy number of possible pins. While you do not want to complicate your blog with irrelevant pins, having a select few will make pinning much easier and more appealing to your target audience.
Add a URL To The Pin Description
Despite whether or not you decide to pin content to your board directly or re-pin it, Pinterest allows for the addition of a URL. Accordingly, every time you pin you have the option of adding a URL that links to a relevant page or your website specifically. This tactic must include an insightful description, and the link must go back to a page on your site that is equally as insightful and useful to the reader. This strategy will drive interested pinners directly to your page.
Keyword-Rich Descriptions and Hashtags
Pinterest utilizes a very specific and powerful search engine that has been customized to the sites unique characteristics. More importantly, searches are delineated by three independent result categories: pins, boards and pinners. This particular method allows for your content to be found several different ways. Furthermore, if it is properly optimized, your content will likely appear at the top of a search. To do so, utilize keyword rich descriptions and take advantage of hashtags (#s).
- Give your profile a keyword-rich description.
- Give every board a keyword-loaded name, a keyword-rich description and a relevant category.
- Give every pin a keyword-rich description. Yes – that includes repins. Pins should also include one or two appropriate hashtags.
Be Sure To Pin Trending Content
It comes at no surprise that popular topics are more frequently clicked on and repined. They practically demand the attention of readers. It should be common practice to include trending topics within your Pinterest board, as audiences all over will be more inclined to read your posts. However, understanding which trends to follow and respectively pin is important. Make sure to re-pin posts that capture a wide variety of readers to maximize your exposure.
This strategy is to be used in conjunction with the previous three we discussed. The topic itself is designed to grab the readers’ attention, while the optimization and links will drive them to your page.
