How to use Pinterest to sell more Antique, Art & Vintage items

In this article we'll explain how to use Pinterest to get more visitors to your website; not just from Pinterest, but from Google as a result too.

1) What is Pinterest?

2) Pinterest can get you more hits from Google

3) An easy and cheap way to get 350,000 visitors a month

4) Important rules when using Pinterest

5) Automate the process to save time

6) Using Instagram but think you don’t need to use Pinterest?

7) How can we help?

8) Further reading

1) What is Pinterest?

Pinterest is a photo sharing Social Media platform and online pin board. The special thing about it is that it works like a mixture of Google and Instagram, because it's a search engine based on images.

It's great for getting images of your stock out there and it's also great for your websites Google Rankings. Click here for an article about the big social media platforms and the difference between them.
 

2) Pinterest can get you more hits from Google

3) An easy and cheap way to get 350,000 visitors a month

Getting ranked well in Google can be really difficult unless you pay for things like Google Ads and Google shopping, but if you use Pinterest and link all of the pictures you post to Pinterest back to that item on your website, it can get you hits from Google as Pinterest ranks well in Google and has lots of page 1 results for antique, art, reclamation and vintage based searches.

Our client English Salvage for example, has almost 350,000 monthly unique visitors!

 

4) Important rules when using Pinterest

To get the best out of Pinterest, you'll need to make sure that you're using it properly. Here's how to do just that.

RULE ONE
Make sure you use the correct image size

• This is 735 x 1102 px (a portrait image)
   
• Studies show that Pinterest will prioritise those pins because the correct image size has been used, which means that the images won't be cropped or distorted
   
• If you use landscape images, or images of any other dimensions than those referenced above, you won’t appear as high in searches

RULE TWO
Only post images you own

• Make sure images you post are of your own stock, and it's your picture as you won't do yourself any favours by posting copyrighted material

RULE THREE
Link each item back to your site

• This is key to getting the results from Google, and even from direct searches on Pinterest
   
• Include a link to view that item on your website (not the home page of your website, not that category on your website, the actual page for that actual item on your website)

RULE FOUR
Write good pin titles and item descriptions

• Include the name of the item, and make sure that name is descriptive (just like your item names on your website). Click here to read our article on how to name your items effectively
   

RULE FIVE
Use good quality images

• Make sure the images you upload are good quality & high resolution. You may also want to read about why great photography is crucial to your success
  
   

5) Automate the process to save time

To make all of the above easier, our websites have a social media integration and there is a 'share' button you can use to when you add your stock to your website you can:-

• Pick the item
• Pick the picture
• Share it on Pinterest automatically
• Automatically have it the right picture size
• Automatically link it back
• Automatically put the item title in

Which will save you lots of time so you can get on with running your business and not spend hours trying to format images and item titles to add onto your Pinterest.

6) Using Instagram but think you don’t need to use Pinterest?

Not true!

We would recommend that you use both. Instagram is fantastic but will only get you visitors from Instagram itself. Whereas Pinterest can get you visitors from people searching in Google, as well as those using Pinterest.

Instagram is also limited in the fact that you cannot post links in the captions of your pictures and you can only have one link on your Instagram profile at a time, which doesn't do you any favours in getting people to all your stock or to your website. Whereas with Pinterest you can post a link to your website individuallly on each item.

We also tend to find that people who are active on both Instagram and Pinterest get more traffic from Google via their Pinterest.

Don't get me wrong though, we love them both and they go hand in hand! We've got a fair few articles with social media tips and information on how to use Instagram.

7) How can we help?

With the seamless integration we have on our websites, sharing your stock to Pinterest couldn't be easier! Contact me today to discuss how we can help you with selling online, sharing to your Social media and driving traffic to your website with Pinterest.

We believe in helping Antiques, Vintage, Art & Reclamation dealers sell online easily, and we do so with a personal service from our small team based in Derby, UK. We've been established since 2004, and have hundreds of clients on our books so we're big enough to deliver yet small enough to care. I look forward to hearing from you.

8) Further reading

• How to use Instagram to make more sales
   
• Social Media: Instagram - Business or Personal profile?
   
• Social Media 101: 6 proven ways to get more traffic to your blog
   
• Social Media 101: 30 Social Media jargon terms debunked!
   
• 10 types of Instagram posts that do really well