Huge Changes in How to Grow on Pinterest in 2022

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In this blog post, we’re talking about how you can grow on Pinterest in 2022. Pinterest is CHANGING and that means you must change too. So how can you grow on Pinterest in 2022? Let’s get right into my predictions.

Pinterest is changing in 2022. Let’s face it, Pinterest has been changing for the past year or more… and not always for the better. For years the easiest way to grow on Pinterest was simply by showing up and sharing content. Of course, in 2022, you’re still going to need to show up and pin, but what you pin and how you pin is changing all around us.

Read next: What to Post on Pinterest in January 2022 (for every niche!)

Read next: How to grow your influence and ‘Pinfluence’ in 2022

What Pinterest Wants in 2022

* Please keep in mind that these are my predictions but they are based on what information Pinterest is currently giving out, and other industry experts. I’ve been working on Pinterest for over 5 years now, so understanding and predicting what’s coming is a big part of what we do!

Inspiration is the new influence

Pinterest recognizes that ‘influencers’ stick to platforms like Instagram and now Tiktok. Users on Pinterest do not consider themselves to be influencers. I know in the past 6 years of growing my own brand, anytime I suggested that I might be an influencer on Pinterest, brands said things like, “What is that??” and partnerships were harder to land.

They want to massively change that in 2022. Pinterest wants to be the ‘go-to’ platform for bloggers and influencers to create on. They want you to share your influence in the form of pins in 2022.

Here’s what Pinterest has to say about “Pinfluence” in 2022:

Grow an Inspired Audience: People engage more meaningfully on Pinterest. You inspire them to try new things, shop, and create their own take on your ideas. The more people engage with or share your content, the more your ideas show up across Pinterest for millions of others to discover.

See your Passions Pay Off: We’re rewarding creators differently, with a focus on building a community around shared passions and ideas—rather than empty engagement.

Make your ideas last forever: Content doesn’t disappear on Pinterest so your hard work has a longer payoff. People can find your ideas the moment you post them, or well beyond that.

👆🏻 It’ll be exciting here how they bring payments to influencers! Creatives and people with influence should be paid for their work. I love seeing Pinterest take initiative on that.

Pinning directly within the Pinterest Platform

Idea pins are already created directly within the Pinterest Platform. There’s no way (currently) to schedule Idea Pins ahead of time – but you can save them as drafts! With stickers, music, and editing capabilities, Pinterest wants you to create directly on the platform.

This also means it’s time to consider pinning in real-time and using the Pinterest scheduler more. We have already begun testing pulling content off Tailwind and pinning directly with Pinterest instead. This doesn’t mean not using Tailwind anymore. It just means using Tailwind differently.

Using Affiliate Links on Pinterest

Pinterest has now made Idea Pins shoppable. They’re also allowing you to put Affiliate links in Idea Pins so users can shop and you can get paid directly from the platform. This is a huge change to Pinterest banning most affiliate links a few years back.

Once again, one of the reasons I believe they’re doing this is to encourage people to use their platform differently. And they want to stand out from other platforms by allowing creators to get paid and make money more easily. They figure if they are quicker to reward creators, creators are more likely to use Pinterest over other platforms.

New Pinterest Features

Idea Pins

Idea pins have been around for a year now, but we’re finally figuring out how to best use them for each of our clients. One of the biggest suggestions I have for you on Pinterest in 2022 is to make sure you’re using Idea Pins. And if something isn’t working, change it. If you’re only posting your reels to Pinterest and they’re reaching less than 100 people, stop using them. Or if you’re putting your effort into designing idea pins and those are reaching less than 100 people each, guess what, stop using them. Finally, if the content isn’t reaching your audience, stop worrying about creating it. Instead experiment with what your audience (and Pinterest) want.

Read next: How to work with brands on Pinterest in 2022

Pinterest TV

Honestly, I’m surprised that I didn’t see this coming. As platforms move more towards video, it makes sense that Pinterest would want to use more and more video as well. But now they’ve introduced Pinterest TV and they’re promoting it so heavily that now instead of HOME and FOLLOWING in the app, there’s BROWSE and WATCH. If you’re not creating video content on Pinterest, unfortunately, you’re quickly going to fall behind. And now, this does not mean you should animate your pins in Canva.

I find it incredibly frustrating that Pinterest has gotten rid of the Following Tab. This is one BIG way that you’re currently likely losing reach on Pinterest, and the only way to really get that back is by working with video.

‘Watch’

They’ve tried to make their “Watch” tab similar to Reels on Instagram, except sharing your Idea Pins there. As of right now, this is clunky and not easy to use. I usually find myself exiting out of it before I even get through an entire pin.

Conversion Analytics

For the past year, Pinterest has been rolling out conversion analytics in BETA. Once fully developed, this tool is going to be incredibly useful. What to do? Get your products on Shopify. If you’re planning on selling anything from courses, to presets to templates, sell them on Shopify. If you need help setting this up, email me at [email protected].

Keep an eye on Conversion Analytics over the next few months, those are going to become one of the most important analytical tools for Pinterest in 2022.

How to Pin and Master Pinterest in 2022

Essentially, Pinterest is becoming harder to navigate. It’s going to be more work to grow and cultivate an audience on Pinterest in 2022. Long story short, this sucks (Sorry Pinterest but it does.). We started using Pinterest because it was easy to understand, easy to find your audience, and fairly easy to grow. Things are changing. I hear it every day from my audience, clients, and students.

But, as with every platform, you have to be able to adapt if you want to take your marketing into 2022.

So, don’t let these new Pinterest changes get you down. Instead, start focusing on how you’re going to grow in the changing world of online marketing. Here’s what I recommend for growing on Pinterest in 2022.

Slow Down

First things first, massively slow down and pin-less. If you’re using a platform like Tailwind, take your pins down to no more than 5 a day scheduled out. When it comes to Tailwind, focus more on loops and intervals than how many times a day you can pin.

Pin Less

Ok so now you’re thinking this is the same advice as I just gave above, but it’s not. You are going to be pinning less, but what I mean here is that you need to save one pin to fewer boards. With bigger intervals.

Here’s what I mean:

If you have a blog post on ‘traveling in Utah during the Summer’, create 5 new pins to go with that blog post. Then instead of scheduling all of those 5 pins to the 10 boards that it’s relevant to, pin each pin to only 2 boards, with a huge interval.

So Pin 1 goes to two boards with an interval of 7 days. When that interval is over, Pin 2 goes to two new boards with a 5-day interval. You’re slowing down how many pins you share, also slow down over pinning each design.

Be Creative

It’s time to work with video. I know you’re probably hoping Pinterest would be the one platform that would hold out and still benefit people who weren’t pushing video content. Unfortunately, that’s just not the case. It’s time to get comfortable and creative with video people. Have fun with it, because the results are in, 2022 is the year for video.

Find out what works for your audience. Do they want videos of you talking them through your latest blog? Do they want Reel/Tiktok style videos? Or do they want tutorials or inspiring videos? Whatever works for your audience, get comfortable with using that content in 2022. And please, stop animating your pins in Canva and calling it video content. It’s not going to cut it in 2022.

Conclusion on Pinterest Best Practices for 2022

Pinterest is changing in 2022. The way you pin has changed and going forward, you’re going to have to put in more effort on Pinterest than we’ve had to do in the past. But that doesn’t mean you’re alone! Email me at [email protected] to find out how my team can help you maximize your reach on Pinterest in 2022. We’re always here to help.

And if you’re ready to start growing on Pinterest in 2022, why not start with my 5-Day Pinterest Powerup? This fun, five-day course will take you through exactly how to get your first fans and readers from Pinterest. The 5-Day Pinterest Powerup sets you up for success on Pinterest. Learn more here.

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