Searchable Boards to Captivate Your Audience (Pinterest Basics Part 2)

Aug 12

This is the second part of my Pinterest Basics series where I will guide you through the Basics of Pinterest so that you can start your Pinterest marketing journey with a fully optimized, beautiful, and interesting Pinterest account.

Today we talk about Pinterest boards and how you can make them beautiful and searchable.

1. Number of Boards

Every other Pinterest "expert" recommends that you should start creating your Pinterest account with 10 boards.

I don't know if there's any real reason behind that advice or whether it is something that someone has just come up with at some point.

Oh well, you can start with 10 boards, 20 boards, or even just 5 boards if they are the ones that will attract your target audience on Pinterest. You can always add more boards so don't worry about it!

When I help my Pinterest clients optimize their Pinterest accounts, I always start with 20 boards and with 20 pins to each board.

So, forget the search for a magic number! There's no one-size-fits-all answer when it comes to the ideal number of boards. Instead, focus on building a solid foundation of relevant boards that truly resonate with your target audience. You can always add more boards later as your Pinterest presence grows, but starting strong is key.

2. Keyword Research for Your Boards

First, you should brainstorm what kind of boards your target audience would like to see.

When it comes to naming your boards and crafting descriptions, think like a search engine!

Utilize a mix of broad and long-tail keywords. Broad keywords capture general interest, while long-tail keywords are more specific and often have less competition.

Broad Keywords: These are general terms related to your niche (e.g., "fitness," "travel," "DIY").
Long-Tail Keywords: These are more specific phrases that people might use to search for something (e.g., "best home workout routines," "solo female travel tips," "easy upcycled projects").

By incorporating both types of keywords, you'll increase the chances of your boards appearing in relevant searches.

Note! Being too fancy on Pinterest is not a very effective strategy. Do not name your food recipes board "Yummy" as it will most probably not be seen on Pinterest searches.

You can have more than one board dedicated to similar kinds of pins. For example, you can have a board for "wedding flowers", and a board for "beautiful bridal bouquets".

Board Examples:

Remember, these are just a few ideas to get you started. Tailor your boards to your specific niche and brand to truly captivate your target audience.

Here's an example of potential optimized board names for a wedding gown vendor:

- wedding gowns 20xx

- wedding dresses

- wedding gowns with sleeves

- wedding gowns lace

- wedding gowns mermaid

- wedding dresses vintage

- wedding dresses ball gown

- wedding ideas

- wedding inspiration ideas

- summer wedding dress

- wedding guest dress

etc.

Notice how every board name is related to weddings. Keep the industry or niche-related boards on the top rows of your Pinterest account.

I ventured beyond the world of weddings to show you the possibilities!

Here are some diverse board ideas across different niches to spark your creativity:

Fitness: "Healthy Recipes," "At-Home Workouts," "Yoga Inspiration"
DIY Crafts: "Budget Home Decor," "Sustainable Living Hacks," "Sewing Tutorials for Beginners"
Travel: "Bucket List Destinations," "Adventure Travel Photography," "Solo Female Travel Tips"

3. Board Types

You should have certain boards that usually are pretty popular on Pinterest.

1. Your own content

Whether you are selling products, services, or just being an inspirational influencer, create at least two to five boards for your own content. Pin all your content to those boards. That way your followers and fans will easily find your content and they don't have to search it from the other boards.

Remember that you can (and absolutely SHOULD!) pin your own content to many different boards, not just that one board.

2. Seasonal boards and holiday boards

Pinterest is pretty seasonal and people are pinning things for holidays and different seasons.

For example, you can create boards for summer fashion, spring food, holiday gift guides, Thanksgiving recipes, Valentines’ table settings etc.

3. Client boards

Try to incorporate your clients in your Pinterest boards. You can create a board where you show your clients' Instagram photos when they are using your product or start pinning your client testimonials. There are multiple ways to create interactive Pinterest boards where your clients are the main focus.

4. Top categories Pinterest boards

I know there are Pinterest experts who say that stick to boards that are only relevant to your business. I partly agree with them but partly not.

You can create boards that fall under the top Pinterest categories to broaden your audience on Pinterest. If you do it sophisticated way, it won't harm your brand or business.

Try creating boards of top Pinterest categories home, DIY, food, fashion or travel.

Take action: Create different boards under different categories to broaden your Pinterest audience. Pin your own images to different boards, not just one board.

4. Beautify Your Boards

If you want to create a coherent look in your Pinterest account, consider creating a specific branded Pinterest board covers. With specific board covers you can brand your Pinterest to match your business' brand. That way your brand will also gain more brand exposure on Pinterest.

Another great option that I'm using for many of my clients is to deliberately choose the board cover image. Most of the time I try to create a coherent look by choosing cover images that have similar kinds of colors or aesthetics.

You can also choose images that will match your board's content well. For example, your gardening tips board could have a board cover image that is very earthy green.

Board Covers:

Branded Covers: Create custom board covers that reflect your brand identity for a cohesive look.
Cohesive Aesthetics: Choose cover images with a similar color scheme or style for a visually appealing flow.
Content-Matching Covers: Select cover images that accurately represent the board's content (e.g., gardening tips board with a nature-themed cover).

5. Board Descriptions (Pinterest SEO)

Captions matter on Pinterest! Optimize your board descriptions with relevant keywords (character limit: 500). It all comes to writing effective descriptions - this time it means you have to write keyword-rich descriptions for your boards.

Very few people will write effective and targeted board descriptions. It's a great way to get your boards to be discovered on Pinterest. Don't leave that board description area just blank but fill it up with your important keywords, and phrases.

If you don't know where to start when thinking about your Pinterest keywords, look first your website and blog. What kind of words you are using there? Are there any particular keywords that are driving traffic to your site? What are your blogging categories? Maybe those keywords could work on Pinterest, too!

You should search best Pinterest keywords with the help of Pinterest's search bar. When you start typing your keywords on Pinterest search, Pinterest will automatically suggest keywords to you. Try to find long tail keywords as general keywords have lots of competition on Pinterest.

Even though you are writing long and keyword-rich board descriptions, remember to keep them descriptive, too! You can just list your keywords and separate them with commas but I recommend using short paragraphs instead. "Keyword stuffing" is not a problem on Pinterest at the moment but everything can change so I recommend that you use whole sentences if possible when you tell people what kind of pins that certain board consists of.

You can also use Google Trends (it's free!) to find inspiration for your keywords.

Keyword Research: Use keywords from your website, blog, and Pinterest search suggestions.
Long-Tail Keywords: Target long-tail keywords for better searchability (e.g., "best vegan breakfast recipes" vs. "breakfast").
Descriptive Content: Don't just stuff keywords. Write clear, informative descriptions in short paragraphs about the board's content.
Google Trends: Explore Google Trends for trending topics and keywords related to your niche.

By following these tips, you'll be well on your way to crafting captivating and searchable Pinterest boards that attract your target audience and boost your brand awareness.

If you have missed the first part of Pinterest Basics series, you can find it here: Pinterest Basics 1

This blog post is updated with the help of AI (Gemini) on 24.6.2024.