Pinterest is one of the most powerful promotional tools for startups- but it’s also one of the least used, too. The platform’s reputation does it a bit of a disservice. When you think of Pinterest, what do you think of? Halloween costumes? Nail art? Gluten-free cake recipes? But, if you’re a Korean startup, you need to change this perspective and add Pinterest to your marketing arsenal. Here are a few reasons why you should use Pinterest to promote your Korean startup.
Reasons for Korean Startups to Use Pinterest
Pinners Want to Buy
Probably the prime reason to get on Pinterest is the captive audience, eagerly waiting with their wallets open. Research shows that 87% of Pinterest users have made a purchase because of Pinterest. In addition to this, 93% of pinners state that they specifically use Pinterest to plan a future purchase.
If you’re looking to make some sales, these are great eyes to have on your product!
Pinners make Big Purchases
For startups selling high ticket items, Pinterest is a great marketing platform. The average value of a Pinterest purchase is $58.59 according to research by Shopify, the highest of all social media platforms.
Reach a Global Audience
Just because you’re a Korean startup, doesn’t mean you only have to promote your product to people living in Korea. Pinterest has 175 million users living all around the world, giving your brand a competitive edge in the global market.
High Footfall
2 million Pinterest users use the platform to shop “rich shopping pins” every day- that’s 20 times the amount of people who shop at the Mall of America!
Pinners have Pennies to Spend
Pinners have higher purchasing power for a reason. 50% of users on the platform are making over $50k per year, and 10% are making over $125k.
Pinners want to Connect with Brands
What’s the main reason why pinners use Pinterest? They want to create a collage of the lifestyle they aspire to have. To do this, they try to find brands that echo the lifestyle they desire. By putting your brand in front of their eyes, you could find yourself a loyal customer to your Korean startup.
How to Use Pinterest to Promote your Korean Startup
Create Boards that Reflect your Brand
The first step to using Pinterest to promote your Korean startup is creating boards that reflect your brand.
To do this, you should consider, what is it that you and your audience love? Are you a health and wellness company? Maybe, you could create a board with the best green juice recipes, a board for at home yoga routines and a board for workout clothes.
But, how many boards should you create? I’d say at least 12, but the sky’s the limit!
The trick is to make your Pinterest account a one-stop source for everything your potential customers need to create the lifestyle they aspire to.
Pin from Other Brands
Your Pinterest board isn’t just a place to promote your Korean startup: it’s also a place to curate the things you love, too. By pinning from other brands that are bigger than you- and pinning their well-performing content, you’ll get more followers for your own boards. And, more followers means one thing: more eyes on your products when you start promoting them.
Get a Pinterest Business Account
If you have a website, setting up a business account is simple. When you do this, you’ll be able to create something called a “rich pin.” A rich pin contains more contextual information about your pin. For products, this would include real-time pricing and a direct link to where to buy your product.
Create Gorgeous Pins for your Products
Pinterest is a highly visual platform so, it should go without saying that your pins should be nothing less than gorgeous. The style of pin you create depends on the type of product you’re trying to push. For some categories, such as travel, long images with a clear text overlay work best. However, for shopping pins, square images can look more natural, depending on the shape of your product.
We’d also recommend using images that put your product into context, rather than just pinning direct shots of it. For example, if your product is a pair of city shorts, why not use a full-length image of them styled beautifully on a model with New York City in the background?
It’s also said that warm colors such as red, brown and orange work best on Pinterest. But, does that mean you should try to incorporate these images into all of your pins?
Not exactly.
Instead, stick to the branding colors you’ve already chosen for your company. You should be trying to tell a story about your brand through Pinterest so make sure that everything is always cohesive and instantly recognizable. This is the best way to promote your Korean startup.
Pay Attention to Pinterest SEO
Pinterest, at its heart, is just another search engine- but its highly visual looks make that easy to forget. It’s not a platform like Instagram where you can get by on looks and hashtags alone. Instead, you need to what you would to rank on Google and pay attention to SEO.
At present, Pinterest doesn’t have dedicated keyword research tools, but it’s possible to do your own using the autocomplete in the search bar. Searchers on Pinterest use different terms than searchers on Google so be sure to use Pinterest specific keywords in your Pin descriptions to help them reach more eyes.
Are You Going to Use Pinterest to Promote your Korean Startup?
It’s clear that Pinterest is an amazing tool to use to promote your Korean startup and one that you definitely shouldn’t be ignoring. We hope that our tips will help you make the most of the platform and demystify some of the myths surrounding it.
For more tips and inspiration on how to promote your Korean startup, check out these articles:
- Entrepreneurs in Korea: Turn your Passion into Profit
- Tips for Korean Startups
- How to Become a Successful Startup Entrepreneur
Leave us a comment: what’s your favorite social media platform to help promote your Korean startup?
