A Step-by-Step Guide to Using Pinterest for Book Promotion

Pinners are buyers. Statistics show that Pinterest, more than any other social media site, drives sales. Pinterest users spend more money on shopping – an average of $50 more, according to Shopify, an ecommerce platform that tracks sales referred from social media. The sales statistics are startling, but Pinterest is a valuable tool for more than just direct selling – Pinterest, more than any other social media platform, can help you define and promote your author brand.

Used correctly, Pinterest allows authors to showcase their personalities, solidify their author brand and connect to new readers.

Getting Started on Pinterest

1. Create a Business Account. If you already have a personal profile on Pinterest, don’t worry – the site will convert your old account to a business one for you. Business accounts on Pinterest are free but they offer a number of benefits over a personal account, including the ability to add the word Author to your profile title and weekly analytic reports on pin views. You can create a business account here.

2. Fill Out Your Profile Using Keywords. Depending on the genre and type of book you write, these will vary, but should contain the words author or writer. Make sure you use this space both to describe what you do and let a bit of your personality show.

3. Start Creating Boards. Like offline bulletin boards, these are places to pin articles, photos and other content. Create as many boards as you want, centered around themes. If you’re new to Pinterest, start with 5 boards, each with 5 pins, and build from there. Think creatively about your boards, with your target audience in mind, and then make boards that will appeal to as broad an audience as possible.

EXAMPLE: If you write fantasy romance novels, you could create a board called “fantasy images” that you use to post images from books, movies and artists that are fantasy-themed. You can add book covers, clothing, quotes – anything that revolves around fantasy. And, of course add your book cover/link to buy to this board. WHY IT WORKS: You reach and connect with Pinners who are interested in fantasy in general, not just those searching for a book. The more varied the subject matter of your boards, the more people you are likely to reach. Pinterest works best when authors reach out to find new readers, instead of waiting for book buyers to come to them.

Other board ideas: Mood Boards that use images to convey your book’s ambiance, feel or setting; Writing Tips Boards; Inspirational Quote Boards; Book Promotion Articles Boards; Book Cover Art Boards, Favorite Authors Boards, Book Lists – Lists of Summer Reads or Top 100 Books. You can even have shopping and recipe boards – as long as they somehow tie into the kind of book you write or showcase your personality as an author.

Mix Content About 80 percent of the content on Pinterest is re-pinned from other boards. Which is fine – you will find wonderful things to pin from the boards of others and re-pinning is a key part of networking on Pinterest. But if you add new content, you’re more likely to get noticed, so try to mix your boards so that they contain fifty percent re-pins and fifty percent new content you’ve added. .

4. Get a Pin it Button. Install a pin-it button on your browser, so that as you use the internet you can instantly add new content to your Pinterest boards. Pin-it buttons save time and trouble and instant pinning from any website means you don’t have to bookmark or remember to come back to a site later. You can get a pin-it button here.

5. Label Pins Correctly. Make sure that you’re using keywords on each and every pin.Meaning, describe the pin fully. Never pin an image with a name like: img;43994 or it will never be found. You can experiment with keywords, based on the anyalytics Pinterest sends you or even using a keyword tool like Google’s Keyword Planner

6. Follow, Like & Re-Pin. Pinterest is like all social media in that it only works if it’s reciprocal. Simply pinning your books or images without networking with others won’t get you very far. Try to follow as many relevant people as possible, like others’ pins and re-pin them and you will get a lot more out of Pinterest.

For More Board Ideas, Visit Readers+Writers Journal on Pinterest.