Affiliate Marketing on Pinterest: Best Money Making Tips (2024)

Picture a rhythm in classical music (yes, Mozart-esque or Beethoven-esque) that somehow fits perfectly into your upbeat morning run.

It might seem like a curveball, but the best mixes are often unexpected.

Here’s an idea (that might apply to your business):

• What if we take the text-based affiliate marketing world and give it a makeover?
• What if we had affiliate marketing and Pinterest combined?

The numbers might even work out in our favor – if Pinterest were a country, it would be the third largest in the world! Bigger than the United States.

Now that’s a big audience to engage (and sell to).

At the same time, it’s also about sparking an idea, offering something that makes someone go, “I want to try this!”.

Image credit: giphy.com

After all, Pinterest is a playground for the creative.

In this article, I’ll show you how to use Pinterest for affiliate marketing to increase your profitability and maximize your business reach.

Doing Affiliate Marketing On Pinterest

Here are some reasons why affiliate marketing on Pinterest can help you succeed:

Promoting Links Directly

One of the easiest ways to promote your affiliate links on Pinterest is to share the links directly.

Add affiliate links to your pins or create a dedicated board for your affiliate products.

Ensure you disclose that your pins contain affiliate links to stay on the right side of Pinterest’s guidelines.

Driving Traffic To Other Platforms

Another effective way to use Pinterest for affiliate marketing is to drive traffic to other platforms.

Create pins that lead to your blog or website, where you can promote your affiliate links.

Similarly, you can create pins that lead directly to your affiliate partner’s website.

Such pins allow you to reach a wider audience and increase your chances of making a sale.

Leveraging Pinterest’s Shopping Features

If you promote physical products through affiliate marketing, you can take advantage of Pinterest’s shopping features.

By creating shoppable pins, you can tag your products with affiliate links, making it easy for your followers to purchase directly from the pin.

It’s a highly effective way to increase your sales and earn more commissions.

Master Pinterest Affiliate Marketing

Before stepping into affiliate marketing, understanding your target audience is crucial.

You need to know the kind of content your audience searches for and provide relevant affiliate links.

Beginners learning how to make money on Pinterest should start by analyzing the demographics of their target audience.

Doing so will help them create audience-specific content.

Bloggers and influencers can then create eye-catching content that resonates with their audience.

Your content will also be consistent, whether it’s on your site’s landing pages and blog design, pins, offers, or any other marketing material you create.

Pinterest provides marketing tools and an analytics dashboard to measure your audience’s interests, behaviors, and search activities.

Utilize these tools to provide value to your target audience.

To succeed in the affiliate industry, stay updated with trending keywords.

Pinterest provides a feature called “Pinterest Trends,” which helps you identify the current trending keywords.

Competitor Research

Competitor research can also play a vital role in affiliate marketing.

Competitor analysis lets you track your competitor’s content and determine which type attracts the audience.

You can then design a content strategy that provides real value to your target audience.

Pinterest firmly enforces its community guidelines to maintain a trusted and safe user environment.

Affiliate marketers are not an exception to these guidelines.

Understanding and adhering to these guidelines is essential to maintain trust with your audience.

Rules To Consider

Some guidelines include not promoting deceptive or misleading content, following copyright laws, and not using sexually explicit content.

The FTC regulates affiliate marketing, ensuring affiliate marketers do not mislead the audience.

Disclosing the links’ nature when promoting affiliate links or products is essential.

Label disclaimers clearly and appropriately with the words “Sponsored,” “Paid,” or “Affiliated.”

Disclosures improve transparency for your audience and prevent issues with the FTC.

Cloaking is a black hat practice of masking a URL that displays a different link from the actual link.

Affiliate marketers should avoid cloaking links, which goes against Pinterest community guidelines.

Furthermore, providing clear and straightforward directions to your audience is crucial.

Direct your audience to view the content without pressuring them into clicking an affiliate link.

To maintain relevance in affiliate marketing, keep your recommendations fresh and up to date.

Rigorously updating your content and providing appropriate affiliations helps you build trust with your target audience.

Producing And Analyzing Original Content

Posting original material helps you stand out in the affiliate industry, promoting a unique perspective.

Measuring traffic and testing your links are integral to succeeding in Pinterest affiliate marketing.

Testing links helps you identify the links working for you, ensuring you provide value to your target audience.

Track your traffic using tools like Google Analytics and adjust your content appropriately.

Utilizing The Tools Pinterest Offers

As a platform, Pinterest provides many tools and strategies to the affiliate marketer.

Pinterest is a platform focused on images and visuals.

It is an excellent fit for affiliates promoting visual products such as fashion, food and drinks, household goods, and health and fitness products.

The platform’s emphasis on high-quality images can increase your website traffic and your affiliate link clicks.

You can create different pins featuring the same product in various settings to appeal to users with different styles and tastes.

Furthermore, tags on Pinterest work well for SEO bloggers as they refer to the keywords that bring traffic to your website, ensuring your pins reach the right audience.

Unlike other platforms where adding affiliate links can be risky, Pinterest is an open and user-friendly environment where affiliate links are more accepted.

You can incorporate affiliate links in your pins’ descriptions to monetize your pins while helping your followers find the products they are interested in.

Integrating affiliate links into pins is less intrusive than other platforms, giving users a more organic experience and keeping affiliate links hidden from plain sight.

Pinterest is an effective platform for driving traffic and sales and building social media platforms.

Through your pins, you can establish your brand’s identity by creating boards that showcase your brand’s themes and values.

As part of your social media marketing campaigns, you can also repin pins that align with your brand’s purpose and mission.

Doing so creates a loyal following of customers who share your vision.

Furthermore, affiliate links in your pins create opportunities for affiliate marketing to flourish, generating passive income and boosting traffic from potential customers visiting your page.

Steps To Mastering Affiliate Marketing On Pinterest

Here are the critical steps to mastering affiliate marketing on Pinterest.

Determine Your Audience’s Interests

A successful affiliate marketing campaign on Pinterest begins with understanding your audience’s wants.

Analyze your Pinterest analytics to see which pins receive the most engagement and clicks.

Use this information to identify their interests, preferences, and pain points.

Then, conduct keyword research to discover affiliate products in demand depending on your audience’s behaviors and searches.

Find High-Quality Products With Generous Commission Rates

Once you have identified your audience’s interests, search for affiliate products that match their needs.

Look for products with high-quality pictures and descriptions, which are more likely to attract clicks and boost conversions.

Also, consider products with generous commission rates, ideally 20% or more.

Digital products like ebooks, courses, and software typically offer higher commission rates than physical products.

Popular affiliate networks like Amazon Affiliates, Rakuten Advertising, and ShareASale offer a vast range of products, making it easy to find what suits your niche.

Reach Out To Companies Without An Affiliate Program

Don’t be afraid to reach out to companies without established affiliate programs.

Some of them may not be aware of the benefits of affiliate marketing, and your proposal could spark their interest.

Furthermore, you can use plugins like WP Ultimate Affiliate Pro and Affiliates Manager to create your affiliate program.

These tools allow you to set your commission rates and promote your products to other affiliates.

Familiarize Yourself With The Platform’s Terms And Conditions.

Before promoting your affiliate products on Pinterest, ensure you have familiarized yourself with the platform’s terms and conditions.

Violating the rules can result in account suspension or even legal action.

Some platforms, like Amazon Associates, have specific guidelines on how to promote their products.

Be sure to read and understand all the rules before designing your promotional campaigns.

Learning About Pinterest’s Pin Formats

Knowing which pins to use for affiliate marketing can be confusing because there are so many pin formats.

Standard And Video Pins

Standard and Video Pins are the bread and butter of Pinterest marketing.

These are the pins that show up in search results and get shared across the platform.

They’re great for driving traffic to your website or sales page and are easy to create.

You can use images or videos to showcase your product or service, and you can include a text overlay with a call-to-action (CTA) to encourage click-throughs.

When creating Standard or Video Pins, it’s essential to use high-quality images or videos that catch the eye.

You’ll also want to use relevant keywords in your description and hashtags to help users find your pins.

Finally, make sure your CTAs are clear and compelling – tell users why they should click on your pin and what they’ll get if they do.

Idea Pins

Idea Pins are a newer format that allows you to create more immersive, interactive content.

These are similar to Instagram Stories, with images, videos, and text slides that tell a story.

This Pinterest pin is perfect for showcasing products or services more visually engagingly.

They’re also great for building your brand and connecting personally with your audience.

When creating Idea Pins, tell a story that resonates with your target audience.

Use high-quality images and videos that showcase your products in action, and include text overlays that provide additional context.

You can also add music, voiceovers, and other audio elements to make your Idea Pins more engaging.

Using Canva To Create Stunning Pins

Canva is a design platform that makes creating professional-looking pins in minutes easy.

You can choose from various templates and design elements or create your own from scratch.

Canva also has built-in tools for optimizing your pins, such as resizing for different platforms and adding brand colors and logos.

Building Trust With Images, Videos, And Slides

Building trust with your audience is crucial when creating pins – whether Standard, Video, or Idea.

You can incorporate images and videos showcasing your product in action or use slides to tell a story that resonates with your target audience.

You can also use testimonials or social proof to show that people trust your product or service.

When building trust with your pins, create authentic and honest content.

Show real people using your products or services, or share your personal story to connect with your audience.

Remember, the goal is to build a relationship with your target audience, eventually leading to sales.

Using Affiliate Links On Pins

As most of your pins should focus on building trust, you can also add direct affiliate links to some of your pins.

Executing it correctly helps ensure your audience does not feel turned off by the sales approach.

Here’s all you need to know about using affiliate links on pins.

Desktop vs. Mobile

The first thing you need to do is understand that there are different types of pins on Pinterest that you can use depending on your content needs.

Standard and Video Pins work best on desktop, while Idea Pins work best on the mobile app.

Limited Affiliate Networks

Pinterest only allows affiliates to use affiliate links from Amazon Associates, Rakuten Advertising, ShopStyle Collective, and other select affiliate networks.

Therefore, you’ll have to sign up for one (or all) of these networks to get started.

Once you have a profile with these networks, you can start incorporating your affiliate links into your pins.

Custom Product Tags

Enhance your Idea Pins with custom product tags before publishing to showcase your products further and highlight their unique features.

You can do this by selecting “Add product” and filling in the product details and images.

It provides additional information to your audience and helps with search engine optimization (SEO).

Supercharge Your Pinterest Presence With Rich Pins

Rich Pins are pins that provide additional information beyond the standard description.

There are four types of Rich Pins: product, recipe, article, and app.

Product pins display pricing, availability, and purchase information, while recipe pins show ingredients, cooking time, and serving size.

Article pins include the headline, author, and article description, and app pins include an install button.

By providing more details, Rich Pins make it easier for users to decide whether to click through to your website or save the pin for later.

Add meta tags to your website and validate your Rich Pins with Pinterest to enable Rich Pins.

It requires some technical knowledge, but it’s not too complicated.

First, you need to add the appropriate meta tags to your website.

For example, you must add Open Graph tags to your product pages for product pins.

Next, you must validate your Rich Pins using the Pinterest Rich Pin Validator.

Once you’ve validated your pins, you can apply for approval from Pinterest.

Approval takes 24-48 hours.

You only need to set up Rich Pins once, and they will appear on all future pins from your website.

Group boards are boards that multiple Pinterest users can contribute to.

By joining relevant group boards in your niche, you can reach a wider audience and increase engagement with your pins.

To find group boards to join, search for your niche on Pinterest and look for boards with multiple contributors.

Follow the board guidelines and only share high-quality, relevant content.

Remember to promote your pins on group boards and engage with other users’ content by commenting and repinning.

To maximize your Pinterest presence, optimize your profile with relevant keywords.

Use keywords in your account bio, pin descriptions, and board descriptions.

It helps your content appear in search results and makes it easier for users to find your pins.

You should also use high-quality images for your pins and make sure your website is visually appealing and easy to navigate.

By following these tips, you’ll be able to improve your Pinterest presence and attract more traffic to your website.

Understanding Pinterest SEO

Pinterest’s algorithm favors fresh content, high-quality images, relevant keywords, and engagement.

Pin images should be high-quality and visually appealing while incorporating relevant keywords and hashtags for improved SEO.

Additionally, optimizing pin descriptions with relevant keywords and hashtags can further improve the visibility and ranking of your pins on Pinterest boards.

By understanding Pinterest SEO and utilizing these tactics, affiliate marketers can increase their visibility and drive website traffic from their Pinterest profiles.

Effective Pinterest Scheduling

Consistent pinning is critical to maintaining engagement with followers and driving traffic to your website.

Utilizing scheduling tools like Tailwind can significantly simplify the pinning process and help maintain engagement.

By scheduling new pins in advance, you can maintain a steady stream of content without constantly being on Pinterest.

It is essential to strategically schedule pins on specific Pinterest boards and pin them for maximum exposure at the best times.

This step-by-step process can help boost your Pinterest business account’s visibility and lead to increased affiliate marketing success.

Analyzing Your Pinterest Affiliate Marketing

You can measure the success of your strategy through various metrics such as click-through rates, conversion rates, and affiliate sales.

Utilizing Pinterest Analytics is an effective way to track and analyze the performance of your strategy.

By monitoring the click-through and conversion rates, you can determine which pins and boards are most successful and adjust your strategy accordingly.

Building an email list and regularly communicating with your audience can increase your conversion rate and affiliate sales.

With over 400 million monthly active users, Pinterest provides a large audience base for your affiliate marketing efforts, making it essential to adapt your strategy based on data for optimal success.

Long-term Pinterest Affiliate Marketing

One key component is developing a content calendar for affiliate pins, which involves researching and selecting products to promote, creating engaging captions and images, and scheduling posts for optimal reach.

It’s vital to ensure you disclose affiliate links in compliance with FTC guidelines.

Another challenge is effectively managing and growing multiple affiliate programs at once.

That is, tracking performance metrics, optimizing partnerships, and identifying new opportunities.

Finally, evolving your Pinterest strategy with industry trends is critical for staying competitive and reaching new audiences.

It might involve experimenting with new formats, leveraging emerging technologies, or integrating with other marketing channels.

Businesses can see significant returns over time by taking a thoughtful and strategic approach to Pinterest affiliate marketing.

Final Tips To Earning Commission On Pinterest

Here are a few final tips to help you earn commission from your Pinterest account.

Set Clear Goals For Successful Affiliate Marketing On Pinterest

To be successful in affiliate marketing, set clear goals.

Determine your target audience, identify your niche, and set realistic income goals.

The key is to focus on quality over quantity.

It’s easier to earn a commission by targeting a smaller group of highly engaged followers than by trying to reach as many people as possible.

Promote Visual-Heavy Goods In Popular Niches

Pinterest is a visual search engine, which means images and visuals are essential.

Promote visually appealing products in popular niches like travel, food, health, and fitness.

These niches have highly engaged audiences that are looking for inspiration and ideas.

Other visually striking niches include DIY crafts and home decor.

Establish A Niche Before Joining An Affiliate Program

Before joining an affiliate program, establish your niche.

A niche will help you target a specific audience and make promoting offers relevant to your followers easier.

Choosing a program that aligns with your niche and offers products your audience will be interested in is also essential.

Many businesses offer affiliate programs with commission rates ranging from 5% to 50%, so choose one to help you reach your income goals.

Use Pinterest To Promote Offers For Established Programs

Once you’ve established your niche and joined an affiliate program, promote the products or services.

Create visually appealing pins that link directly to the product or service you’re promoting.

Remember to disclose that you’re using affiliate links.

Remember, Pinterest is all about inspiration and ideas, so be creative in your promotions.

Consider creating “how-to” guides, product reviews, or highlighting your favorite products.

Wrap Up.

In this ultimate guide on Pinterest, I’ve covered several affiliate marketing ideas you can implement today.

Promoting affiliate offers on Pinterest can be an effective way to earn a passive income.

Create visually appealing content, establish a niche before joining an affiliate program, and use Pinterest to promote your offers for the established programs.

You can become a successful affiliate marketer on Pinterest with patience and dedication.

Further reading on AdamEnfroy.com: Using Pinterest for blogging is another great way to drive traffic and get the word out about your products or services.

Building a successful blogging business that generates revenue is possible by following the right steps.