What is the Difference Between a Pinterest Strategist, Pinterest Manager, and Pinterest VA?
Last Updated: January 9, 2026
If you’re an online business owner looking to outsource your Pinterest marketing strategy, you’ve probably come across a few titles to describe people who help businesses with Pinterest.
You might be overwhelmed or confused about what type of help you want to outsource.
There are Pinterest strategists, managers, and VAs – which is excellent, but what do the titles mean, and, more importantly, what do each of them DO?
I will break down each one and then tell you what I recommend hiring, depending on where you are in your business growth.
What is a Pinterest VA
As the name suggests, a Pinterest VA is a virtual assistant specializing in Pinterest tasks.
They are equipped to help you get your content on Pinterest and are usually masters in scheduling, research, and general maintenance of your Pinterest marketing strategy.
A Pinterest VA doesn’t typically create the actual Pinterest marketing strategy.
Pinterest virtual assistants are pros at delivering the different pieces of the overall Pinterest marketing strategy; they are not experts at creating it.
If you can understand Pinterest and build your strategy for the platform, a Pinterest VA will be a perfect asset to your marketing team.
If you’re not versed in Pinterest marketing and need more support, you’re going to need a Pinterest manager or a Pinterest strategist.
RELATED READ: The 5 Pillars of a Solid Pinterest Marketing Strategy
What is a Pinterest Manager
I won’t pretend that a Pinterest manager and a Pinterest strategist are not closely related.
In this section, we’ll discuss what a Pinterest manager is and what they can do for your business.
In short, a Pinterest manager manages their client’s business account.
Tasks include creating pins, scheduling, tracking analytics, and trends.
Pinterest managers create and implement a Pinterest marketing strategy and handle all tasks ON Pinterest.
A Pinterest manager doesn’t do anything that is not completed ON Pinterest.
For example, they do not help you align your content marketing strategy with your Pinterest strategy.
Instead, they are exclusively responsible for your ON Pinterest strategy.
That brings us to what exactly a Pinterest strategist is.
RELATED READ: What does a Pinterest Manager Do?
What is a Pinterest Strategist
Remember when I said that a Pinterest manager and a Pinterest strategist are similar?
The roles are comparable, but there is one significant difference.
A Pinterest strategist runs the ON Pinterest marketing strategy and assists clients with OFF Pinterest tasks, such as what content to create (in some cases, creating the content themselves).
They advise on upcoming trends, pay attention to search intent, and provide direction for a client’s overall marketing strategy to align with their Pinterest goals.
If you’re like me, you probably need an example to visualize the difference.
Pinterest Manager: takes the list of content YOU give them, creates pins, and handles everything needed to run the Pinterest marketing strategy.
Sometimes, the Pinterest manager will run the strategy using pins you have created and delivered to them.
They’ll track all the metrics and report their findings to you.
You’ll have to interpret the reports and adjust your Pinterest marketing strategy as needed.
Pinterest Strategist: pulls content, creates pins, and does all the things needed to run the Pinterest marketing strategy.
They’ll also track key metrics and adjust the Pinterest marketing strategy as needed.
A Pinterest strategist also advises on the overall business’s Pinterest marketing strategy.
A Pinterest strategist will also advise whether content should be created or updated for optimal success.
Above all else, both a Pinterest manager and a Pinterest strategist will stay up-to-date on strategies, tactics, and best practices when it comes to your Pinterest marketing.
Related Read: How To Determine the ROI of Hiring a Pinterest Manager
What Pinterest Support to Hire
The type of Pinterest support you choose will depend on how much time and knowledge you have of Pinterest as a marketing platform.
The amount you’ve set aside in your marketing budget may also dictate what type of Pinterest help you can hire.
You need to dig in and determine the level of help that will move the needle.
If you’ve got a Pinterest strategy that’s working but it’s burning you out, hiring a Pinterest VA is a good move.
If you are confused and overwhelmed by Pinterest, you must decide between a Pinterest manager and a Pinterest strategist.
Choosing between a manager and a strategist will depend on how much support you need both on and off Pinterest.
I love helping online businesses with their Pinterest marketing.
Make sure to check out my Pinterest management and strategy services.
In Conclusion…
There are three different levels of Pinterest marketing support to choose from if one of your goals is to outsource some (or all) of the work needed for a solid Pinterest marketing strategy.
A Pinterest VA is perfect if you want to maintain control of your strategy but don’t have the time to handle all the tasks needed to run it yourself.
A Pinterest manager is a good choice if you want everything handled on Pinterest while still maintaining control of the overall marketing strategy for Pinterest.
A Pinterest strategist is a good choice if you want someone to manage and run the whole Pinterest strategy for you. This will include tasks for ON Pinterest and tasks for OFF Pinterest.
No matter what you decide, you can get help with your Pinterest marketing strategy that feels right for your business.
The first question to think about is how involved you want to be.
The second question to consider is how much knowledge of Pinterest the person I’m hiring should have.
Digging in and answering those questions will give you the direction needed when choosing who to hire.
Comment below to let me know what you think about the differences between a Pinterest VA, a Pinterest manager, and a Pinterest strategist.
Want to hire a Pinterest manager and strategist? Make sure to check out my Pinterest management services.
