Even though Pinterest gets lumped in with other social media platforms, it’s actually a visual search engine that relies on keywords to identify what a pin is about. Basically, keywords tell Pinterest WHO to show your pins to.
So, that means finding the right keywords to attract your ideal customer or client is paramount to your success on the platform.
Keywords are the lifeline of your Pinterest marketing strategy. Without them, you’re pinning without purpose and won’t get the results you desire.
The goal is to rank your content just like you do on Google.
So, how exactly do you find keywords to target on Pinterest?
Let’s dig in to find ALL the places where keywords live on Pinterest, shall we?
Pinterest Keyword Research
Once you have your business account set up, researching keywords on Pinterest should be the first step you complete BEFORE you start pinning.
Keywords are the lifeline to your Pinterest strategy and are used to optimize your account, pins, and content.
So, take the time to create a keyword bank (which is a spreadsheet where you list keywords that are PERFECT for your content) that you can reference over and over again.
Still unsure about creating a keyword bank? Think of it this way – you will actually save time creating one – perform the research once and then refer to it when you’re creating a board or pin. It’s also nice to have when you’re creating content on your website or blog – include keywords there too!
How To Research Keywords on Pinterest
When you sit down to find keywords on Pinterest, think about what your ideal client or customer is typing in to find content like yours.
For example, if you’re a health coach that focuses on helping clients reduce anxiety and stress, you would start with ‘how to reduce stress’ or ‘how to reduce anxiety’ and go from there.
Let’s look at the places to actually start finding keywords on Pinterest though, okay?
Using The Guided Search Bar for Pinterest Keyword Research
The most popular way to find good keywords on Pinterest has been to use the guided search bar located at the top of the homepage.
Click to the home feed on your Pinterest business account and you’ll see a search bar or a magnifying glass at the top – click on either of these and you’ll be using Pinterest’s guided search.
Here’s what it looks like:
Enter your search term and Pinterest will display colored tiles with word combinations that are relevant and closely related to your first search term. Consider your first search as your “seed” keyword and make note of the words in the colored tiles that are the most relevant to your initial search. Enter them in your keyword bank.
Here’s what it looks like:
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You can click on the colored tiles and find more related keywords – but I will warn you, it can be like going down a rabbit hole and you might get lost for hours! That’s why I recommend creating a keyword bank – it’s to save time but also to organize your keywords!
A NOTE: Using the guided search has historically been the most popular way to find good keywords on Pinterest. But times are changing and Pinterest is evolving and some business accounts no longer have access to the colored tile search results.
But, fear not! There is a workaround. Simply type your keywords in the search bar and watch the related keywords drop down. You can use your seed keyword and then a, b, c, and so on to grab the related search terms.
Using Related Keywords in the Search Results
Another way to find keywords on Pinterest is to enter keywords into the guided search bar, hit enter, and then scroll down until you see related searches on Pinterest.
You MIGHT be thinking they’ll be the same ones you can find in the search results that we already went over, but, no my friend – Pinterest often returns RELATED search terms using completely different word combinations that are still RELEVANT to what you’re searching.
Here’s what it looks like:
In the example above, I searched ‘how to reduce stress’ and scrolled down until I saw the related search terms. From there, I would make note of the search terms and use them as seed keywords to find more relevant searches my ideal person is using to find my content.
Using The Pinterest Ads Manager Keyword Field
There are a lot of Pinterest experts out there that have labeled where you fill in keywords when you’re setting up an ad campaign as the Pinterest keyword tool.
It actually isn’t but it is the one place on Pinterest that you can type in a keyword and see the search volume. Pinterest gives you a very broad range but you can at least identify how popular a search term is and whether it’s worth your time and effort.
Here’s how to get to the keyword area within the ads manager on Pinterest (don’t worry we won’t be creating an ad 🙂 )
In the top left-hand corner of your business account click on Ads => Create Ad => select a consideration campaign (this is simply to get past this step and no you’re definitely not launching an ad 😉 ) => Scroll past the campaign name and status and click continue => Under targeting details select ‘choose your own’ to unlock the additional targeting tools => scroll down to ‘Keywords & Interests’ and toggle it => Select ‘add keywords’ => from there you should see ‘search for related keywords’ => enter your seed keyword and watch it populate with related search terms.
Here’s what it looks like:
Using the Pinterest Trends Tool
In January of 2020, Pinterest rolled out its trends tool.
Not only is the trends tool a great way to find keywords on Pinterest, but it’s also fantastic at showing you when certain content does well on Pinterest.
If you’re in an evergreen niche, chances are your content will perform well all year (think food bloggers, home decor) but if you have a more seasonal slant or aspect to your business, it’ll be good to know when to start pinning your content to maximize success. So, with the trends tool, you can find great keywords AND understand when your content will do well.
Currently, you can only research trends for Canada, US, and the UK.
Here’s a snapshot of what the Pinterest trends tool looks like in action:
Pinterest Keyword Tool
After seeing the many ways to find keywords on Pinterest you might wonder if there is a Pinterest keyword tool similar to all of the ones on the market for Google search terms. Sadly, there is no official Pinterest keyword tool.
There is, however, 3rd party tech and publishers that claim to have a Pinterest keyword tool. I would use these with caution. Honestly, at this time, there is no real need for an official keyword tool for Pinterest.
Pinterest Keyword Strategy
So, great, you’ve figured out how to find keywords on Pinterest but now what do you do with them?
Here are some quick notes to keep in mind when you’re creating your Pinterest keyword strategy:
- Make sure to research keywords for every step on your ideal client or customer journey on Pinterest.
- Optimize your profile name and description with some keywords.
- Create your boards using your keywords.
- Use the keywords in your board descriptions.
- Sprinkle as many keywords into your pin descriptions.
- Use keywords in your text overlay.
- Use some of your Pinterest keywords in your content – in your blog posts, articles, sales pages, product descriptions, and anything else where you can add them and sound natural.
Okay! You now know exactly how to find keywords on Pinterest.
Start with using the guided search bar but don’t forget to check out the related search terms when you scroll through the keyword results. If seeing search volume is important to you, make sure to use the Pinterest ads keyword tool.
Make sure to create a Pinterest keyword bank – this will save you time and keep your keywords organized. Having a keyword bank will also help you plan your content for Pinterest.
Tell me, have you got your Pinterest keywords figured out?