We've said it before, but it's worth repeating: Pinterest is a visual search engine. Because it's a search engine, users will need to enter certain keywords to find the content they're looking for. Doing your keyword research ahead of time allows you to get an idea of what sort of content people are looking for so you can tailor your own content to fit their needs.
In this post, we'll talk about
- Why keywords are important
- How you can research keywords for Pinterest
- Where to place those keywords
So let's get into it!
Why keywords are important
When someone visits Pinterest, their goal is to find content that matches exactly what they're looking for. So if I'm looking for a recipe for an Instant Pot beef stew, I'm going to visit Pinterest and enter the keywords “Instant Pot beef stew” in the hopes that Pinterest will show me exactly what I want.
Conversely, if you're the blogger working on a recipe for Instant Pot beef stew, you'd want Pinterest users to be able to find your recipe! That's why you'd want to make sure that your content contains the keywords “Instant Pot beef stew.” Not just “beef stew” or “Instant Pot,” but all of that combined. That way, your content doesn't get lost in the midst of all of the Instant Pot & beef stew Pins!
How to do keyword research
So now that we know what keywords are and why they're important, how can you set your content up for success?
This is where the Pinterest search bar comes in! Just start typing in a keyword related to your topic or niche and see what comes up, like so:
This gives you an idea of some of the most popular search terms related to your topic. In this instance, I may want to look at developing an Instant Pot mac and cheese recipe!
For example, based on these keywords, you can tell that users are searching for easy Instant Pot recipes. With that in mind, you can think about curating an Instant Pot mac and cheese recipe or even mashed potatoes!
Where do you place your keywords?
The good news here is that you're likely already putting your keywords in the right place! But just to be 100% sure, we'll go over where you should be placing them exactly.
Pinterest descriptions
Before you put anything on Pinterest, make sure that you're entering your keywords into your Pinterest descriptions through Tasty Pins. Tasty Pins makes it easy to add and optimize your Pinterest image descriptions!
Want to learn more about writing great Pinterest descriptions? Check out this article from the WP Tasty blog:
Learn more from the WP Tasty blog
How to write great Pinterest descriptions
Your profile
If your blog targets a certain niche or audience, make that clear in your profile! For example, if you're a keto food blogger, try to mention that in your business name and your profile description.
Here, we can see Crazy for Crust‘s niche immediately: easy recipes and desserts!
Your boards
Last, but certainly not least, let's not forget about your Pinterest boards. We recommend including keywords in your board titles and descriptions.
Using Crazy for Crust as an example again, she has a board set up for Comfort Foods (the keyword in this case) and has written up a short summary in her board description.
And that's the scoop on doing keyword research for Pinterest! The key (heh) to keyword research is to think of what your target audience would search for. Keyword research ensures that the right people find your content and in turn helps you build traffic and engagement on your site. A win-win situation for everyone!
