I have a confession to make.  I lied.

When I started using Pinterest to drive traffic to my blog, I didn't double my views.  I'm sorry to have misled you.

In fact, the first month that I introduced the strategy I'm about to tell you about, my traffic shot from 560 monthly views (which had been pretty standard until that point), up to 3041. 

So in fact, this Pinterest strategy nearly 6x my traffic! And it can do the same for you...

Ok, here are the steps to take to use Pinterest to double your blog traffic...

1) Create regular great content (well, duh!)

2) Create a simple template for your Pins

3) Use high quality images

4) Join group boards in your niche

5) Use a tool like Tailwind to schedule 40-50 Pins per day across all of your group boards

6) Sit drinking Margaritas as you watch the traffic rooolllll in! (Ok, this one's optional, but it's kinda my favourite...)

Sounds pretty simple, right?  That's because it is!

Now, to get the deets on each of the points above, just read on because I'm going to lay it alllll out for you...

Ok, so this isn't so much a Pinterest strategy as an overall online business strategy! If you're not doing this, why on earth would anyone want to visit your blog, right?

'Nuff said.

(Ok, not quite - I've actually written a post on the subject of creating great content - you should have a read if this is something you're struggling with)

This is all about keeping things super simple and NOT taking hours and hours of your time creating content and promoting it...

So, with that in mind, I've created a checklist that you can use for your blog posts.  It gives you each step you need to plan out your content, to create posts your audience will love AND then to promote them so you maximise on traffic and engagement.

And the BEST part?  It's FREEEEEEEEEE!

This has multiple benefits.  Firstly, you're going to save yourself a whole heap of time because you can just use the same template over and over again, but replace the title and the image itself.

Secondly, by using a template, you create brand consistency and become more recognisable.

Oh hello, brand visibility!

Below is an example from my own Pinterest account (you should definitely check that out btw.. ?)

See how I've used my brand colours and fonts to create a simple template that I can use again and again?

Oh, and if you're not sure where to start to create your template, I HIGHLY recommend Canva - it's free, so go and have a play and see what you think!

Pinterest is a visual channel.  Users are looking for great content, sure - BUT their eye is going to be caught by a fantastic image too.  Don't skimp on this.  It would be a real shame to waste all that effort you put into your post, by pairing it with a 'blah' image.

This part doesn't need to be rocket science.  Depending on your niche, you'll either take your own photos (in which case, I highly recommend doing some research if you're not an experienced photographer) or you'll use stock images.

I use Shutterstock because they are a credible and reliable source (the last thing you want is to be landed with a hefty fine because you've used an image that you didn't have the rights to use...) and they're also pretty reasonably priced. The package I have costs just £19 per month for 10 images, which I think is a bit of a steal! (And no, I'm not an affiliate - but I probably should be!)

This right here, is the heart of my whole Pinterest strategy. By joining group boards you are getting your Pins in front of new audiences - and by joining boards in your niche, you're getting in front of your ideal clients!

There are a few pretty simple ways to find boards to join.

Nothing beats a trusty old Google search (do you think saying nice things about Google in your posts improves your SEO? ?).

Just type "<your niche> Pinterest group boards" and see what comes up...

This can be a great way to connect with other Pinners and to find some really juicy boards to join.  I'm in the group, Pinterest Boards and it's full of people looking for contributors.  Why not go check it out?

Ok, here's a sneaky little strategy you can use.  Find out who the influencers are in your niche and go check out what group boards they're contributing to.  You can do that by clicking on their profile and then looking for boards like this:

See that bit with all the arrows pointing towards it? That indicates that it's a group board, ripe for the contributing! 

The reason this tactic works so well is because you know that if an influencer is contributing, it's going to be active and full of people to see and share your Pins!

So, now you've found a good selection of boards to contribute to, you can get Pinning, right?

Wrong.

There's one teensy-weensy step you still need to do.  You need to be invited.

You see, you can't contribute to a group board until you've received an invite from the board owner.  Don't worry though - it's usually pretty straightforward.

The group owner will tell you what their requirements are (check the board description if you're unsure).  Generally, you'll need to send them an email with your details (which at the very least, will be the email address from your Pinterest profile).  You'll also often be asked to follow the owner and the board itself.

Now, in some cases, board owners may add extra instructions such as subscribing to their email list.  It's up to you to decide how many hoops you're prepared to jump through to join! If it's a large, active group then I'd probably jump through a fair few....

Another popular Pinterest scheduler is Board Booster - but I use Tailwind.  Of the two, it's the one that's approved by Pinterest AND it comes with Tailwind Tribes which is another great source of Pinterest traffic.

But, I digress.  Today, we're talking Group Boards.  

Once you've joined a decent list of boards (at least 5), then you can start scheduling your posts.

You'll schedule ALL of your posts to ALL of your boards.

For example:

If you have 20 blog posts and you're contributing to 5 group boards, you'll be scheduling a total of 100 Pins.

WIth me so far?

Now, you want to schedule around 40-50 Pins per day, so in this example let's say (for the sake of simple maths!) that you'll be Pinning 50 times per day.

By scheduling all your posts to all of your group boards, you've just got 2 days with of Pins.

Now ideally, you don't want to be repeating yourself too often so you either need more posts to Pin OR more group boards to Pin to...

The fastest solution is more group boards, so if you only find yourself with a couple of days of content, keep joining boards until you can fill around a week.

Let's check back in with our example:

To fill a week, posting 50 times per day, you'll need to schedule 350 Pins.

As you only have 20 posts, you'll need to join around 17-18 group boards.

20 posts x 17 group boards = 340 Pins

All still making sense?  If not, feel free to ask me any questions in the comments!

Now just rinse and repeat - each time your scheduled Pins run out, re-schedule them again in the same way. Don't forget to add in your newly published posts and always be on the lookout for new and active boards to join.

If you want tons more tricks and techniques to create great posts and drive more traffic and engagement then you should DEFINITELY download this free checklist NOW...