Are Pinterest Group Boards Still Useful?
Pinterest Group Boards – are they dead?
Group boards on Pinterest can be a powerful tool to increase your reach, drive traffic to your website, and gain exposure for your brand. But finding the right group boards, joining them, and succeeding can be a daunting task. Fellow bloggers say group boards are dead, they’re full of spam etc, they don’t work any more. So are Pinterest group boards actually dead or just quite ill?
What is a Group Board on Pinterest?
A Pinterest group board is exactly that – a board where different Pinterest users can collaborate, and everyone can add pins to the board. Imagine you and your best friend are planning a trip to Mallorca – you can create a group board to pin your pins for hikes to take, best beaches etc and your friend can pin pins on holiday outfits, day trips etc. They are also commonly used by brides in wedding planning as you can add collaborators – adding all your suppliers to your Pinterest group boards is a great way to keep everyone on the same page when it comes to your wedding details.
Marketers quickly realised the power of Pinterest group boards and used them to share pins that were relevant to a specific niche. Recipe bloggers can collaborate and pin easy family dinner recipes, for example, or best vegetarian recipes. As the group board grows in size, the pins get shown more and more and in theory, you are exposing your content to a greater audience as the board appears on the profile of every collaborator – sounds great, right? Someone browsing the recipes from one blogger might discover the group board and discover your recipes, pin and love them.
The problem comes when the group boards get infiltrated by spammers, or Pinterest users become inactive. Spammers are so annoying and can really ruin a group board by pinning irrelevant content to it – I’ve seen one on a client account that is related to weddings and someone has added a kayaking section to it – WTF? When collaborators to the board become inactive (maybe they’re too busy to pin because they don’t have an amazing Pinterest manager doing it for them) for whatever reason, the effectiveness of the board can decline.
Pinterest group boards also work best when people save pins from the board onto other boards. If every group board member is active and saving pins from the group board as well as adding their own, the engagement level of the board goes up and the pins are distributed more, leading to even more saves from Pinterest users. Group boards tend to start out like this, but soon life gets in the way, people forget to save pins and it all goes to sh*t.
How to Tell if a Pinterest Group Board is Working For You
So you’ve found and joined a group board, but is it actually working? You can tell if a Pinterest group board is worth continuing to pin to by checking your analytics in Pinterest itself. Simply head to Analytics then scroll down to the bottom of the page where the Boards are, and you’ll see the stats for each board there. If you’re happy with the amount of engagement and clicks from the group board, great! If not, it might be worth dropping that board down your pinning priority schedule for now and focusing your efforts elsewhere.
How to Find and Join Pinterest Group Boards
Finding and joining Pinterest group boards may seem like a daunting task, but with the right strategies, it can be easier than you think. Here’s a step-by-step process to help you find and join the best group boards in your niche:
1. Define Your Niche
Before you start searching for group boards, it’s important to define your niche. Determine the topics you want to focus on and the audience you want to target. This will help you find group boards that align with your interests and goals. I wouldn’t entertain joining one of those “share everything” or “all niche” group boards – no-one in their right mind is going to look at those, so your content will end up buried under a load of spam. Choose niche-specific boards that fit with your content.
2. Utilize Pinterest Search
Pinterest has a search feature that allows you to find group boards related to your niche. Simply enter relevant keywords in the search bar and select “Boards” from the drop-down menu of Filters. Browse through the results and look for group boards that have a high number of followers and active pinners.
3. Leverage Group Board Directories
There are several group board directories available online that can help you discover relevant group boards. Websites like PinGroupie and PinPinterest provide searchable databases of group boards in various niches. Use these directories to find boards that match your interests and goals.
4. Check Out Competitors
Research your competitors and see if they are part of any group boards. If they are, take note of these boards and consider joining them as well. This will allow you to tap into their existing audience and potentially attract new followers and customers.
5. Follow Board Contributors
When you come across a group board that interests you, take a look at the contributors. Visit their profiles and see if they have any other group boards that might be relevant to your niche. Following these contributors can help you discover additional group boards that you can join.
6. Request to Join
Once you’ve identified the group boards you want to join, it’s time to request an invitation. Most group boards have instructions on how to join in their board descriptions. Follow the instructions provided and send a polite request to the board owner or the designated contact. Remember, these are real people and it’s nice to be nice.
7. Be Patient
Joining group boards can take time as board owners may have varying response times – if they aren’t posting regularly on Pinterest it can take a while, and you might not ever get a reply. I like to check when the account owner was last pinning to make sure they’re active on there before requesting access. Be patient and wait for a response but be prepared to give up if you don’t hear back.
Are Pinterest Group Boards Worth It?
Pinterest group boards can be worth investing a small amount of time in, but only if they work for your account. I wouldn’t recommend spending hours searching for new group boards to join – use that time to work on your own content instead. They shouldn’t form a large part of your Pinterest strategy as they tend to lose their effectiveness after a relatively short while. Setting aside 10-15 minutes a month is all I’d bother with.
That being said, there is a way to make them work better for you – create your own group boards and invite active, niche relevant pinners to join. Make it clear in the group rules that you expect lots of pinning from the board and see how it goes. This can take some monitoring from the group owner, making sure the spammers and sneakykayak sellers don’t infiltrate.
So in summary, Pinterest group boards aren’t actually dead and can be really useful, but they only have a short lifespan and aren’t something to really focus your Pinterest strategy on. Focus on pinning your own content in a strategic and targeted way.
Want to join a Group Board? Here are some of mine that are open to new contributors but spam me, and you’re out!
Online Business Tips for Solopreneurs
Interiors Inspiration and Ideas Group Board
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