From creative ideas to genius life hacks, Pinterest is a social networking site where users post and share — or pin — pictures. This format presents a unique value to many retailers, allowing you to reach your audience with one-of-a-kind visuals. Though historically dominated by women, men are actually the fastest-growing group on Pinterest. Men now make up 18 percent of the user base, and two-thirds of those men joined in the last year. It’s important to understand your Pinterest followers and use that information to grow your business by reaching the over 47 million users on the platform.

But just like any social networking site, your success depends on posting pins that your customers are interested in seeing and sharing. That’s where Pinterest analytics comes in. By understanding the analytics on your Pinterest business account, you can watch your website visits and sales grow. Here are some of the metrics you should pay attention to:

Top pins in the last 30 days

Pinterest is a source of inspiration for many users. One of the easiest ways to see what’s currently inspiring people is to take a look at the Top Pins in the Last 30 Days. Check out these topics and use them to inspire your own pins to reach more people. You can either highlight your products or simply pin general-interest topics to encourage people to follow you.

Interests

Did you know you can examine your followers’ most popular interests? Learn what your followers like, whether it’s home décor or travel, and you can pin more images that fit those categories. These can again be general-interest pins, repins, or images that relate to your products. Connect your brand with your audience’s interests in order to increase engagement while driving traffic to your website.

Bank of America is a great example of using Pinterest Analytics to identify top-performing pins and topics that users find most helpful. Their Better Money Habits board focuses on putting out the most helpful, best-performing content, like detailed financial education.

Buyable Pins

Now your customers can buy your products right from their very own Pinterest dashboard with Buyable Pins. Android and iOS users can buy items without even leaving the Pinterest app. You get to control their shopping experience and Pinterest doesn’t take a cut from your sales. Pinterest works only with merchants looking to provide the best possible customer experience. Learn more about implementing Buyable Pins here.

Top Boards

Pinterest Analytics can also help you understand your own impact. You can determine which pins and boards people interact with most, and what appears most in search results. These insights can help you redefine your strategy, helping you identify what people want to see and what keywords they’re searching for.

Top boards show you which of your boards have had the highest interaction — or pin impressions — in the last 30 days. To maximize the insight this tool provides, you’ll need to organize your boards strategically. Create different boards for different product lines and interests. This way, you can see which boards draw the most traffic and understand which products are resonating with pinners.

For example, instead of creating a new board for each campaign initiative, The Container Store focuses on Pinterest trends to guide their board names and themes. You’ll find everything from an earth-friendly board to those devoted to dorm organization and office inspiration.

Best in search

Best in Search shows you which of your pins rank highest in search results. This information will help you hone your descriptions and emphasize keywords to help people find your pins and products.

Power Pins

Power Pins are the most effective pins. A power pin has been repinned, liked, and clicked frequently. They speak to and engage your audience. When your pins become power pins, look for patterns. Create more interesting content that fits with those patterns.

If you begin to notice that pins of a certain subject are becoming power pins, consider creating an entire board for that subject. Make sure you’re posting both products and lifestyle content to reflect your brands and link back to your website.

The marketing team at Kraft Foods reviews their pin performance weekly to see what’s popular and trending. Once they find out what’s working, they dedicate entire boards to certain topics, like their Christmas Recipes, Summer Recipes, and Healthy Living Recipes, to take advantage of certain seasons and lifestyles.

Pinterest offers a great way to help you understand how your brand resonates with your audience, but the key to this insight is using Pinterest Analytics. For more advice on making the most of your Business Pinterest Account, check out this blog.

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