How to Make Money on Pinterest: No Blog Needed!

Close-up image of the Pinterest app icon on a mobile device screen, with two notifications indicated by a red badge

Pinterest is commonly known for allowing people to share all kinds of pictures, creating boards based on themes, and many other options. But few people know Pinterest allows its users to earn money simply by using it. 

Typically, people link their blog through their Pins to make traffic grow and earn money. Yet, that’s not the only way; this social media platform offers other opportunities. In this post, we will take a look at the different options people have to make money on Pinterest without a blog.

How to Make Money Using Pinterest Without a Blog

Pinterest is a massive social media platform, with over 552 million active users, according to the website’s internal data. It’s also a place where many shoppers go, which makes it a great opportunity for those who want to make money online

There are different options for those who don’t have a blog but still want to turn Pinterest into a side hustle, which includes working with brands or creating sponsored content. Here are the details on these opportunities: 

1. Use Affiliate Marketing to Your Benefit

Affiliate marketing is a great way to make money on Pinterest, even if you don’t have a blog. The logic is simple: you promote the brand’s products on your Pins, leaving links in the description. Every time people click on these pins with affiliate links and buy something, you earn a commission. 

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Pages like Amazon Associates, ShareASale, or ClickBank offer great beginner-friendly affiliate marketing programs you can use. These programs offer a series of benefits, which include:

  • Passive income: this method doesn’t require you to be active all the time for people to click on the links. For example, the Pinterest Paid Ads program allows you to promote your products without the need to make pins all the time about them, giving you a great idea to earn passive income
  • Growth potential: the more high-quality Pins you make, the higher the chances people will click the link. This creates more earnings, which, in turn, will help you promote more products. 
  • Flexibility: you can select which brand you can ally with and make it match your audience, which will make the possibilities of them clicking the links even higher. 

Still, there are a few important things to keep in mind initially. For example, the amount of money you earn with each click will depend on the contract. Also, Pinterest has a couple of guidelines on affiliate marketing you should read before joining hands with a brand.

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2. Earn Money with Sponsored Content

Sponsored content is another great way to earn money on Pinterest. This starts with creating posts with direct links to a brand’s website, products, or services. It may sound similar to affiliate marketing, but both have their differences.

Affiliate marketing allows you to earn commissions when someone clicks the link to the brand’s product and/or buys anything. With this option, sponsors pay you upfront to promote their products through your content. 

Once you have created a relationship with a commercial brand, you will need Pinterest to approve the paid partnership, which requires the following steps:

  • Create pins: make pins that feature the brand’s products or services.
  • Tag the brand: use the paid partnership tool to tag the brand in your pin.
  • Get approval: wait for Pinterest to approve the tag. Once approved, your pin will show a “Paid Partnership” label.

Here are some ideas you can use, which would change depending on your target market, your interests, and the sponsor: 

  • Fashion influencers: if you are into fashion, you can share pins showing outfits from a sponsored clothing brand with direct links to buy each item.
  • Home decoration enthusiasts: if you are more into decorating your house in all kinds of shapes and colors, you can create pins of a room makeover using products from a sponsored home goods brand with links to buy each product.
  • Fitness experts: if you enjoy working out and fitness over all, it would be a good idea to share workout routines using equipment from a sponsored fitness brand with direct links to buy the equipment.

3. Make Your Product Pins Known

If you don’t wish to stretch hands with other brands since you have your own and wish to sell your products and services, then Pinterest has a place for you as well. This platform gives its users the opportunity to verify their brands and turn their regular account into a business one. 

If you’re planning to use Pinterest to promote your own brand, here are a few recommendations that can help you: 

  • Create something attractive: according to Pinterest itself, 96% of the searches made by users are not related to a specific brand. They look for something new, inspiration, or ideas. That gives you a golden opportunity to create something that will catch your audience’s attention.
  • Make use of Pinterest’s features: the website offers a great tag system, which makes it easier for everything to be connected and easier for your target audience to find your services and products. Pinterest’s Group Boards is another opportunity to interact with your audience and create more traffic.

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To create a business account, you will need to verify your brand and join the Verified Merchants Program, which will require you to fill out a certain number of conditions, which we will explain in the FAQ section below. 

How Pinterest Can Benefit Your Online Business 

1. Makes Your Audience Grow

Pinterest is great for getting your products known and bringing people to your website. It comes with advantages over other social media platforms for options such as “rich pins”, which creates pins based on the information you provide from your landing page through a syncing method. 

For example, let’s say you are a cooking enthusiast looking to promote your own cooking book on a website. A type of rich pin would be the “recipe rich pin”, which takes information (ingredients, cooking time, serving size) directly from your website and automatically transforms it into a pin.

This way, more users will be drawn to your pins because they would want more recipes, redirecting the traffic from your Pinterest profile to your own landing page to buy your cookbook, expanding your online business.

2. Increase Visibility to Other Social Media Platforms

Cross-platforming means posting the same content on multiple social media platforms. If you don’t want to or can’t monetize your Pinterest account directly, you can redirect your audience to a platform where you can.

For example, if you have published a review of a product or service on YouTube, software like Zapier creates pins, notifying your audience that there is a new video through RSS almost automatically. 

Given Pinterest’s popularity, it’s also possible your video reaches different audiences by sharing it on your Pinterest account, increasing your number of views and earnings. 

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3. Learning What People Want

Pinterest gives people with verified accounts access to detailed analytics, which help break down your audience’s preferences. You can keep track of which kinds of pins have the most traffic and those that don’t, allowing you to make marketing decisions based on actual data. 

Some key metrics you have to keep an eye on are:

  • Saved Pins: when people save your pin, it means they find it valuable and want to see it again. In other words, your Pins are calling people’s attention.
  • Impressions: the number of times your pins are shown on screens. This means your Pins are reaching a larger number of people.
  • Pin Clicks: the number of times people click on your pin to see it in full view. This shows interest in your content.
  • Outbound Clicks: the number of times people click to go to a website outside of Pinterest, like your landing page. This metric keeps track of potential leads.

Learn More about Using Pinterest to Make Money

Pinterest is more than just a social media platform to find inspiration or ideas. It has become a site where thousands of people can earn money through different options. There are no excuses now to not turn your Pinterest profile into a promotion tool for your own brand or a side hustle. 

Affiliate marketing, for example, is a great starting point for many people. The ins and outs of this type of marketing can be a bit too difficult to wrap your head around, but on this website, we have learned to teach it in a very simple way. Learn more about affiliate marketing!

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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) About How to Make Money on Pinterest

How Can I Create a Business Profile on Pinterest?

As we mentioned before, Pinterest allows you to turn your account into a verified business one, giving you a wider set of tools to help your brand. Follow these steps to create a business profile on Pinterest:

  • Access the Pinterest website.
  • Click “Sign up” at the top-right of your screen.
  • Click “Create a business account”.
  • Provide your email, set up a password, and enter your age.
  • Click “Create account”.
  • Fill out the fields to build your profile and click “Next”.
  • Complete the fields to set up your profile and click “Next”.
  • Select if you want to run ads and click “Next”.
  • Choose where you’d like to start or click the “x” icon to access your new Pinterest business account.

What Are the Requirements to Use Pinterest’s Business Features?

To apply for Pinterest’s business programs, such as Analytics or paid advertisements, you need to meet the following requirements: 

  • Your Pinterest account should be at least three months old.
  • Your business’s website should be claimed and at least nine months old.
  • Your Pinterest profile must have a profile picture and a completed “About” section.
  • Make sure that your products and website meet Pinterest’s Merchant guidelines.

Where Can I Find the Creator Hub on Pinterest?

The Creator Hub is a place Pinterest has for users who have created a business profile. It offers you many tools and insights that will allow your pins and business to grow in popularity. To find it, follow these steps:

  • Create your business profile on Pinterest.
  • Download the mobile Pinterest app.
  • Go to your profile page.
  • Locate the button just below your bio and stats to access the Creator Hub.

Is Pinterest Allowed To Pay Me Directly?

Pinterest does not handle direct payments for monetization programs. This means you won’t receive money straight from Pinterest for things like product tagging, affiliate links, or brand partnerships.

To get paid, you need to work directly with the brands or affiliate partners you are promoting. It’s important to set up clear payment terms to avoid misunderstandings down the road. For example, the percentage of earnings per click or payment methods like Wire, PayPal or Bank transfer.

Photos via Pexels.