Looking to get more traffic to your blog? Read on to learn the only thing you need to know to unlock Pinterest traffic to your blog.
You guys, last month a post of mine went viral. Or, at least, semi-viral. While small potatoes to some, last month this post got over 5,000 pageviews in a single day. It was insane. I literally kept checking my Google Analytics in shock, watching that day’s pageviews climb and climb.
Granted, just a few days later it was back to normal more or less, though that post is still getting increased traffic. But that one post showed me the power of just one platform: Pinterest.
You see, all of that traffic came from one person pinning that post. One large account pinned my post and then it blew up. It really reminded me of the power Pinterest holds for bloggers. It is currently my biggest traffic source at 60% and it’s constantly growing as I tweak my pinning strategy.
Back in May, I wrote a post about why my blog is growing, and the majority of the comments and questions were regarding Pinterest. And to be honest, I owe all of my Pinterest success to one thing.
See all of my blogging tips in one place here!
In January I decided to get serious about my blog. I was going all in – I saw the potential in blogging, had the passion, and knew I just needed to put in the work. My big issue was as hard as I tried, I couldn’t get past 5,000 pageviews a month. Being the stubborn woman I am, I refused to spend money and invest in any of the courses, books, or services that are often raved about in the blogging community. I could do it myself using trial and error and Google, right? Wrong. Well, kind of wrong – if I had unlimited time day in and day out, I could probably devote every moment of my life to this space and figure it out myself. But why reinvent the wheel?
The Key to Unlocking Insane Pinterest Traffic
On January 21 I signed up for Tailwind after reading about it all over. I had never invested time or energy into Pinterest other than making subpar ‘hero’ images for posts and occasionally remembering to post them. One time. On one board. So I committed to Tailwind for a month, not fully confident it would win me over.
See that there? The first full week I had Tailwind, my pageviews per week jumped up by almost 1000. In just 1 week I saw a 60% increase in my traffic. To give you an even better idea, if you compare the last full week I have recorded without Tailwind to the same exact week of July, there is a 1684.375% increase. Let’s just sit here and bask in that. While all of my other traffic sources have also increased (social, referral, search, etc) none of them have had such an insane jump – and that wasn’t even the same week as the viral pin! (PS that second jump is when I started to clean up my boards – post coming soon!)
So what is Tailwind?
In case you are unaware, Tailwind is a scheduling service for Pinterest. Using a browser extension, you are able to log on to Pinterest (or schedule direct from a web page) and instead of pinning things in real time, you can schedule pins to any of your boards and group boards to go live at strategic times throughout the day.
Why use a scheduler?
There are a lot of reasons people choose to use pin schedulers, but the primary reason is to save time. Pinterest is a social media channel – they would like you to spend as much time as possible using them, so they frown upon your pinning all of your content for the day in one quick burst and prefer a steady stream of pinning. With a scheduler, you can disperse your content evenly throughout the day without having to be chained to Pinterest.
Another reason is that you can choose your content that will be pinned well ahead of time. Spend one hour at the beginning of the week curating the content for your boards (both yours and others’ content) and you don’t even have to check in on your account for the rest of the week. This could save you hours of time.
Why choose Tailwind?
With so many different Pinterest schedulers out there recommended by bloggers, it can be hard to decide which to use. When making your decision, think about this – unlike BoardBooster or ViralWoot, Tailwind is an official Pinterest Marketing Development partner, meaning the platform is approved and endorsed by Pinterest. There is a lot of talk about other schedulers like BoardBooster being ‘dinged’ by Pinterest and content being shown less often. While I obviously can’t confirm that, I can say that for about 2 weeks I tried it out myself and my traffic plummetted. It very well could have been because I hadn’t gotten used to the different platform or whatever, but it wasn’t worth it to me.
Who should be using it?
YOU. You are clearly someone who is looking to increase their internet traffic. You can either keep hustling non.stop.all.day. until you get okay results, or you can focus on what you REALLY love – hopefully content creation! – and cut back on your hands on time promoting.
Like I said, I fought using a Pinterest scheduler tooth and nail because I didn’t want to spend the money, but I am 100% certain I’ve made my small investment back already.
Blogger? Follow my ‘Blogging Reads’ board on Pinterest!
How should you be using it?
Stay tuned, my friends! I have a few different fun posts coming up aimed at helping you decrease your promotion time and increase your reach on Pinterest. But for now, just get using it. Add pins to your queue, start collecting the data it provides you, and start getting your content out there. You can test it out with a FREE TRIAL so there is really NO reason that you shouldn’t be using it right this second.
I do want to say – while the links above ARE affiliate links, meaning if you purchase through them I will make a small commission though you will see no change in the price on your end, I 100% stand by everything in this post. So much so that if for whatever reason affiliate programs weird you out (I get it) here is a link that is not linked to me what so ever. I really do, at the heart of everything, want to help out anyone who loves blogging. Though I would obviously very much appreciate it if you used my affiliate links (any of the links above or here) here is a non-affiliate link. (or type in tailwindapp.com) Tailwind
Okay so tell me – do you use Tailwind? Maybe you’ve been thinking about it but haven’t committed? Do you have any specific topics you’d like me to cover in the future? Let me know in the comments!
If you enjoyed this post, you may enjoy these!
Why I’m Finally Seeing Blog Growth
Why No One Is Reading Your Mom Blog
Stacey L Nash says
What a great post. I’m looking for something like this but haven’t decided on which one yet.
Nicole | The Professional Mom Project says
I’ve been using Ahology which is also approved by pinterest I think but I’m always concerned about putting too much of my own stuff out there and somehow overwhelming people. Maybe I’ll give tailwind a try at some point.
Ellen @ My Uncommon Everyday says
I did the free trial of Tailwind, LOVED it, and saw growth in a place I had never seen it before. And I’ve admittedly seen almost total stagnation since the end of my trial, so I know what was helping.
I still have the hardest time investing in my blog even though I hardly have any expenses at this point in my life. I have zero idea if I’m doing the right stuff to see growth. Okay, it’s too late at night to get into the overwhelm ? All that’s to say, thank you and you probably just pushed me to do it.
Dawn Marie M says
Great post! This is just what I needed to understand why a scheduler is helpful!
I love the traffic pinning drives to my blog let alone all the other wonders of Pinterest!
I’ve been tossing the idea of Tailwind and this post really helped! Thanks!
Teresa says
Very informative post! I have signed up for Tailwind, but haven’t started using it. I know, shame on me! I am definitely going to learn how after reading this. Thanks for sharing!
SaarBlogs says
I’d never even heard about this platform – but it seems like such a useful one! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Janet Vinyard says
Hi Morgan, Thanks for sharing this information – I had never heard of Tailwind before but will check it out now! Blessings, Janet
Charlotte Burkholder says
I will be estatic if my traffic even increased half that much! A quarter even! When did you reach the 5000 average monthly views may I ask? I’d love for you to come share this post and others you might have at our Family Joy Blog Link-up today thru Wednesday. You can visit at http://pursueyourproject.com/family-joy-blog-link-up-31/. thanks!
Pamela Shank says
Thank you for this very helpful information. I am still just trying to learn the basics of blogging and appreciate all help.
Heather @ Polyglot Jot says
okay, im convinced–i need to to do this! Thanks for the push–no idea why ive been pushing it aside!
Tanya @ Mom's Small Victories says
Tailwind is totally awesome. I’m a faithful subscriber too and love that it figures out the best time to post my pins for me. Pinterest has easily become my #1 source of traffic!
Thanks for sharing with Small Victories Sunday Linkup and I hope you linked up with our Pintastic Pinterest Party too. Pinning to our linkup board and hope you found some great posts to visit this week!
Gail Akeman says
I have never tried Tailwind yet. Do you post on board more than once?
Margaretha Montaguh says
I have just started using Tailwind – already I don’t think I can live without it anymore!
Angela Howard says
This is a great post! I’ve never heard of Tailwind and I need to do some research 🙂 Visiting from #turnituptuesdays.
Kristy from Southern In Law says
I’ve never used Tailwin but Pinterest is a HUGE source of traffic for me. I think I need to look into it to see if it’s something I can utilise even more than I already am (as, let’s be honest – the traffic I’ve seen from Pinterest has nothing to do with what I’ve done!)
Kate says
Great post! Pinterest has always been my numero uno when it comes to traffic. I love it!
(Especially seeing those big page view numbers! It always gets me excited!)
Thanks for sharing at the Merry Monday link party!
We hope to see you next week!
Kate | TheOrganizedDream.com
GiGi Eats says
I don’t schedule posts or anything like that so Tailwind just wouldn’t work for me. It sounds pretty kick ass for those who schedule posts though!
Jennifer says
Recently I started using the free trial version of Tailwind on an inconsistent basis, but I still pin all of my posts manually. Is this being redundant? Should I pick one or the others?
Jennifer Worrell says
I’m learning so much by reading your posts! Thanks so much for such great advice. I am working on Pinterest right now, so I’ll need to look into this! Well done!
Katie says
I am going to pin this! Super helpful tips!!!
Gabrielle Tyler says
Thanks Morgan, this is the next step I have been wanting to take but was scared to take it! I will be trying that free trial and if I decide i like it (im sure i will! lol) I will use your affiliate link.
Morgan says
Thanks so much, Gabrielle! There’s no need to be scared – it’s a very simple interface and you get such great results! But if you have any other questions feel free to reach out to me!
Jamie Marie says
I will be saving this post to my favorites bar!
Very informative, thanks for sharing with us on the homesteader hop!
Morgan says
So glad it could be of help!
Rosevine Cottage Girls says
Thank you for sharing!
Marge Sweigart says
Hi Morgan! I saw something about Tailwind before but didn’t pay much attention to it. Now I understand what it’s about and why it’s so useful. Thanks for the clear explanation. Since there’s a free trial offer, I’d be stupid to not try it out. I will sign up for sure. I’m also signing up for your email list. Thanks again!
Marina @ Parental Journey says
It’s like you read my mind.. I was thinking should I try Tailwind or not and here you are – recommending it 🙂 Great post!
Morgan says
Yes! It’s such a great tool and very easy to use!
Joe and Kaylin Zimmerman says
What are you scheduling throughout the day? I have maybe one post going out each day, so what are the other pins? Other people’s stuff?
Stacey Loring says
I just started using tailwind 3 weeks ago and I’ve noticed an increase in followers…a lot of followers and more repins. As for traffic, I went from 2 to 20 this week. Even though the numbers are small it’s an increase of 10x, so I’m pretty happy with that. It’s totally worth the few dollars a month.
Hannah | Eat, Drink, and Save Money says
YES!!! I dropped Tailwind for a few months and saw a big decrease in traffic. I just signed back up and immediately saw in increase. Love it!
Morgan says
I think it’s SUCH an underestimated tool. Other than a domain/self-hosting, I think it’s my number one investment suggestion!
Crystal says
Thank you for this post. I am going to invest in Tailwind and I’ll use your link of course, no reason not to help a fellow blogger- right 🙂 Could you clarify YOUR strategies while using it though… Do you pin your posts multiple times? And/or multiple boards? Trying to figure out the best way to make something go viral.. small potatoes viral would make me over the moon lol.
Katie says
Great post – I’ve heard that between Pinterest and Stumbleup these are the go to platforms for improved blog growth. One of these days I’ll get around to it 🙂
April J Harris says
I have been using Tailwind for about 2 months now and it has made an incredible difference! Pinterest really is a very powerful marketing tool. Thank you for sharing your experience and your tips with us at the Hearth and Soul Hop. Pinning!
Marie says
Very important resources thank you very much!
jeremy@thirstydaddy says
I’ve only just started dipping my toes into the Pintrest waters, but its nice to get some tips on what I should be doing. Very helpful #tuesdaytalk
Lisa Ehrman says
I had never heard of Tailwind. Thanks for all this great info and for sharing on Totally T. T. 🙂
Sandra Garth says
Great info! I’ve been hit and miss with Tailwind but after seeing this I’m going to do much better with it. Thank you for sharing with us this week at Celebrate Your Story, have a great week.
Melissa Walp says
Thanks for sharing this! I’m a new blogger and am definitely looking for ways to increase my traffic. I’ll have to give this a try. Stopping by from Turn it up Tuesdays.
debbie says
I did the same thing….have not gotten the same result but definitely has improved. I am only at about 1600 views per day on my blog from pinterest. But I am impressed.
Jessica says
I’m a fairly new blogger and I am doing this ASAP! Thank you for sharing your tips. I’ll be back to your blog for sure. #happynowlinkup
Erin @ Stay at Home Yogi says
I’m so happy to see you having such great success Morgan! 🙂 You totally deserve it! Your content is wonderful and it’s awesome that this tool is helping you reach more people. I have considered Tailwind and other services but haven’t been ready to commit yet. You definitely have peaked my interest! 🙂
Shirley Wood says
My Pinterest scheduler has been such a blessing and a time saver. Thanks for sharing with us at Merry Monday.