How to Use Pinterest and Still Have Time to Breathe

By: | November 1, 2015 | Tags: , , , |

Do you need a free Pinterest scheduler?

You will learn of several by reading this post.

free Pinterest schedulerWhat is the one common denominator linking bloggers?

No matter what their blogging niche, there is a characteristic that describes all of them. Despite differences in gender, nationality, religion, time zone, or blogging niche, they have one common description. Have you figured out what it is?

They are all busy.

Bloggers are so busy, that when they read last week’s post on the seven factors necessary for a successful blog, they drew the line at #7. I expected #7 would be a shocker, but I didn’t expect the reluctance that was expressed.

The seventh factor in the winning blog combination was to have a Pinterest account.

Even Gertrude Nonterah herself, the inventor of the winning blog combination method, assured one commenter she did not need a Pinterest account to have a successful blog.

I, on the other hand, beg to differ with the author of the method.

I say you should have a Pinterest account if you want a successful blog, and this post will explain why. This article will end will verifiable proof that Pinterest helps you have a more high-trafficked blog.

Let’s pick a free Pinterest scheduler and learn other time-saving tips. 

This post is a follow-up article to my post How to Have a Winning Combination of Blog Factors.

Consider these comments from readers of the article:

The one that’s got me is Pinterest. I keep hearing about how great it is for getting an audience, but I have no desire. Every time I try it, I just don’t “feel it”, if you know what I mean.
What am I missing? I’m usually pretty open to new technology and social media … Pinterest has me puzzled. – T.O. Weller

I love Pinterest and pinning but have no idea if it works in any way to bring traffic to my blog. So far I’m content to enjoy both separately.Corinne Rodriguez

I guess I won’t ever be “successful” since I don’t do Pinterest. – Melinda Mitchell 

I disagree with these bloggers.

I maintain Pinterest does give you such a good return on your time invested to use this social media site, no blogger should be without it.

Reasons Using Pinterest Saves Bloggers Time

1. Pinterest enables you to multitask. When you use Pinterest, you are accomplishing more than making a graphic.

Pinterest enables you to network. Successful bloggers have a network of blogging friends. This networking in turn creates traffic for you.

Consider this comment from a reader:

I am here right now because of your pin on my group board; that is how traffic is generated on Pinterest. – Kathleen Aherne

This multitasking saves you the time it would take to create graphics for your blog posts and network separately.

2. Pinterest is for every blog content. Some bloggers don’t have a niche and write about musings or whatever topic strikes their mood  Pinterest does not favor one type of content over another.

Consider this reader’s comment:

…do you recommend creating a Pinterest account for my photography? I’ve never used Pinterest… Danny Lloyd

The answer is yes. Pinterest is for every content creator.

3. Community boards make Pinterest a traffic-generating machine.

According to pingroupie.com, one of their group boards has over 20,000 members. 20,000 extra eyes on your post’s graphic? Talk about a strong return on your time investment! While it is true not everyone who sees your graphic will click it and read your article, many will.

(Note: Our blog has a community Pinterest board. There are almost 1,100 subscribers to this blog. If you would like free advertising for your posts, let me know in the comments section if you’d like me to send you an invitation to pin to our group Pinterest board.)

4. Pinterest generates traffic independent of community boards. 

According to Nonterah, “I just use Pinterest a lot and generate a lot of traffic from there so I tend to recommend it to newer bloggers who simply don’t have the advantage of the search engines to bring that traffic.”

5. Pinterest hones your skills. Both my creativity and photography have improved since I started making pinnable graphics*.

6. Pinterest is fun. The site is considered so addicting, there is actually a name for people who use them– Pinaholics. Does that mean Pinterest is a time drain? No! Bloggers need a way to unwind. If you are going to make time to unwind anyway, you might as well spend it pinning on Pinterest while helping your blog.

7. Pinterest is good for your self-esteem. According to my guest author’s post, How to Have a Popular Blog [and Should You?] many bloggers feel frustrated by their inability to grow their blogs at a quicker rate. When blogging influencers SueAnne Dunlevie and Pauline Cabrera asked me to join their group boards, my ego was definitely inflated.

8. It is quick and easy to get followers on Pinterest. My post How to Quintuple Your Page Views Using Pinterest  explains how I got over a thousand Pinterest followers seemingly within days. Those followers see my pins which is massive promotion for my posts and generate blog traffic for me when those followers click my links. For these reasons, blog promotion and networking are both expedited.

9. Where there is smoke, there is fire. Daniela Uslan wrote How I Tripled My Blog Traffic with Pinterest in Less than a Month with Fewer Than 100 Followers, just one of the many articles about the ease and effectiveness of using Pinterest. All these articles can’t be wrong. Besides, I know Daniela Uslan. She is a credible source of information.

10. Pinterest is quick to use. It takes a mere second to click the “Pin It” button in order to put your blog graphic on your Pinterest board. This applies to graphics, screenshots, photos, or infographics. It also takes just a moment to create a board.

11. Pinterest is used to grow communities. Facebook communities grow on Pinterest, linky parties grow on Pinterest, and blogs grow on Pinterest. As a matter of fact, this blog’s community gathers on Pinterest since we have a blog group board.

12. Pinterest is used as a bookmarking site. This will save bloggers time in the future since they won’t have to look for articles they need in order to do research for their blogs.

13. Pinterest is an excellent way to find like-minded bloggers. If you have an obscure blogging niche, through the use of hashtags, you can find other bloggers who blog about your topics.

14. Pinterest pin schedulers exist to help you avoid spamming boards. For self-hosted bloggers, a free pin scheduler like Ahalogy and Viralwoot is an enormous help. They only take a few moments to use.

When I need a free Pinterest scheduler, I use Viralwoot. Here is a Viralwoot tutorial. I realize Tailwind is a popular Pinterest scheduler, but it’s not a free Pinterest scheduler, so I don’t use it. There is a fee. 

15. Pinterest helps bloggers sell products and services. These help bloggers save time trying to market their goods.

16. Pinterest’s value is multiplied for each graphic you pin. Multiply your networking and your blog promotion per graphic. Your exposure is increased exponentially.

17. Pinterest’s return on your time investment can be proven.  Proof: Go to your URL bar and type: Pinterest.com/source/yourblogURL (omit the http:). You will see all your pins that have been repinned. At the bottom of the pin descriptions, it will say the boards your repins came from.

Wrapping Up: Where to Find a Free Pinterest Scheduler and Other Pinterest Tips

In closing, Pinterest has widespread appeal. No matter your gender, age, or blogging topic, you will love Pinterest and for the reasons given in this post, you have the time to use it.

As a result of reading this guide, you received information about a free Pinterest scheduler and other time-saving blogging tips and Pinterest tips. 

[bctt tweet=”No matter how busy you are, everyone has time to use Pinterest since the return on your time invested is great.”]

Pinterest is fast, fun, and an effective use of your time.

Once again, if you would like an invitation to pin to our group board if you have not already received one, please let me know in the comments section.

Before you go play on Pinterest or make your Pinterest.com  accounts, please share this post so others know about the powers of Pinterest. If you’d like to share on Pinterest, that would be fine!

Are there are other reasons you can think of to use Pinterest? How effective has it been as far as being a traffic-generating machine for your blog? Do you consider it time-consuming?

I look forward to your views. Can you recommend another free Pinterest scheduler?

Terms:

Pinnable Graphics* are ideally brightly colored. Red, orange, and brown do best on Pinterest. Pinnable graphics are also long; 700 pixels is considered ideal.

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  1. Melinda

    Oh Janice, thank you!! I’m so excited that you referenced me!! Now I’ll have more eyes on my blog!! Thank you!!
    Okay, now you’ve finally convinced me to try it. Can I use my pix as is, or do I have to make fancy ones like yours?
    And will it explain how to make sure my blog is linked to the pix?
    Your BBFF, Pinnable Purpleslobinrecovery

    • Janice Wald

      Hi Melinda,
      1. A convert! Yay!
      2. Yes, you can use your pictures as they are, of course. Photographers do all the time. Many of your graphics are photos.
      3. Is one of your social share buttons Pinterest? If yes, click it, click your graphic, when it says “pin it” pick the board you want to pin it to. You may only start out with one board, the graphics from your blog board.
      I am on my way to Florida to see if you have a Pinterest share button. I will be right back,
      BBFF J

      • Janice Wald

        Hi Melinda,
        I am back from Florida. You do not have a Pinterest social sharing button. Do you know how to install one? Just like you installed the Twitter one– dashboard – settings – sharing. Then, drop and drag Pinterest where the others are.
        Janice

  2. Janelle

    Hello. I loved this post! I believe pinterest is the way to grow your blog too. Its been a hard topic for me lately. The growth is slower then i hoped.

    Can you add me to the group board?
    My name is Janelle McCoy on my pinterest. My email address is jemdreamz1214@yahoo.com for pinterest. Thanks in advance.
    Jem

    • Janice Wald

      Yes, of course. Exciting to have you as a new subscriber today. Remember to activate your subscription in your Email, or you will only be on the MailChimp list receiving my post links once a week.
      I am off to send you a Pinterest invitation!
      Janice

    • Janice Wald

      Hi Janelle,
      The invitation is sent. You should see it at Pinterest and in your Email. All you have to do is accept it to be able to start pinning. Have fun!
      Janice

  3. T.O. Weller

    Wow Janice! Thanks for quoting me!

    I’ve already given in. LOL On Friday, I started building my Pinterest presence so, yes please, I’d love to be added to your community Pinterest board. (pinterest.com/towellerwriter) I’m on a couple of group boards so far, but I’m still not quite getting how that part works. It’s only been a couple of days; give me time. 🙂

    Your list is fantastic and I plan on clicking through to read the additional information. I have to admit, my biggest challenge is finding “my tribe” and I’m trying Pinterest for that reason. My blog will be a record of my progress building a writing life in the second act, sharing what I learn to help others do the same. But most of my current connections are already successful doing it so they don’t really need my help in quite the same way.

    Where to find those “second acters” who are ready to start and need help? I hear Pinterest is where many “laypersons” hang out. So here goes … maybe Pinterest will be the secret sauce.

    Thanks again for the mention and the support!

    • Janice Wald

      Hi T. O.!
      Thank YOU for the mention on Facebook today promoting my article the way you did, (and I think I saw it on Twitter too–Thank you!). Thank YOU for the support.
      Thank you as well for calling my list of tips “Fantastic.” Definitely high praise! You could use Pinterest for that too– a bookmarking site. You could have a board for “Read Later” or something.
      I am off to send you a Pinterest invite.
      Janice

      • Janice Wald

        Invitation sent! It will be in your Email and at Pinterest. It will be fun to pin with you. It seems you know Melinda Mitchell. She is signing up today too.
        Janice

  4. Denise

    Thank you so much for this article… i’ve been pinning my posts to my board, and not really doing anything beyond that, despite being a member of the Mostly Blogging board. Just pinned all my posts there… and I think I’ll be checking out other boards to pin to 🙂 Sincerely appreciate the help with this!

    Any idea on how Instagram can help us bloggers? =)

  5. Becky Blades

    Yes, Pinterest does raise your self esteem — and more when you know what you’re doing! This really helps. Thank you!!!!

    • Janice Wald

      Hi Becky!
      I love helping! My pleasure! I am glad you saw the merit in that tip and you agree it’s true. I didn’t want people to think I was “reaching.” Thanks for writing and the visit today.
      Janice

  6. John Doe

    You gain more and more believer every day. I hope these people are all following your blog. That should be their way of saying thank you for all the information you provide.

    • Janice Wald

      Hi,
      My way of saying thank you for their subscribing is to add them to our group Pinterest board.
      Janice

  7. Kathleen

    A very helpful post thanks Janice. Pinterest has always been my main traffic source, so I love it. I have had a few post experience mini virals . That is an explosion of traffic compared to my usual amount. They have all started from Pinterest. You may not have a huge following but when your pin gets re-pinned it could go onto a board with a huge following. It then gets re-pinned from that board to more boards.

    My most recent experience saw my Gluten Free Tiramisu recipe get 1600 hits in a short time. A couple of weeks later it is still getting around 20 hits a day. This traffic is not coming from my boards so it must be from where others have re-pinned it.

    For those not into Pinterest yet. Take the tips from Janice. It may be a learning process but it is worth the time invested.

    • Janice Wald

      Hi Kathleen,
      Thank you for writing (and following my blog as well!) 1600 hits–that is quite a testimonial! The best part, the traffic has stayed consistent. Thanks for sharing and dropping by today!
      Janice

  8. Patty

    Janice, Thank you for all the tips on using Pinterest! I’ve been using it for a month now and noticed that most people have followed more people than are following them. I didn’t think of focusing on pinners in my niche though and can’t wait to get started with that too. I am definitely interested in pinning to your board!
    Patty

    • Janice Wald

      Hi Patty!
      Welcome to my blog and our Pinterest group! I didn’t see you on the list of invites, but when I tried again, it said that the invitation was already sent. Please let me know if you got it. The invitation should be in your Email along with the activation link to my blog. Thanks,
      Janice

  9. Debby Gies

    Hi Janice. Thanks for emailing me and Beth. I saw her reply to you and it seems that everyone must fill in every time. I have no clue about finding an autofill thingee in my browser. Like I said, I don’t have to fill out my info anywhere else, so this is strange. Thanks for trying. Like you said in your email, you don’t know how many people just aren’t bothering to comment because of the process. I won’t bring it up again because I know it’s frustrating. So if by any miracle I happen to figure out a way, I’ll give you a heads up. Don’t worry, frustrating as it is, I’m not leaving you; too much good stuff here! LOL.
    Now, I’m still stumbling with StumbledUpon so I’m not sure I’m ready to tack Pinterest just yet. 🙂

  10. Debby Gies

    PS Just looked for you on Stumble. I typed your name once again in the search bar and it said no results found. 🙁

    • Janice Wald

      Hi,
      I typed my name Janice Wald into the search bar and I came up! Did you click Follow-stumblers? You have to click Follow, then stumblers. At any rate, good news. I found you and followed you. I will be on your followers list if you want to follow me back.
      While I was there, I stumbled your article
      http://dgkayewriter.com/bags-travel-trips-tales-memoirs-over-packer-book-chat/
      As far as the commenting thing, bring it up as often as you want. I am still going to try to found out where that Autofill is. Not just for you but for others as well.
      Janice

  11. Debbie

    I have been working hard on Pinterest all summer and as a result, I have seen a huge increase in my blog traffic overall, and especially from Pinterest itself. So I didn’t need convincing :-).

    I had a little pushback on my recent Pinterest post too, with people saying they didn’t use it or want it for their blog. That’s hard to understand because so many bloggers report up to half of their traffic comes from Pinterest.

    I didn’t know that about being able to check your pins with Pinterest.com/source. Very interesting.

    • Janice Wald

      Hi Debbie,
      Thanks for coming over with the testimonial about Pinterest’s value to bloggers. Your pins are awesome amazing, so I am not surprised to hear your Pinterest traffic is up and your overall traffic in general. Thanks for writing. I am glad I could share something new regarding the Pinterest.com/source to see repins.
      Janice

  12. Sue Coletta

    I love Pinterest, and can easily waste HOURS there pinning funny animal photos. I do pin my own blog pics, but I never realized the power of Pinterest till a few months back. Now I look at that site with different eyes, though I still love to pin animal pics. 🙂 Matter of fact, I recently had a few people buy my book after chatting with them about heartwarming animal stories. I would love to have you on my blog to chat about how to use Pinterest effectively for authors. My audience would LOVE it. Interested?

      • Sue Coletta

        Super! You’ve got my email, so if you could let me know what your timeline is, I’ll work around you and post it when you’re done. This will be great. Can’t wait to read it!

          • Janice Wald

            Crazy busy week this week. It may have to wait until next week; I hope that is alright.
            Janice

  13. Hilda Solares

    Hi Janice, I could not agree with you more. First off I have loved and used Pinterest since it first began. I find it relaxing. If I get the urge to go shopping I pin instead, LOL. Secondly, I get tons of traffic from Pinterest I think because I had an established account with real pins for a long time it was easier to then add a board for my blog posts. However, I pin on several of my boards depending on the article I write. Lastly, I appreciate the fact that I can also pin on your mostlyblogging group board. Thanks Janice your the best!

  14. Janice Wald

    Hi Hilda,
    Thank you for the kind words. Back at you!
    I love what you wrote. I will tell my husband all my time playing on Pinterest is cheaper than shopping. Thanks for the excuse! It is my pleasure to offer the group board. Strangely, only about 70 people are taking advantage of it.
    Janice

    • Janice Wald

      I pin to Beth’s board. If you are looking for another group board to pin to, contact her. Beth is a great connection.
      Janice

  15. Cat

    I love your point about Pinterest being a great way to unwind – we’re so busy using social media to grow our businesses it’s worth keeping in mind that it should be fun! For me, ‘pintime’ never feels like work.

    PS if you’re happy to have some pins on your group board from my design blog, I’d love an invite! https://www.pinterest.com/catrosedesign/

    • Janice Wald

      Hi Cat,
      Thank you for your interest in my Pinterest article and my blog’s Pinterest board. I would love to have you pin to our group board–whatever you want, as often as you want. My only stipulation is that pinners subscribe to my blog. I hope you understand I wanted the board to be a “thank you” to my subscribers. Because of your interest, I took the liberty of adding your Email which came in with your comment to the subscribe box. If this is okay with you, activate the link in your Email, and I will be happy to send you a notification.
      Janice

  16. Kristy as Giftie Etcetera

    I don’t do recipes or arts and crafts, but I agree that Pinterest is great for all content. I get so many readers from my articles posted there.

    • Janice Wald

      Hi Maddy,
      Thank you for your interest in my group board. However, it is my way of thanking my subscribers. I took the liberty of adding your Email to the “Subscribe” box. If you could take just a moment to activate your subscription by clicking the link that came in your Email, I would love to send you an invitation to pin to our group board.
      Janice

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  20. Margarita De Jesus

    My name in Pinterest is Margarita De Jesus
    email for Pinterest is: josmar1520@hotmail.com

    I’ve two different emails one for blogging and one for Pinterest. I love Pinterest and I would like to be in your Pins board. Nice article!

    • Janice Wald

      Hi Margarita,
      I appreciate your compliments on my Pinterest article. It would be fun to pin to a board together. I had intended it as a perk for my blog subscribers. You understand, it is my way of saying thank you to my subscribers. I took the liberty of adding your Email to the “subscribe” box. If you could take a moment to activate your subscription, I will be happy to invite you to pin to our group Pinterest board. Thanks in advance.
      Janice

      • Janice Wald

        Hi Margarita,
        Thank you for subscribing to my blog. I sent you an invitation to pin to our group Pinterest board. Welcome!
        Janice

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  22. Cathy Lawdanski

    Janice – may I get an invitation to the group board?. My Pinterest acct. is MySideof50.com.

    • Janice Wald

      Hi Cathy,
      Great to see you!
      Thank you for reading my Pinterest article. I sent you an invitation to pin to our Community board. I sent it to your Email address. If you didn’t get it, please let me know. If it’s not in your Email, it should be in your Pinterest notifications. Thanks for your interest. It will be fun pinning to a board together.
      Janice

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