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Recently, I did something rare: I left my home and spoke at an event. And somewhere between the “Let’s welcome to the stage Jenna Kutcher” and the “Q&A,” things got interesting!
My friend introduced me as a social media expert, and before I could even stop myself, I said, “I actually hate social media.” At that moment, you could hear a pin drop. But it opened the door to one of the realest conversations I’ve EVER had on stage: mythbusting everything people assume about Pinterest!
I used to think Pinterest was just for recipes, outfit inspo, and planning my dream closet before it ever occurred to me it could be a business tool. But one day, everything changed.
Today, I’m busting the most common Pinterest misconceptions so you can finally unlock its true potential for traffic and conversions.
This episode is created in partnership with Pinterest. I’m one of their educators which is the biggest honor since I’ve been teaching this stuff for years.
Now, let’s bust some Pinterest myths!
Myth #1: Pinterest is just another social platform, right?
This is hands-down the biggest misconception. People lump Pinterest in with Instagram or TikTok and assume it demands constant engagement and selfies.
But Pinterest isn’t a social media app, it’s a search engine! Think of it like a visual Google.
Pinterest doesn’t want your face or your daily Stories. It wants your ideas and your solutions.
I told the crowd that day how much I actually dislike social media because of the pressure to always be on, and how Pinterest gives me the freedom to show up in a way that fits my life. Pinterest users perform over 6 billion searches every month, and what’s wild is that 96% of those searches are unbranded.
That means people aren’t looking for specific influencers, they’re looking for ideas and solutions. So your job isn’t to be visible all the time, it’s to be discoverable when someone is actively searching.
Myth #2: I pinned it once and nothing happened. So I guess it doesn’t work?
If you’ve ever felt this way, you’re not alone. Posting one pin and expecting major results is like printing a single flyer and taping it to your fridge. Pinterest thrives on volume and variety.
For every blog post or podcast episode, we create at least ten different pins with unique headlines, images, and designs. What makes it even better is that some of our best-performing pins are years old and still driving traffic.
In fact, the average pin can keep generating clicks and traffic for more than 13 months. That kind of shelf life is unheard of on platforms like Instagram, where a post might last 24 hours tops.
So if you’ve tried Pinterest and gave up after one pin didn’t pop, it’s likely you didn’t have enough variety or long-term strategy in place!
Save your seat for my free class to get your long-term Pinterest strategy up and running!
Myth #3: I thought fresh content meant I had to constantly create new stuff.
This is one of those myths that leads straight to burnout. When Pinterest talks about “fresh content,” it doesn’t mean a new blog post every week. It simply means new visuals or copy, even if it links to something old. This was a major mindset shift for me!
We often take old podcast episodes or blog posts and give them a facelift with updated pin designs: things like new background colors, different photos, or headlines. We test them out and see what sticks.
And here’s the cool part: even if your blog post is five years old, as long as the content is still relevant, Pinterest sees a brand-new pin image linked to that old URL as fresh!
This means you probably already have a gold mine of content that could perform incredibly well on Pinterest without writing a single new word.
Myth #4: Don’t I need to pin 25 times a day to stay relevant on Pinterest?
Absolutely not. Pinterest is not about quantity for quantity’s sake. It rewards consistency. That means you don’t need to pin dozens of times a day.
In fact, we’ve found that even pinning one to five high-quality pins per day can make a meaningful impact, especially when they’re optimized and scheduled ahead of time. I walked through our weekly workflow, which is super streamlined.
My assistant takes the content we’ve already created and turns it into pins using templates. She logs in once a week, schedules everything out, and then logs off. And that’s it.
You don’t have to be glued to your screen or constantly engaging like you do on other platforms. Pinterest wants your ideas, not your time.
Myth #5: I get clicks from Pinterest, but they don’t buy anything.
This myth can be a bit misleading. If you’re getting traffic from Pinterest but no conversions, the issue probably isn’t Pinterest, it’s what your visitors are seeing when they land.
I shared how we once had a pin go viral but didn’t have an optimized landing page ready. We had to go back, build out an offer that actually made sense for what people were searching for, and only then did we start to see real results.
Remember: Pinterest users are planners. They click with a purpose. Studies show that 83% of Pinterest users have made a purchase based on something they found on the platform.
So if your content is getting clicks but not conversions, it might be time to fine-tune the funnel.
Myth #6: I don’t have a big audience, so Pinterest probably won’t work for me.”
One of my favorite things about Pinterest is that it doesn’t care how many followers you have. Seriously. Unlike social media platforms where your visibility is often tied to your popularity, Pinterest is all about relevance and quality.
When I first started using it, my audience was tiny. But I leaned into SEO and strategy instead of follower count. And it worked. Pinterest still shows pins from accounts with fewer than 1,000 followers right on the first page of search results.
If you’re waiting to get “big enough” before diving in, stop waiting. This platform was built for creators with smart strategies, not just big numbers.
Myth #7: My people aren’t even on Pinterest.
Let me stop you right there. If your audience uses Google, they are already using Pinterest, even if they don’t realize it. Many people find Pinterest pins through image search results or embedded content.
Back when I was a wedding photographer, I didn’t think Pinterest could help me book local clients. But my assistant started pinning my wedding galleries and blog posts, and we began seeing traffic and inquiries. I started thinking about the keywords my ideal clients were typing in (like “best wedding venues in Milwaukee”) and created content that matched. And it worked!
Pinterest now has over 570 million monthly active users, and that includes everyone from moms and marketers to men planning their home gyms. I mean, even my dad is on Pinterest.
Your people are there. You just need to show up where they’re already searching.
Myth #8: Pinterest is just for bloggers and lifestyle influencers.
This is one of those myths that needs to be retired! Pinterest is no longer just for DIY projects and home decor. It’s a hub for any business that solves a problem!
Whether you’re a podcaster, a digital product seller, or a service provider, there’s room for you. In fact, some of our pins that lead to podcast episodes or sales pages perform better than the ones linked to blogs.
I even noticed that stock images often outperform photos of me because Pinterest users connect more with the idea than the person. This means you don’t have to show your face, do trending dances, or be perfectly polished.
You just have to offer something helpful. If your content solves a problem, it belongs on Pinterest.
Myth #9: I don’t have time to learn another platform.
I get it, we’re all stretched thin. But Pinterest is one of the few platforms where an hour of effort can generate traffic for a year. And that’s not an exaggeration!
I shared a story about a friend who started using Pinterest, then forgot about it for months. When she logged back in, she realized that her old pins were still driving traffic. Pinterest is incredibly forgiving like that!
The half-life of a pin is over 13 months. Compare that to a tweet, which lives for about 24 minutes, or a Facebook post that maybe lasts five hours. Once you batch your pins and schedule them out, they keep working while you’re living your life.
Myth #10: It’s too late to get started on Pinterest.
Let me assure you: you are not too late. Pinterest isn’t a trend, it’s a tool. And it’s still growing, especially among Gen Z and male users!
In fact, Gen Z now makes up 42% of Pinterest’s global user base. We’ve even seen major results from content that we started pinning way later than we originally published it. That’s because Pinterest doesn’t care when something was created.
If it’s helpful and searchable, it still has a shot. So yes, the best time to start might have been a year ago, but the second-best time? It’s right now.
Final Thoughts
These myths aren’t harmless misunderstandings. They’re costing you reach, results, and real traffic.
Pinterest isn’t a chore, it’s a secret weapon. Once you understand what it really is and how it actually works, you unlock one of the most underused, high-converting platforms out there!
And hey, if you want to go even deeper into the Pinterest strategy we talked about, come join me for my free on-demand masterclass Create Once, Traffic for Months.
I’ll walk you through how to use Pinterest to extend the life of your content and build a business that runs even when you’re not constantly posting.
Save your seat for my free Pinterest class here and let’s get pinning!
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