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Are you a small business owner or creator that is struggling with content planning? This guide will help you plan and schedule your Pinterest content for October. If you have a business or are a creator that has some seasonality, this Q4 keyword guide is perfect for you! But even if you aren’t, this is a great resource to help you find some complementary content that is seasonally appropriate to get more eyes on your content.
Wave is a social media agency focused on helping our partners make the most of Pinterest using our extensive knowledge of the ins and outs of the platform. We want to help small business owners and creators understand how Pinterest can benefit them, even we aren’t direct partners.
One big thing that makes Pinterest different from other forms of social media is that it truly functions as a search engine. What drives a search engine? Well, searches! And how do people search? Keywords.
A huge missed opportunity is Creators, businesses, and bloggers creating content without using keywords that will help their audience find them is a huge missed opportunity to increase the size of your audience.
Example: You’re an Etsy creator who makes a gorgeous handmade sweater. People wear sweaters in the fall and winter. If you aren’t including keywords in your title, descriptions, or even Pin designs* that Pinners are likely to search for in your descriptions, anyone who searches for “fall outfit ideas” won’t see your pins… even if your sweater is exactly what they’re looking for.
*Yes, you read that correctly. Pinterest scans the text on your Pin design, so it’s a great place to include a keyword or two!
Another mistake is not knowing about indexing. Indexing, for simplicity’s sake, refers to the time it takes for a pin to appear in search results. Pinterest requires as long as a 45 day lead time in order to index Pins. In other words, you don’t want to wait until October 10th to post your Halloween costume ideas blog.
Pinterest itself is suggesting it’s time to start increasing your presence on the platform. Pinners start their holiday planning with Pinterest first.
There are plenty of accounts that only share their own content. This is great for someone who has plenty of content to share on a consistent basis. What if that isn’t you? Hello, complimentary content. Pinterest is all about sharing the love! Complimentary content is content from other Pinterest accounts in a niche similar to yours that supports or complements your own.
What should you look for when pinning complimentary content? Pin content that is:
You might be thinking it sounds strange that the advice we are giving is to Pin your competitor’s content. Let us be clear– that is NOT what we mean!
On our own Pinterest profile, we share tips and tricks from other marketers that other business owners might find helpful. By pinning complimentary content ensures you expand your reach while continuing to attract pinners that are in your target demographic.
Example: If you’re a yoga teacher who mainly pins your videos for online yoga and courses you can select from complimentary content from other creators or businesses that you know your yoga students would be interested in. Think about walking into a yoga studio. What is sold there? What types of books are there? You may want to pin from Etsy sellers who handmake journals, meditation cushions, or other creators sharing their morning rituals. All of this content would complement your own while continuing to get your content in front of the right audience.
Using the Pinterest Trends tool, we’ve pulled a few search terms that historically get a nice boost in October, as well as some keywords that are trending right now.
Incorporate the keywords into your own pins. This is helpful for three reasons.
*For more information about this, check out this post about the best time to post on Pinterest!
Search for these keywords using the Pinterest Trends tool and find and repin complementary content that you know already ranks well for your keywords. This is a really great way for anyone who doesn’t have a seasonal product or service to still take advantage of seasonality. For example, one of our partners, The Bespoke Craftsman, installs accent walls year-round. He could take advantage of seasonal trends by pinning fall home decor that features accent walls even though his business isn’t seasonal.
It’s always a good time to post recipes or food-related products to Pinterest, but in October recipe searches start to trend high and will continue to trend at their highest throughout the end of the year. If your business falls in this niche, a great way to get new mileage on old recipes is to create a roundup of your favorite seasonal recipes. You could also post your most popular recipes during this time last year.
Hello, football season! There are a million ways you can incorporate this sport into your brand, but here are a few ideas.
Shifts in weather lead to an increase in fashion searches for the new season. We love to add the year to a post about fashion (fall outfits 2021) because most people are looking for up-to-date trends and styles.
Home decor is always another big one for Pinterest and styles usually change with the seasons.
As the weather gets chillier, more and more people are searching for ways to stay busy indoors. Crafts and activities for kids that are seasonal get great traction right now. Printables or crafts that utilize basic materials are easy to repurpose for the holiday season too.
Halloween is in full swing on Pinterest right now, but there is still time to get your pins out! However, remember that even if your Halloween pins don’t index this year, they’ll be ready to go for next year. Plus, your current followers do still have a chance to see it on their home feed. Speaking of which, Pinners are already looking for Thanksgiving and Christmas ideas. No, we’re serious. Now is the time to put together gift guides, centerpieces, decorating plans, etc.
If you have a creative idea for combining your niche with a historical trend, let us know in the comments.
👋 whitney + allie, wave co-founders
disclosure: wave social is part of the affiliate network for some of these online tools and products, so we may receive a small commission if you purchase through any of our links.
