This post may contain affiliate links, which means I may receive a small commission, at no cost to you, if you make a purchase.
Did you know that you can use affiliate links on Pinterest? *Cue the happy dance*
In 2015, Pinterest had banned Pinterest affiliate marketing because of a floodof spammy pins. But, as they improved their platform and technology to combat those spammers we now are allowed to do affiliate marketing on Pinterest again!
Affiliate Marketing is one of my favorite ways to monetize a blog. If done right it can become very passive. Using affiliate marketing on Pinterest is amazing because you have a whole army of pinners (over 100 million!) that are there to spread your link.
Before I get too far let’s cover the basics:
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What is Pinterest affiliate marketing?
So you may be wondering, what is Pinterest affiliate marketing? Essentially, you share products you love and when someone makes a purchase through your link you earn a commission off of that sale.
For example, if you decided to purchase through one of my links, I would earn a small commission, but there is no additional cost to you. There even can be bonuses for using an affiliate link!
It really is a win-win. You get to solve your reader’s problems by sharing amazing products and in return, you can earn some money!
Another question I’m frequently asked about using affiliate links on Pinterest is…
How Do I Get Pinterest Affiliate Links?
The easiest way to get affiliate links for Pinterest affiliate marketing is to join what are called affiliate networks. These networks are big groups of individual affiliate programs. You join the network and then within that platform you are able to apply to dozens of affiliate programs.
Some of my favorite affiliate networks are:
Here is an example of one of my affiliate pins from ShareASale.
Can I use Amazon Affiliate Links On Pinterest?
This is a great question and there has been A LOT of contradictory information about using Amazon affiliate links on Pinterest. Some say that Amazon reps have said it is okay, some say that the reps say it is strictly forbidden.
Here’s what I say:
It is not worth it to risk your Amazon affiliate account. For my readers and students, I recommend not using Amazon affiliate links on Pinterest.
There are plenty of other great affiliate networks (ShareASale is my favorite) for Pinterest affiliate marketing.
Want some Pinterest Affiliate Marketing Ideas?
Here are a few suggestions from the most popular blogging niches for affiliate marketing products you can pin on Pinterest. There are many other products you can become an affiliate for, these are just a few to get you started!
For additional ideas ask yourself:
“What type of items would my ideal reader want to buy?”
Mommy Blogs– Create boards like little boy clothes and fill it with your favorite children’s styles,toddler snacks with all the foods your kiddos love and mom style with tasteful pieces from your favorite brands.
DIY + CraftsBlogs – Link your favorite tools,craft supplies, and inspiration for future projects.
Cooking Bloggers– Create boards + pins for your favorite kitchen tools,cookbooks, aprons and even appliances for your dream kitchen.
Frugal/ Coupon Bloggers– People love a good deal. Share pins about companies that save you money,cash back websites, daily deal sites, banking,online consignment stores, etc.
Fashion Bloggers– Fashion blogs are a goldmine for affiliate links!Link your favorite shirts, shorts, pants,shoes, sunglasses, hats etc.
Blogging About Blogging– Include pins for your favorite niche related courses,email providers, business tools, social media schedulers,blog hosting and website templates.
Related: How To Start A Blog In Ten Minutes Or Less!
There was a reason why Pinterest took down the affiliate link feature. You need to keep the following things in mind when you add these links so your posts won’t look like spam and you will maintain the integrity of your brand.
Pinterest Affiliate Marketing Rules
1. Pinterest Affiliate Link Disclosures
The most important rule you need to remember when adding affiliate links is to mention that it is an affiliate link. In your pin descriptions,Pinterest urges you to always disclose that it is an affiliate link and affiliate networks require it. You can write this within your description or use #affiliate at the end of your description. This needs to be done in order to follow affiliate networks rules and abide by FTC regulations.
2. Update Your Existing Pins
Go through your boards and see which pins you can add an affiliate link to. Use affiliate links for products that you have used and loved. This will establish trust with your followers. To make sure you keep the quality and standards of your brand, keep this in mind before you get too focused on the cha-ching.
3. Create Boards Specifically for Affiliate Products
A few examples would be Tools and Resources or the Best Tools For Mompreneurs. This is a great alternative because your follower knows right off the bat that if they click on a pin link that they will be directed to where they can purchase the item.
4. Create Strong Descriptions.
Since your pin is going directly to a seller’s site and not your blog or review, make sure that the title and description of each pin is informative and straight to the point. You can use two to three sentences and always, always, always disclose. Remember that these titles and descriptions are what help Pinterest users find you when they do a search. The better your description is, the more sales you will get.
5. Don’t Go Overboard
I know you are seeing dollar signs, but don’t go crazy with pinning a million affiliate links. That will turn off your followers fast! Using affiliate links can be done tastefully!
You have to keep with the aesthetic of your brand. If you want to pin with an affiliate link, make sure your images are in the same style, look, and color. Having inconsistent boards and pins will easily make you lose followers and potential clients.
6. Create Multiple Pinnable Images.
The product you are promoting may come with a pinnable affiliate graphic, but don’t stop there. Consider creating your own affiliate graphic that coincides with your personal branding. This will set you apart from other pinners that are reusing the same pins over and over.
7. Use a Pinterest scheduler
Tools like Tailwindcan trickle out your affiliate pins so you don’t look spammy. Nothing is worse than having 10 affiliate pins in a row show up in your newsfeed.
With a few clicks, you can schedule your affiliate links to be repinned multiple times.
On Tailwind try using their “Board Lists” feature to schedule your affiliate pins out to multiple boards at once! In four clicks I can add my affiliate pin to a list with 30+ boards on it. This is a major timesaver!
Related:How To Use Tailwind To Skyrocket Traffic To Your Blog
You also can use Tailwind’s SmartLoop feature to recycle your affiliate pins so they continue to go out over and over again.
With this feature, you can set up rules so your pins only go out once a month for example so you aren’t spamming your links!
For a full guide on how to use the Tailwind Smartloop check out this post.
8. Do not use short links on Pinterest.
That means Pretty Link, Bit.ly, etc. In Pinterest’s Acceptable Use Policy, this is explicitly forbidden.
Can you do Pinterest affiliate marketing without a blog?
Many affiliate networks will require that you have a blog before they will approve you for their platform. If you don’t have a blog yet and still want to try to make money on Pinterest that’s okay. You can start a simple blog and put up a few posts or even a “coming soon” page and some platforms will approve you.
There are some different strategies that you can try and you can see results faster if you do Pinterest affiliate marketing in conjunction with a blog, but it is not required.
The Best Pinterest Affiliate Marketing Course
I love Pinterest affiliate marketing so much that I even created a more detailed course all about how to do it effectively!
In the course, you will learn the exact strategies that I use to make affiliate sales on Pinterest every single day!
When you enroll in Pin to Profits: Affiliate Marketing you will learn:
- The fundamentals of affiliate marketing on Pinterest
- How to optimize your Pinterest account for affiliate marketing
- Branding strategies for Pinterest
- Implementing Pinterest affiliate marketing
- Pinterest affiliate tips for bloggers
Over 600 happy students have gone through Pin to Profits: Affiliate Marketing course and I would love to teach you too!
As a thank you for reading this post you can take $10 off the course when you use the coupon code PINMONEY at checkout! That makes the course less than $40!
That is a screaming deal for a course that teaches you how to make money on Pinterest 🙂
Have you tried using affiliate links on Pinterest? Comment below and let us know!
You May Also Enjoy:
How To Start A Blog In Ten Minutes Or Less
How To Make Money Blogging With Affiliate Marketing
Five Ways You Can Make Money Blogging
How To Use Tailwind To Skyrocket Traffic To Your Blog
