As a powerful social media network with millions of users sharing virtual pins and boards, Pinterest provides a way for businesses to market themselves by connecting with those of similar likes or interests. Through community boards, businesses can reach out to potential customers to sell their products and services or connect with other social media users. To help you leverage Pinterest for your business, here are five ways to grow your Pinterest community:

1. Research and target potential buyers

In order to create the right boards that lure in the most relevant Pinterest users, you must target your audience. Research who your target audience is and their demographics to draw in the right potential customers to boards where they can connect with you and join in the conversation.

To contact with profiles who have similar interests or work in the same industry, search keywords in Pinterest related to the job titles of those who would work in your targeted field. Add these users to your list of followers and if they have a board or posts related to their business, you can repin them to your own board.

2. Focus on social media influencers

To fully use community boards to your advantage, create a board to host a group of bloggers or other social media influencers who are in your vertical and might be interested in your company. The ultimate goal is to have those influencers become advocates of your business and start promoting it.  By gathering together Pinterest people who are already considered popular social media influencers and have a large following, you can get your product or service noticed by a wider audience rather quickly.

3. Communicate a lifestyle associated with your business

Ask yourself what is your product or service all about? Create a board that communicates what kind of community your audience can find associated with your company and highlight this through your pins. This allows your potential followers (and customers) to learn about your business and what it could do for them through your pin boards.

When searching for Pinterest users by interest, you’ll be able to target the followers of your competitors.  By then following those users and creating an enticing reason for them to visit your site you may find that you’re able to win business away the competition!

4. Incorporate keywords

Add keywords to your URL, name, profile description, board titles, and board descriptions to increase their rankings on Google and Pinterest. This will allow social media users to find your Pinterest account more easily, resulting in more engagement and a larger following.

A new feature we noticed on Pinterest allows social media users to see what keywords are used most on your pins. This enhances user experience and allows your pins to be discovered more easily. This is something to look out for in future.

5. Search for keywords

Search for keywords on Pinterest to see what is popular in your industry. This will allow you to develop more shareable content for Pinterest and other social media platforms. You can also connect with these pinners using Ninja Pinner, which is a Pinterest tool that helps build your Pinterest followers.

With these five tips about how to grow your Pinterest community, anyone can connect with users with similar interests and market to their targeted audience.