How to Create Pinterest Ads for E-commerce

Pinterest is often the 'secret weapon' for Australian e-commerce brands. Unlike other social platforms where users scroll past content, Pinterest users are actively looking for inspiration to buy, making it a high-intent platform that can drive significant ROI for your online store.

Why Pinterest Ads Matter for E-commerce

In Australia, millions of people use Pinterest every month to plan home renovations, weddings, and gift purchases. Because Pinterest is a visual discovery engine rather than just a social network, your ads act as helpful suggestions rather than interruptions. For e-commerce owners, this means lower acquisition costs and a higher average order value compared to more saturated platforms.

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Prerequisites: What You’ll Need Before Starting

Before we dive into the Ads Manager, ensure you have the following ready:

• A Pinterest Business Account: If you have a personal one, you can easily convert it in settings.
• A Verified Domain: You must claim your website on Pinterest to track performance.
• The Pinterest Tag: This is a piece of code (similar to the Meta Pixel) installed on your website to track conversions and sales.
• High-Quality Imagery: Vertical images (2:3 aspect ratio) work best.
• Product Catalogue (Optional but Recommended): A data feed from Shopify or WooCommerce to create 'Shopping Ads'.

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Step 1: Install the Pinterest Tag

Before spending a cent, you must be able to measure success. Go to the Ads menu and select Conversions.

Step 2: Choose Your Campaign Objective

Log in to your Pinterest Ads Manager and click Create Campaign. You will be presented with several objectives. For e-commerce, you generally want to focus on:

• Consideration: Good for driving traffic to new product launches.
• Conversions: Best for driving actual sales (requires the Pinterest Tag to be active).
• Catalogue Sales: Best if you have a large inventory and want to show personalized products to users.

Step 3: Set Your Budget and Schedule

In the campaign setup, you’ll decide how much you want to spend.

• Daily Budget: What you are comfortable spending every 24 hours.
• Lifetime Budget: A total amount for a specific date range (e.g., a Black Friday sale).

Step 4: Define Your Targeting Strategy

Pinterest targeting is unique because it combines interests with keywords.

• Interests: Based on what users consistently engage with (e.g., 'Home Decor' or 'Sustainable Fashion').
• Keywords: Based on what users are literally typing into the search bar.

Step 5: Select Your Placement

You can choose where your ads appear: Browse (the home feed) or Search (results after a user searches). For most e-commerce brands, 'All' is the best starting point to maximise reach.

Step 6: Create Your Ad Creative (The Pin)

This is the most critical step. Click Create Pin or select an existing Pin from your boards.

• File type: .png or .jpg
• Aspect ratio: 2:3 (e.g., 1000 x 1500 pixels). Square images often get cropped or ignored.
• Branding: Place your logo subtly on every Pin, but avoid the bottom right corner (where Pinterest icons appear).

Step 7: Write Compelling Copy

Your Pin title and description are vital for SEO within Pinterest.

• Title: Use clear, keyword-rich language (e.g., "Organic Cotton Baby Wraps - Made in Brisbane").
• Description: Explain the benefits of the product. Mention shipping details if you offer free shipping within Australia, as this is a major conversion driver.
• Alt Text: Describe the image for accessibility; this also helps Pinterest understand what your ad is about.

Step 8: Add the Destination Link

Ensure your link goes directly to the specific product page, not your homepage. If a user clicks on a blue dress, they should land on the blue dress page.

Step 9: Set Your Bidding

For beginners, select 'Automatic' bidding. This allows Pinterest to manage your bids to get the most clicks or conversions for your budget. Once you have more data (after about 30-60 days), you can experiment with 'Custom' bidding to cap your Cost Per Acquisition (CPA).

Step 10: Review and Launch

Review your targeting, creative, and budget. Ensure you haven't restricted your audience too much—Pinterest recommends an audience size of at least 500,000 for the best results in the Australian market. Click Publish.

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Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Using Horizontal Images: These look tiny on mobile and perform poorly. Always stick to vertical 2:3.
• Ignoring Keywords: Don't just rely on interest targeting. Keywords are how you capture people at the exact moment of intent.
• Changing Ads Too Quickly: Pinterest is a 'slow burn' platform. It can take 2-3 weeks for the algorithm to fully optimise your campaign. Avoid making major changes in the first 14 days.
• No Clear Call to Action (CTA): Even though the whole Pin is clickable, adding text overlay like "Shop the Collection" can increase click-through rates by up to 50%.

Troubleshooting Common Issues

• Ad Not Delivering: Check if your billing information is correct and that your ABN is verified if required. Also, check if your audience size is too small.
• Low Click-Through Rate (CTR): Your image might not be 'stoppable' enough. Try adding a text overlay or using a lifestyle shot instead of a plain product-on-white-background shot.
• High Traffic, No Sales: This usually points to a problem with your website. Check your load speeds and ensure your checkout process is seamless for Australian customers (e.g., offering Afterpay or ShopPay).

Next Steps

Once your first campaign is running, wait at least two weeks before analysing the data. Look at which keywords are driving the most traffic and consider doubling down on those.

Ready to scale your e-commerce results? If you need help setting up your product catalogue or fine-tuning your Pinterest strategy, contact the team at Local Marketing Group today. We specialise in helping Australian businesses grow their online presence through data-driven advertising.