How I Achieved 1,899% Growth in Blog Traffic
Note: This post contains affiliate links as indicated by an asterisk. Purchases from these links provides a small commission to me at no extra cost to you.
If you are a blogger, you already know the importance of Pinterest in growth for blog traffic. It’s not just a social media platform, it’s a search engine. I know every time I need a new recipe or blogging tip, I head to Pinterest first. Don’t you? It’s so much more fun than searching in Google with all the beautiful images, it’s a feast for the eyes.
So how can you best optimize Pinterest for your blog? The answer is all laid out for you in the Pinning Perfect e-course* from Blog Clarity.
I’ll tell you why Pinning Perfect is the best bang for your buck when it comes to Pinterest growth. But the numbers don’t lie. I’m not just going to TELL you that Pinning Perfect upped my Pinterest game, I’m going to SHOW you. In this post, you’ll also see my real results how the principles from Pinning Perfect increased my Pinterest followers by 297% and my traffic from Pinterest by 1,899%.
FYI: I wrote this post in 2016 and in 2017, Pinterest still refers more than half of the traffic for my blog for this class I took two years ago! Hands down, easy peasy and I still need to work through the latest 2017 course update released. I know there are more valuable tips to improve even further.
What Makes Pinning Perfect a Great Bang for Your Buck
There are more expensive Pinterest courses out there and there are some free webinars that might help a little but I’m going to tell you what makes Pinning Perfect a great bang for your buck in my opinion.
- Lifetime access to the course. With social media algorithms always changing, strategies for dealing with them change too. Students always have updates to the latest course so you can access info when you need it and learn latest strategies.
- Self-paced. The course rolls out a unit a week. I love self-paced courses so I can squeeze the content into when it is convenient for me. Separately, chronic illness and children are unpredictable. Together, I never know what the day will bring. Completing the course at my pace is essential for success.
- Dedicated Facebook group and Pinterest board. Instructors Melissa and Anna are in a dedicated Facebook group where we can ask questions anytime. They also have monthly Facebook LIVE hours too to answer questions!
- Valuable cheat sheets. I loved their cheat sheets and strategy tips. Everything is explained in simple, practice terms.
- Scheduling strategy. The low down on scheduling pins. I chose Tailwind and took advantage of their discount! And a super awesome spreadsheet to help track what you are pinning and where.
The best news is Pinning Perfect* is a STEAL at $197. It’s worth every penny for lifetime access to the course and all the updates they offer!
Still not convinced? Let’s take a look at the data and just see how much growth Pinning Perfect helped me achieve during the last class I took in January 2015 and it’s STILL my #1 referrer in traffic.
The Proof is in the Data
I thought the best way to show you the impact taking Pinning Perfect had on my blog was through the data. The number of sessions is not as important as the calculated growth I’ve seen across the board in my stats.
Here are the Before Pinning Perfect and After Pinning Perfect screenshots in both Google and Pinterest Analytics.
Before Pinning Perfect: Data reflects 15 months before I took Pinning Perfect class (October 10, 2014-January 11, 2015).
After Pinning Perfect: Data reflects 15 months from when I took Pinning Perfect to present (January 11, 2015-May 10, 2016).
Google Analytics Traffic Sources
To determine which channel refers the most traffic to my site, I click on “Acquisition” and then “Overview” in Google Analytics.
Before Pinning Perfect
Search is my #1 traffic source earning twice as many sessions as social media.
AFTER Pinning Perfect
Social media is my #1 traffic source providing 31% more sessions than Search to my site.
Overall social media traffic growth:
Before Pin Perfect 3,398 social media sessions –> After Pin Perfect 42,548, Growth in social media traffic = 1,152%
Google Analytics Social Media Referrals
To determine which social media refers the most traffic to my site, in Google Analytics I click on “Acquisition” > “Overview” > “Channels” and then the “social” link in the table to get results shown.
Before Pinning Perfect
Pinterest is my #1 social media source, 56% more sessions than Facebook.
AFTER Pinning Perfect
Pinterest is my #1 social media source, but a whopping 650% more sessions than Facebook!
Overall Pinterest traffic growth:
Before Pin Perfect 1,657 sessions –> After Pin Perfect 34,775, Growth = 1,899%
Pinterest Follower Growth
I do not have a screen shot to show you but I started out with 926 Pinterest followers at the beginning of 2015. Currently, I have 3,678 Pinterest followers.
Overall Pinterest follower growth:
Before Pin Perfect 926 –> After Pin Perfect 3,678, Growth = 297%
Pinterest Analytics
Don’t know where the Pinterest analytics are or how to interpret it? Don’t worry, Pinning Perfect* covers that! I don’t want to get too much into what the stats tell us since that is what I learned in the class but showing you these stats as further evidence that their principles work!
Before Pinning Perfect
After Pinning Perfect
Pinterest profile:
- Avg. daily impressions = 199% growth
- Avg. daily viewers = 202% growth
Audience:
- Avg. monthly viewers = 769% growth
- Avg. monthly engaged = 1,256% growth
Activity from momssmallvictories.com:
- Avg. daily impressions = 213% growth
- Avg. daily viewers = 279% growth
The Honest Truth and Bottom Line
The honest truth is I would not spend the better part of 6 hours writing this blog post if Pinning Perfect* was not a product I really believed in. The honest truth is I have not even implemented every principle they taught me in class last year, I am still working my way through boards, pins and creating pinnable images. The honest truth is I have not taken the new class yet (which just launched today) but I’m going to so I can understand the latest news in changes to Pinterest algorithms and policies.
The honest truth is I LOVE the massive growth I have seen in my traffic from Pinterest using what I have learned in Pinning Perfect. I do highly recommend snagging it for $197, it’s still one of the highest return investments I’ve made in my blog. Feel free to ask me anything about the course in the comments or via email if I can help you decide if it’s right for you.
Buy Pinning Perfect* now! Click on the button for more details about the class and to purchase.
Want More Exclusive Blogging Tips, Printables and Traffic and Income Reports with Valuable Lessons Learned?
Be sure to subscribe now to gain access to my Exclusive Subscriber Library with exclusive blogging tips, planners, printables and income and traffic reports with what I learned what works (and what doesn’t) in my journey to make my work from home blogging and business dreams come true.
Other Posts Like This You Might Enjoy:
Blogging Tips and Tricks to Take Your Blog to the Next Level
5 Epic FREE Resources to be a Successful Blogger NOW!
Ultimate Free Blog Planner You Need to Build A Successful Blog
Hi,
Thank you for this article. I am relatively new to Pinterest. Up until recently, I did not see the potential in it, but then I read a few bloggers who said they were getting 80 – 90% of their traffic from Pinterest! To be honest I did not even really understand what Pinterest was. The last month or two have been a real education that have helped me get started in learning how to pin, and it sounds like the course you mentioned would be an excellent continuation of this education to help move my blog forwards in terms of traffic. I find it fascinating that while some people are solely focused on SEO, which is important, they are missing out on this amazing opportunity that Pinterest represents. Thank you for the article.
Sincerely,
Rachelle
Valuable resource here. We’ve definitely neglected Pinterest. Will have to bookmark this one.
Thanks for bookmarking. P.s. the Pinning Perfect class comes with an awesome quick start holiday guide for a limited time to Make the most of Pinterest traffic which is highest during the holidays. I know the holidays is when I earned the most blog income. Food for thought, a great time to get the course!
So much to learn!
Another great resource from you. Massive stats and what an awesome traffic boost up. Amazed. Thanks for coming up with the e-course.
Great job! Pinterest is a game-changer, isn’t it? Thanks for this post! 🙂
Yes, it certainly is! I seem to be focusing most of my effort in Pinterest and Instagram lately and I love them both. I love creating the images and they seem to have the best return of my time investment. Thanks for stopping by!
Congrats on your massive growth! I’ve been doing well with Twitter, but haven’t invested much time into Pinterest at all. After seeing your numbers, I think I definitely need to!
I haven’t dug into the new class yet, but it is on my list of things to do. I am eager to see the changes that were made. I know it helped me grow Tidbits of Experience when I had it. Now, I can’t wait to see what it will do with Sharing Life’s Moments. 😉 Great review, and I love seeing the proof.
Yes, when I get to EBA unit 3, i think i will retake Pinning Perfect at the same time. I need to get the latest on what has changed on Pinterest. I love seeing the proof too. I’m a numbers gal, the numbers don’t lie 🙂
Thanks for stopping by Crystal.
I have saved this and will look into it. I’m not earning anything from my blog yet so can’t justify spending out just yet! I’ve only just joined Pinterest so all new to me at the moment! #SmallVictoriesSundayLinkup
I hear you, its hard to invest money when you don’t have money to spend. After 4 years of blogging, am at the point where I realize I have to spend some money to make money. Because this class is driving much more traffic to my blog, it’s really helping me earn the money back slowly but surely. They have totally rewritten the course for all the updates Pinterest has made so I really need to take it again. Thanks for saving and commenting.
I don’t even understand those graphs! lol I am so not good with that kind of thing. If I had the money I would take the course, I think. I can see you get a lot out of it! Congrats on the growth!!
That is just plain old impressive! Congrats on the increase in traffic!
Congratulations on the huge growth! Very impressive! You know I’m in the EBA course (with you!) and I’m trying to implement everything in that course first before I jump into anymore programs. There were a bunch of free courses offered recently and I totally overwhelmed myself!
Congrats on the amazing Pinterest growth! I’m going to consider taking it.
Those are great stats, Tanya. Well done.
I’m in that class too, and it was eye opening! Thanks for hopping in the Get It Together Link Party!
Wow!! I’m SOOOOO tempted to do this course. I feel like I know a lot already about Pinterest from free courses and such. You really think this was that helpful? Your numbers are amazing!!
It was extremely helpful for me, lots of tips and tricks I gained I had not learned elsewhere but I was not very good/knowledgeable at Pinterest before the class.
I feel like I need to take it again both for a refresher and to see what changed.
Wow!! These are awesome results!!
I have heard really good things about this course, and your post just solidifies it. 🙂
I could probably use some help with Pinterest.
XOXO
This is wonderful! Pinterest is definitely a big source of traffic for me, but it could be much better. I wish I had more time right now to invest in training, but it would have to wait till September.
I took Pinning Perfect almost 2 years ago and feel it helped me finally understand and use Pinterest. I don’t have the massive growth you have, but I’m happy to have some growth and to know how to use the tool. I’m pleased to look at the classes again now, especially as they did not have a Tailwind session when I took it.
I’m excited to take the updated class too and figure out how this whole cumulative repin # thing is working. They have a whole Tailwind session now? Awesome! I just renewed my Tailwind subscription for another year. Considering I have not yet done everything they taught me to do with my boards/pins, I was ecstatic with my traffic growth. I love Pinterest too, it’s a fun social media for me. Thanks for stopping by and sharing your thoughts Katy!
Whoops, I interpreted that you learned about Tailwind from Pinning Perfect. I have no idea if the updated class talks about it! But your endorsement of it sounds promising!
I did learn about Tailwind from Pinning Perfect and that’s how I signed up for it. I thought you meant they talked about it even more in updated class. My bad! 🙂
Pinterest is one of the sites where I get the most traffic. its an awesome network as well. I absolutely love it. It’s so great that your numbers grew after the course 🙂
Wow you’ve had amazing results. I’ve tried a free course but this sounds much better. I’ve been looking for a long time how to use Pinterest to gain traffic! Thanks for sharing your experience 🙂
This is some great information. I’ve been intending to invest a lot more of my energy on my Pinterest account. I will certainly take all of this into consideration.
This course sounds great!!! I’ve had a recent spike in my Pinterest traffic and I want it to keep going. Might have to sign up for this!
Pinterest is great, I hope you have as much or more success with the class as I did. I need to take the update to see what all changed so I can continue growing. It’s nice being able to see the result of my effort. I don’t get the same return from other social media channels. Keep me posted if you sign up!
I’ve just started using Pinterest to benefit my blog. I’ve got a long way to go though. So often what I blog about isn’t “pinable” so I have to make something fit that IS pinable. This class sounds like it would be incredibly helpful.
Yes, I use stock photos or pretty nature pictures when something isn’t pinnable. Or a simple color background with your post title is fine too. This class helps you get ideas too of how to create pinnable images.
Interesting.. But as of now, I’m in the stage of taking very nice photos first.
I’m still working on that too. Until then, I’ve been using free high quality stock photos. I really want a better camera so I can use all my own images.
This is absolutely fascinating! I would love to take the course, it would be a fantastic opportunity!
It looks like you had awesome growth with this platform! I will definitely look into it as I want that kind of growth too!
I have been neglecting Pinterest. I know I need to put some time over on that social network.
It sounds like a great course. I’m not in the position to pay for it now but I am working with Board Booster to improve my social media.
Sounds like you had amazing results from this course! I will have to look into it as I want to increase my pinterest knowledge
Pinning is so important, but I need to get to it. This is an area I need to dedicate more time to – so hopefully when I have more time I can really attack it! 🙂
Karen | GlamKaren.com
Pinterest is the one area I really need to get going on. I’m adding it to my to do list right now!
Yes, Pinterest has helped my traffic immensely. Considering I blog about less popular niches (books, chronic illness and planners), I still get quite a boost in traffic. Definitely put Pinterest on your to do sooner rather than later list!
I love classes that give you access to them after you have finished the class. Thanks for the review, I’m going to look into signing up for this one!
Me too Julie. I took a class once, she was offering it for free but it was a paid class. I implemented her advice but had a follow up question to which she replied essentially “you’re on your own.” and told me to Google it. I thought that was poor taste and I wasn’t going to buy any of her other course offerings from her. Now I don’t buy courses without lifetime access to the original class and future updates. In this class, with the Facebook group all the students alum and instructors are in there to help each other out. Chances are someone can help me when I need it. I will be taking this one again soon since I know all the algorithms and strategies seem to have changed.
This looks like a really helpful course!
It is! I love when I can see proof of the results. Thanks for stopping by LeighAnn!
I have heard a lot of good things about this course. I have been debating signing up for it.
I’d be glad to answer any questions you have to help you decide. I still need to take the new version with the lifetime access she gives for the course. It is a great course, I learned a lot about Pinterest I didn’t know before.
Looks like an awesome course.
It really is! I look forward to taking the updated course and get all the details on how Pinterest has changed. It can be confusing.