How To Bridge Google Plus to Pinterest for Better Marketing
Have you ever noticed a connection between Google Plus and Pinterest any? The longer I stay on Google Plus, the more I realize the potential that it has with the Pinterest platform.
As you know, images are very important in any social media platform. You also know that Pinterest marketing is something that you shouldn’t forget.
If you’re reading this and you’re a man, then you may feel that Pinterest is not really that important of a social platform. True, it’s crowded by women, but that doesn’t mean that it’s a place for you to avoid. I know one guy that plain out told me that this was the only reason that he didn’t go on Pinterest. What an idiot.
Google Plus is mostly dominated by men. But if you’re a true marketing professional that’s of the opposite sex, you’re not going to let that stop you from the attempts at driving clients and traffic to your door.
Both of these platforms have proven to be serious cache’s of driving traffic and I want to discuss how you can better prepare yourself to build that bridge between Google Plus and Pinterest and make your marketing strategy for social media even stronger.
Image Updates vs Link Updates
I’m not for sure if that’s even the right description, but let me explain what I mean. When you go to promote your blog posts on G+, there are a couple of ways that you can put your URL that will grab your image from your RSS feed. Like so:
You can do it this first way, but I don’t recommend that. If you’re simply wanting to promote your blog post and nothing else, then there is a better way than to do it like this. Besides, doing it this way counts for absolutely no SEO value whatsoever. When you are simply wanting to update and connect your blog to G+ for social media and nothing else, then you can do it like this. Put the URL where the Link Text Is and not in the description itself.
While you may have already figured that little tidbit out for yourself, there are plenty of people that are cluttering up their G+ update while promoting their posts.
These are simply what I call “Link” updates on Google Plus. People put their link URL either in the description part, which I feel is the wrong place to put it for only promoting posts, or they can put it in the right location which would be inside the link button itself.
Image updates are known to actually work better on Google Plus, and this is how you can link your updates on G+ to Pinterest.
Linking the Two Platforms
This has been something that I’ve seen for a while now, and have only tried it recently, with great results too! Of course I got this from a Pinterest professional by the name of Rebekah Radice and I really loved the way she did it! Now, the first time I promote a blog post on Google Plus I do it this way. Usually a day or two later, I will come back and promote it the regular way, but for now, this is the way I do it.
Choose Your Image
The first step that you need to do after you have written your blog post, and just before you publish, is to create an eye-grabbing image for both platforms. What usually works on Pinterest, will work on G+ too. The image above is the one that I have chosen to represent this particular blog post both on Pinterest and G+.
Pin Your Image
The next step is to actually publish the post and pin your image to Pinterest. After you have done that, take your image that you have pinned and upload it to the Google Plus update by the use of the “photo” option. The image will be large enough to fit well inside both of the G+ update and the Pinterest update as well.
After you have uploaded your image, take the time to explain to the Google Plus users what your content will be about, what they will learn, how it will benefit them, etc. Since your pinned image is already uploaded in the G+ update, there’s no need to place your URL inside the “link” option. After you have filled out the description as best you can, tell them where they can view the article.
Bridge the Two Platforms
Now here’s the catch. After you have given them the link to your article, you will also want to persuade them to go and pin your image to Pinterest as well. They can only do that if you give them the URL to the pinned image on Pinterest. The key is making it super simple for the reader to do what you want them to do.
The Final Thought
Take your time and do it right. Google Plus and Pinterest are two great platforms. People are always wanting to see great information, and, if you can give it to them easily, they will do what you want them to do every time! Big images, lots of explanations of the article, and a clear picture of where they need to go. The image is the foundation of the update on G+, make it the focal point for this platform and it will bridge the gap between this one and Pinterest too.
Your Turn
Have you ever saw anyone doing this on Google Plus? Have you ever tried it yourself? I challenge you to take a little extra effort in your marketing strategy on social media and do this for every post you publish. You will find that people are eager to interact on your updates more frequently when you do.
Tom McNaughton
Tom is a full-time digital marketer who has practiced internet marketing for over 10 years. Tom also serves dozens of local digital businesses and has successfully brought substantial traffic growth to their websites.
