Instagram VS Pinterest. How to leverage them both to enhance your Fashion Business
To be honest, I find it a little frustrating that we are even trying to compare these two platforms against each other. After all, Instagram is Social Media and Pinterest is a search engine. Just that alone makes them very different in very different ways.
But, it’s a conversation I have with many clients and lots of fashion businesses. It’s like one has to be more of a priority than the other and 95% of the time it’s Instagram. Which I get.
Instagram has made it’s mark and everyone can see what kind of results it can bring and wants to be part of the action. Instagram alone can be so time consuming so thinking of adding another platform seems like a crazy and not an achievable task.
But my mission at Style Up Social Academy is to help all fashion businesses maximise their brand through ALL the right digital content marketing channels, without it being stressful and taking up too much time. That’s why it’s important to me to educate you on two of the most powerful tools within the fashion industry so you can find ways to make them BOTH work without any confusion.
So let’s take a deeper look into the Pinterest vs Instagram topic, and analyse how both of these amazing visual networks differ from each other. And how exactly you can leverage them to enhance your business.
I almost feel I don’t need to write a section on what Instagram is. The mighty platform that has consumed us all, for good and for bad reasons, has become so powerful it has changed the way we shop and sell.
Instagram has become the window display for a new generation of savvy shoppers and it’s changing the way we consume style. Having a strong Instagram presence can almost be argued that that’s more impactful than having an actual store for brands.
Although primarily a Social Media app, Instagram specialises in all things visual. We use it to browse and look for inspiration. Fashion businesses use it to not just sell products or services but an entire concept and lifestyle. They can share their mood and inspiration, they can use it to attract people who share their aesthetic or those who are inspired by the lifestyle of their brand. Instagram stories has added a whole new approach into how brands can take their audience on a journey and make them feel part of it.
Instagram has uncovered small fashion businesses and users of the platform are getting the thrills of supporting them!
WE TEND TO FOLLOW PEOPLE AND BRANDS WITH WHO WE FEEL MOST CLOSELY ALIGNED TOO AND THE IMAGES AND STORIES WE ASPIRE AND RELATE TO. BUT THIS IS THE THING THAT AS A FASHION BUSINESS YOURSELF, YOU MAY BE STRUGGLING TO CAPTURE. AND WITHOUT THAT, IT BECOMES MUCH HARDER TO CONVERT INSTAGRAM USERS.
And this is the issue and where many of the fashion businesses I work and talk with get frustrated with. You can’t simply post a picture of your products or talk about your styling services and expect people to buy it. You have to make touch points and ‘invite’ them in into your business. Without showing your potential audience how you can help them and how your products and services fit into their lives, the chances of them buying into you are slim to none.
Turning an Instagrammer into a shopper takes time. They will most likely be using Instagram in the ‘research and consideration’ stage of the buyers journey and will spend their time getting to know you, finding social proof your business is trustworthy and will be working out how and where your products and services fit into their life.
Pinterest has around 250 million users, a relevantly small number in comparison to Facebook and Instagram. But one of the great things about Pinterest is that it’s not about social vanity. There should be little room to get caught up with silly follower numbers so you can concentrate on the important thing. Great content. And that is because it’s not a social media platform.
Pinterest themselves class themselves as a discover engine. Similar to how you search on google, Pinterest is a place to discover and do things. It is about planning and users are much more open to your ideas and what you are offering. Pinterest users are planners. People who are thinking ‘I have a wedding to attend in six months. What should I wear?’
It’s a prime place for a new and bigger audience to discover you, yet still so many fashion business don’t put focus here. Maybe because they don’t see the value…. yet.
However, the audience here are much more likely to be open to discover new styles and brands than a Facebook or Instagram user.
People come to Pinterest to discover their personal style, with over 3 billion ideas saved by 29 million people. They’re making the leap from inspiration to action – 53% say Pinterest has helped them make a fashion-related purchase decision. That number is only getting higher. Add in product tags and/or a promoted pin and those chances increase even further!
Unlike Instagram where it feels everything is in the moment and content lasts for 24 hours, Pins have a life span of 105 days, but the important thing to remember is that the mindset of a Pinner is completely different to one of a Instagram user.
When using Pinterest you have to keep in mind how people search for products. You need to plan your content for seasonal trends, events, products about 45 days in advance. Sometimes even sooner…. remember your audience here are planners!
They are also more likely to use unbranded searches ‘leopard print dress’ or ‘becoming a personal stylist’ so if your account is optimised and your key words are kickass then you have much more chance of being discovered because pinners are open to new styles and brands than a Facebook or Instagram user. They are not looking for specific brand names or products.
SO WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN?
This shouldn’t be a case of one of the other. If you are a fashion business; brand, stylist, designer or blogger than you will have an audience on both these platforms that are ready to engage and interact with you in different ways.
Both are visual, both let our audience browse and get inspiration, but the mindset of where they are when getting their inspiration is the key main difference.
Instagram plays an important part of the brand awareness stage and once you have attracted your audience and engaged them you can maximise many of Instagram’s features to convert them as loyal shoppers of your products or services. Just takes time to build that trust and finding new content ideas to sell more than just your product or service.
Pinterest users are ready to do something, discover something, buy something. There are lots of ways you can showcase your brand and when they find it they are more willing to buy and invest. Making conversion rates sometimes higher than other Social Media platforms.
What you need to do to really leverage these two platforms is to have two very different strategies and approach them with two very different mindsets. Once you have that in place, you can really start to maximise them both in great but different ways.
I would love to know if you are using both platforms already and which you find the most successful. Or if you are struggling to get both up and running…. leave me a comment below and I will answer any questions.
If you want daily hints, tips and guidance on how to grow your Fashion Business through the power of Social Media come and follow Style Up Social Academy on Instagram. Or join our private Facebook Community where we share free resources and live masterclasses!
Verity xx
I almost feel I don’t need to write a section on what Instagram is. The mighty platform that has consumed us all, for good and for bad reasons, has become so powerful it has changed the way we shop and sell.
Instagram has become the window display for a new generation of savvy shoppers and it’s changing the way we consume style. Having a strong Instagram presence can almost be argued that that’s more impactful than having an actual store for brands.
Although primarily a Social Media app, Instagram specialises in all things visual. We use it to browse and look for inspiration. Fashion businesses use it to not just sell products or services but an entire concept and lifestyle. They can share their mood and inspiration, they can use it to attract people who share their aesthetic or those who are inspired by the lifestyle of their brand. Instagram stories has added a whole new approach into how brands can take their audience on a journey and make them feel part of it.
Instagram has uncovered small fashion businesses and users of the platform are getting the thrills of supporting them!
WE TEND TO FOLLOW PEOPLE AND BRANDS WITH WHO WE FEEL MOST CLOSELY ALIGNED TOO AND THE IMAGES AND STORIES WE ASPIRE AND RELATE TO. BUT THIS IS THE THING THAT AS A FASHION BUSINESS YOURSELF, YOU MAY BE STRUGGLING TO CAPTURE. AND WITHOUT THAT, IT BECOMES MUCH HARDER TO CONVERT INSTAGRAM USERS.
And this is the issue and where many of the fashion businesses I work and talk with get frustrated with. You can’t simply post a picture of your products or talk about your styling services and expect people to buy it. You have to make touch points and ‘invite’ them in into your business. Without showing your potential audience how you can help them and how your products and services fit into their lives, the chances of them buying into you are slim to none.
Turning an Instagrammer into a shopper takes time. They will most likely be using Instagram in the ‘research and consideration’ stage of the buyers journey and will spend their time getting to know you, finding social proof your business is trustworthy and will be working out how and where your products and services fit into their life.
