How much should you be paying for a Pinterest ad in 2024?
As Pinterest is a leading social media platform for e-commerce and brands wanting to increase awareness using high-quality visual content, Pinterest advertising has become a powerful tool for advertisers to drive results.
We understand it is overwhelming when deciding whether a platform is worth investing in. That’s why we have broken down all the must-knows for Pinterest ads so you know what they are, how much they cost, and how to create and run a successful paid social campaign on any budget.
Before we break down the costs, you need to understand what a Pinterest ad is and why they are useful for your business. Let’s find out!
Pinterest ads: what are they and why should you use them?
Pinterest is a visual search engine, where users can search for and discover new brands. Pinterest ads are paid pins (posts) that advertisers can use to promote their brand/product/service to Pinterest users. . As an advertiser you can tag your pins with related keywords and your ads will appear when a user searches for that keyword; you can optimise your Pinterest profile/posts to increase your rankings and visibility.
Advertisers like to use Pinterest ads for certain campaigns for several reasons. One is that Pinterest users are often open to discovery and ready to buy which is beneficial when generating conversions. If you aim to increase brand awareness, Pinterest is the perfect platform to speak to open-minded users and enhance your reach. Pinterest also relies on visual content, so for advertisers wanting to grab attention and increase engagement using high-quality image/video content, Pinterest ads are great.
Now you know the basics of Pinterest ads, let’s get down to business … how much are they going to cost you?
How much does a Pinterest ad cost?
As Pinterest operates on an auction-based system, the cost of Pinterest ads can alter depending on many factors such as competition, industry, location and business goals. Despite this, we have provided some estimates to give you an idea of how much a Pinterest ad can cost.
| Pinterest ad goal | Cost (estimate) |
| Increase brand awareness | $2-$5 per 1000 impressions (CPM) |
| Drive more traffic to your site | Between $.10 – $1.50 per click (PPC) |
| Boost engagement | $.10 – $1.50 per engagement |
| Improve conversion rate | Anywhere between $0.00 – and $8.00 (CPA) |
Don’t be surprised if you pay more than the estimates here when competing in an extremely populated industry.
So … how much should your budget be for Pinterest ads?
There are many factors you need to consider:
- What is your overall paid social budget?
- What are your business goals?
- Do you have enough budget to maintain Pinterest advertising?
Small businesses are paying between £154-£1157 for Pinterest advertisement and then more on top of this for Pinterest ad management.
What is most important is that you start small and build up your budget, so you can carry out testing, see what works and apply your budget accordingly. Even starting with £7 a day can provide you with valuable performance insights. As with any social advertising, the more you invest the higher your chance of driving better results.
How long should you run your Pinterest ads?
You can’t expect results overnight. Like with any social media advertising, it may take a little bit of time and effort before you drive the results you want. We recommend running your ads for at least a few weeks – you can then see what has worked for you and which campaigns you can learn from and improve. When it comes to advertising, testing is key! Make sure you give your campaigns enough time to drive results before you make any decisions.
How to create a successful Pinterest ad
First things first, you need to create a Pinterest business account. Without this, creating Pinterest ads is an impossible task.
Next, you should create an ad in the ‘ads section’ and then choose your ad objective. Options include brand awareness, video views, consideration, conversions and catalogue sales. You should pick the option that best aligns with your business goals.
Then you need to fill out all the basic details and set your budget.
Once all that is completed, it is time to define your targeting strategy. You can create ad groups and then select a targeting detail for each ad group. Make sure your targeting strategy aligns with your campaign objectives. During this step, you will be presented with the option to set a frequency target, cap and target rate per action (if you don’t know how much you want to bid here, Pinterest can automatically step in).
Pin time! The next stage is to create a new pin (post) for your ad; add a clickable URL here.
Once all of the above is complete, you can submit the ad and Pinterest will review it and (if no problems) it will start running your campaign when you scheduled it.
Top tip: Monitor your Pinterest ads in real time using Pinterest Ads Manager.
Is it worth investing in Pinterest ads?
We say … YES! There has been a huge increase in successful visual content because of a high ROI. Another reason you need to get advertising on Pinterest is because eCommerce is the way forward; by 2040 95% of buying is expected to be conducted online or through eCommerce. Finally, purchase intent is skyrocketing on Pinterest with over 80% of weekly users making a purchase using pins, so it is a powerful platform for advertisers.
Here at Embryo, we can help you perfect your Pinterest ads!
Get in touch and let us support you with your paid social journey. From budget to content to strategy, our team have got you covered. We look forward to hearing from you.
