What are Pinterest Story Pins?

Wondering what Pinterest Story pins are? Stories seem to be an essential feature for social media platforms today. But did you know that only eight years ago they never existed? In 2013, Snapchat made a significant update to its platform and created stories. With this new update, Snapchat began to gain mass popularity, and it wasn’t long before other social media platforms integrated this story feature into their software. In 2016, Instagram added stories with Facebook and YouTube following in 2017.  Pinterest creators developed a version of their own, and it’s a significant update!

Though Pinterest Story Pins were first introduced in late 2019 overseas, it wasn’t until September 2020, when this beta feature became available to some business accounts. Pinterest surprised many users with early access to this new feature. But don’t worry. If you don’t have access now, you can request access with merely a click of a button. It should be about 5-7 business days for granted access if your request is approved. 

Request access here: https://www.pinterest.com/story-pin-invite/

What are Pinterest Story Pins?

Think of Story Pins like a slideshow. These Story Pins can incorporate more ideas and inspiration than a standard pin, with up to 20 different content pages, including a mix of pictures and videos. Like regular pins, a user can add to an existing, new, or even a shared board.  

For most Pinners on Pinterest searching for inspiration, DIYs, how-to guides, and tutorials, the new Story Pins will be an effective tool. Tag up to 10 relevant topics related to searched content with these Story Pins. Tagging is essential and makes it even easier to get the right content in front of the right audience who care the most. Story Pins unlock the door to creativity for creators to generate even more detailed and engaging content. The limitation of a single page of text is eliminated with the option to now go more in-depth and explain a concept. Some ideas of the best types of pins to maximize this feature would be how-to guides, list posts, detailed recipes with step-by-step photos, DIY guides, tutorials, and travel tips. 

They Never Expire

Don’t let the word “Story” fool you. Unlike most stories you see on major platforms, Pinterest Story Pins ever expire! Say goodbye to the 24-hour expiration date because these Story Pins will stay on your boards forever (unless, of course, you make them disappear).

You Will be Rewarded 

That’s right! Pinterest will favor Story Pins over regular pins. With their new algorithm, Pinterest is experimenting and providing more exposure than they typically would with standard pins. To have the algorithm work in your favor, you must take full advantage of the features Pinterest provides. Users that have utilized this feature have seen an increased reach of their pins within 24 hours with inflated numbers. Pinterest is rewarding content creators for using their features with a higher chance of generating more impressions, clicks, and traffic to their website. It’s the gift that keeps on giving!

Creating Story Pins in 4 Simple Steps

You will find that creating Story Pins is a very straightforward process with a super user-friendly interface, whether you’re on a desktop or mobile device. Below are the four areas you will be prompted with when creating a Story Pin:

• Upload: You can upload up to 20 images or videos.
• Design: This is where you can adjust the layout of your images, focal point and add text. 
• Details: Add a theme with corresponding prompts. For example, if your theme is Crafts + DIY, you will have the drop-down to choose the difficulty level and a box to fill in the supplies needed. 
• Audience: This is where you will create your Story Pin title, choose the board it will be uploaded to, and add up to 10 tagged topics.

So What’s the Catch?

With this fantastic new feature, you may be wondering, “Okay, what’s the catch? There has to be something”. Well, this is true. The biggest controversy is that the links you provide in Story Pins are not direct links. Go figure! Pinterest’s goal is to keep pinners on their platform as long as possible. Previously pinners would search through content, and then it was easy to visit the creator’s website from a pin. With Story Pins, this discourages Pinners from leaving Pinterest by eliminating direct links, making it a little more complicated. Sneaky right? But there is a bright side. There may not be direct links, but there will now be a follow button at the end of your Story Pins, which will link back to your Pinterest business page. This prompt is an excellent reminder for Pinners to follow you, especially if they enjoyed your content enough to read until the end. 

Where Do I Go From Here?

I’ll leave you with these few key points:

1. Pinterest will favor Story Pins in their new algorithm. 
2. Story pins are super easy to make.
3. Story Pins never expire.

Even though you may not have access to this exciting new feature yet, you can either attempt to request early access or sit tight and wait patiently. If you decide to wait, this is still a great time to get familiar with Story Pins until it is available for everyone. In the meantime, it never hurts to educate yourself and be prepared to elevate your business’s presence on Pinterest. Get ready for the biggest update yet! 

Ps. Remember to have fun and get creative!

Interested in Pinterest’s official release video? Check it out here: https://youtu.be/j3xzahNK27Y