E-commerce News Facebook's Big Decline And Pinterest's Big Jump

Prior Article #1 How E-commerce Sellers Are Getting Massive Traffic From Pinterest.

Prior Article #2 Pinterest Article: Pinterest And Shopify For E-commerce Sellers

Hey friends,

Earlier this week (February 22nd 2018) the Shareaholic Traffic Report was released and it dropped several  bombs on the e-commerce world! 

E-commerce sellers would be wise to study this carefully and begin making changes to their tactics. There are two big headlines:

1. Organic Search has taken back the leadership spot (besting social media) as the top source of referral traffic.
2. Websites saw a massive decline in referral traffic from Facebook, while referral traffic from Pinterest took a really big jump. This is HUGE news for e-commerce sellers (of every variety - Amazon - eBay - Shopify - whatever).

Here are a few of the really important charts from their report - and then my list of resources to dig into Pinterest marketing...

#1 Organic Search Is Beating Social Media

Take-Aways From The Shift To Organic Search

1. You need to be focused on developing organic search traffic to your site or product listing.
2. You optimize for organic search through effective use of keywords on your site or in your product listings. 
3. This should probably also re-invigorate your emphasis on learning about Search Advertising (Google Adwords), a staple in our business (and it should probably be in yours too).

#2 Facebook Declining - Pinterest Rising

The biggest surprise in the data was the staggering (and continued) decline of Facebook as a source of referral traffic. Sure, it is still dominant, but the trend line is really bad. Whereas Pinterest continues to chug along (and grow) with surprising success. This is absolutely shaping up like a Tortoise and the Hare type situation. Here are two charts that document the situation nicely:

Take-Aways From The Decline Of Facebook & Rise Of Pinterest

This is just one guys opinion, but I think this data is really important to think about! E-commerce sellers would be wise to consider their time & money investment into these two platforms. Here are my top level take-aways:

1. I know from talking to thousands of e-commerce sellers that they frequently ignore Pinterest all together (because of a set of dumb excuses) and waste way too much time and money on Facebook strategies that frequently don't work! That is going to become a more and more expensive mistake.
2. The trend-line is important to look at - Facebook is on a multi-year decline, while Pinterest is steadily improving. What happens when Pinterest beats Facebook for 1st place? That'll be a massive flippening (flip / reckoning)!
3. If you're going to spend your time on just a few social networks - it better be Facebook and Pinterest. This is not a new "revelation", but this data continues to demonstrate that in terms of referral traffic, their are ONLY two sites that matter (a lot) and that is Facebook and Pinterest. 

Setting Up Your Pinterest Marketing Plan

I'll be honest, as the author of Pinterest Power, I'm excited to see this development. It's exciting because I've spent years developing tools and resources for marketers related to Pinterest. I'll share a few here:

1. For a more complete set of all my prior insights, lessons, webinars, and podcasts related to Pinterest Marketing, be sure to check out www.marketingonpinterest.com
2. Learn how e-commerce sellers are getting massive traffic from Pinterest on this extended blog post. It is written for Shopify store owners, but could be applied to any e-commerce seller.
3. Watch an hour long Facebook Live where Kyle and I discuss Pinterest For E-commerce Sellers. You'll learn a ton from this in-depth conversation.

Free One Hour Pinterest Marketing Training Session

Here is a fantastic podcasts e-commerce sellers that outlines why Pinterest is so amazing and how to set things up correctly. It's available on Soundcloud, here is the player, just click the orange button to listen now:

Pinterest For Amazon, eBay & Etsy Sellers

Wondering how to use Pinterest in support of your Amazon, eBay, or Etsy selling? This video walks you through what I call my "Traffic Stacking" methodology:

I hope these resources help you dig into Pinterest as a powerful source of referral traffic to your e-commerce selling.

Inner Circle Invitation: To go deeper into this topic, get personal help and insights from Jason and Kyle, and join the conversation with other like minded e-commerce sellers, consider joining our Inner Circle program. 

Grateful for the chance to be of help on your e-commerce journey!

If you'd like additional training and coaching to achieve your Shopify goals, consider applying for our coaching program today!

Jason Miles