5 Helpful Tips For Using Pinterest To Boost Traffic

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Source: Little Bits Of Lovely

I'm going to start this post by saying I'm really no expert when it comes to Pinterest, social media, SEO or anything of the kind, my boyfriend studies IT and the first thing he said when he looked at my blog was "you could really improve your SEO" - whatever that means, but I'm learning and trying to discover the best ways to market my blog and boost traffic. Recently in a bloggers chat the topic was the best way to gain traffic and bloggers use of social media, there were several bloggers discussing Pinterest and how they want to start using it or they don't understand, I tweeted a few people saying it's my main source of traffic and a few people replied asking for tips, so I thought I'd do my 5 easy tips for helping boost your traffic.


1. Try to join a bloggers board! MissMakeupMagpie created one, here, it has over half a million followers making it great exposure for you and your blog. It's currently closed to new members but if you are part of it start making use of it, if half a million people see it and only ten of them pin your post, all of their followers will see it, then if 3 of them pin it all of their followers will, and so forth. If you can't join at the moment still follow the board because she may open up to new members again, plus it's a great way to find new blogs, which leads me on to my next tip.

2. Follow and pin other peoples posts. If you're not going to follow and pin other peoples blog pictures, why should they follow and pin yours? Not only are you helping other bloggers out by getting their name out there, it's also getting your name out there to them. If you're their only new follower that day or you're one of only 3 people that pin their post, odds are they'll check your page out and will hopefully stick around.

3. Try to make your pictures look as nice as you can. I'm not saying I'm a photography maestro, but Pinterest is a vain little part of the Internet, the people like things to be pretty, bright and clear, or to at least look like they've been taken by a DSLR expert. If you look at pictures on the bloggers board the ones with the most interactions are the bright and sharp pictures. Of course certain pictures such as MAC products are always going to get a lot of pins, but if you can make a unfamiliar product look interesting people are more likely to become interested.

4. Post links to your blog and the posts. I'm honestly not patronising you here, because when I started using Pinterest I forgot to do this myself, it was only weeks later I decided to go back and change them, however by then they'd become lost in the abyss of Pinterest. Have your blog and Twitter linked up in your bio and I would recommend installing a Pinterest button to your blog, such as this one here, so you can automatically pin pictures from your blog and then don't have to worry about putting the link to the blog post manually. Pinning through a button will do it all for you, put the link, the title and your name, it's so simple!

5. Post at the right times! Just like your blog posts and tweets, you need to post pins at the optimal time to ensure you're reaching the largest amount of people possible. From experience I've found around 10am/11am and 7pm-9pm the best times to post, sometimes the 10am one can be a bit hit and miss, you'll either got loads of people or just a couple, but some of my most popular posts have been through pinning at 10am. The best way to find out is through your own trial and error, but as a starting point I would say 7pm.

Hopefully you found these helpful, these are just the basic ways I've helped boost my traffic. I've basically doubled the amount of traffic I receive since signing up to Pinterest and like I said, it's now become my main traffic source. These tips won't bring in millions of people, but I feel like following these few steps will help anyone to increase traffic, even if it's only a small proportion of their regular views.

Let me know if you found these useful, or your best tips!

Grab Yourself A Free Burberry Lipstick!




















As far as marketing campaigns go Burberry have got it spot on with the release of their latest lipsticks, Burberry Kisses, a hydrating lip colour which allows you to apply a sheer wash of colour and build upon this until you have full intensity. In order to celebrate the release of these new lipsticks they're giving away free samples, with the choice of a nude or a red lipstick. You receive a 1g sample of the lipstick, making it just under a third the size of a full size lipstick, giving it a value of around £7.50 - not bad considering it's free eh? I was expecting a sachet sized sample so was so surprised for this to turn up, because not only is it bigger than I expected but it's embossed like their full sized lipsticks and is in the exact same packaging, just a bit smaller.

If you're wanting to claim a free sample you have one of two options: comment your Twitter name below and I'll nominate you to receive a free one, or follow this link, here, and nominate yourself through a separate Twitter account. If you're feeling generous you can even nominate your friends after you've claimed your own sample.

I'm not sure how long this campaign is happening for, so be quick to it!

The Pinks To Make You Spring Ready

The perfect pink shades of eyeshadows, lipstick and blushes to get your makeup Spring ready. mac pink nouveau, urban decay naked 3, pink makeup, spring makeup, summer makeup
















Despite it still being freezing cold outside and the rain doesn't seem to want to budge, Spring has apparently sprung. This means the dark vampy purples are being put in to hiding for another 8 months and the fresh girly pinks are making a come back - although I love pink all year round, I just love it that bit more in Spring.


You can't really talk about pink makeup without giving a shoutout to the Urban Decay Naked 3, the twelve shade palette containing mauvey and rose gold pink shades, some mattes, some shimmers and two very glittery shades. I only really use this in the Spring and Summer months because I prefer a more deeper eye in Winter, but it's already started to make a return this month and I can see it creeping back even more in the coming months. It's the perfect palette for any pink lover and complete makeup addict this season. An alternative palette if you're on a bit of a budget, or you're just not massively in to pinks to make the commitment to a £38 palette then the L'Oreal Color Riche Quad in Smokey Eau de Rose is for you. They're all shimmery shades which are perfect for adding a shine to the eyes and they blend and last on the eyes wonderfully. They're slightly less pigmented than the Naked 3 and a bit more peachy pink than golden pink, but if you're after a condensed Naked 3 this is the way to go.

In terms of lipstick Rimmel's Kate Moss Matte lipstick in 101 is a staple all year round for me, it's a pretty muted blue toned pink which matches well with any makeup, but looks especially gorgeous paired with glowy cheeks and pink eyes in the Spring. If you're going to buy one new pink lipstick this season I'd make it this! However, if you're feeling spendy and you're going to invest in a second lipstick I'd make it MAC's Pink Nouveau, a bright barbie pink lipstick which is sure to turn heads. It doesn't seem to appear as bright in the summer, presumably because I tone the rest of my makeup down, so it's the perfect bright pink and a lipstick I found myself wearing on a daily basis last summer. If I'm ever wanting to feel a bit brave or need some confidence for the day I wear this, it sounds silly but if I can have enough confidence to wear a colour this bright, I can have the confidence to know I can pass an exam.

Finally we've got blushes and one of the easiest ways to make the transition from Winter to Spring is to add a bit of cream to your makeup, one of my favourite blushes for this time of year is the Max Factor Miracle Creamy Touch Blusher in Soft Pink. It is a real cream blush - none of this cream to powder - that blends like a dream on the skin and leaves a gorgeous healthy glow to the skin. It can be easy to go a bit overboard but it's easy to just blend it out with your foundation brush. The blogging world had a bit of a moment with this blush a few summers ago and I'm still having that moment, it's one of my favourite blushes of all time! Despite saying that creams are the easiest way to transfer to Spring I still love the Sleek Blusher in Pixie Pink which is a completely matte blue toned pink. A little really does go a long way with this one, it's super pigmented so you just need to dab your brush lightly, it can be a bit of a struggle to blend but I like to use a slightly fluffier brush rather than your standard dense blush brush and this sorts the problem. It really brightens up the face and is the cheapest product mentioned here so it's the perfect colour for Spring!

What are your favourite makeup items for Spring?


Don't forget I have a MAC giveaway up here

Review | Jo Malone Pomegranate Noir Bath Oil


















If you saw my last post you'll know that I was challenged by House of Fraser to create the ultimate Mother's Day gift guide, there were some great picks in there for every budget and for different mums, depending on whether she's a beauty lover or more of a candle fiend. One of the products was the Jo Malone Pomegranate Noir Bath Oil*, a product and brand name which just instantly makes you think luxury and maybe a little expensive.