Pinterest Impressions: Why They Matter & How to Use Them for Growth

Some Pinterest accounts show an impressive 1.1 million monthly impressions when you click on their account but many aren’t making a dime from them. Misunderstanding this metric can lead to hours of work that doesn’t produce traffic or sales.

Pinterest impressions are the number of times your pin appears on a screen. This only measures visibility, not clicks, saves, or sales. You can have high impressions without any real valuable engagement.

I’ve grown several Pinterest accounts from zero, including my own. Impressions can be valuable, but only if they lead to measurable results. This guide covers what counts as an impression, why the number can be misleading, and how to measure and improve impression quality. You can have low impressions (like me!) and still see great growth if you’re tracking the right metrics.

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What Counts as a Pinterest Impression

On Pinterest, an impression is counted every time your pin appears on a screen. This can happen in the home feed, search results, a related pins section, or on a Pinterest board. The count goes up even if the viewer scrolls past it.

Pinterest’s analytics terminology gives the official definition. You can check Analytics > Overview in your business account to see impressions over time.

Why Impressions Matter Before Engagement

Every click, save, or outbound click to a website starts with an impression. If people aren’t seeing your content, they can’t interact with it.

For one client with a claimed website, impressions increased from 2,500 to 5,500. Pin clicks went up by 17 percent. Sales improved only after we updated Pinterest SEO strategy to target more specific keywords their audience was actively searching for.

Mini Checklist: How to Increase Impressions Effectively

• Optimize pin titles and descriptions for SEO with relevant keywords.
• Post consistently to keep your account active.
• Save pins to the most relevant boards FIRST for keyword context.

Low impressions may mean your content isn’t ranking in search results, your boards aren’t optimized, or your keywords don’t match your audience’s intent.

Why High Impressions Don’t Always Equal Results

An online service provider’s account read 60,000 monthly views on their profile. When using the Keywords Everywhere Chrome Extension, further analysis showed almost zero clicks and saves, and all of the view were from a sudden connection to their Instagram account. The content wasn’t at all relevant to the search intent their Pinterest would have. The next month those same monthly views all but vanished.

Mistakes to Avoid When Focusing on Impressions

• Targeting broad keywords that aren’t relevant to your audience.
• Ignoring click-through and engagement metrics.
• Letting unrelated traffic inflate your analytics reports.

Tracking impressions alone isn’t enough. Monitor click-through rate, saves, and the number of users who complete the next step, like signing up or purchasing.

How to Measure Impression Quality

High impressions only help if they reach the right audience.

Key Pinterest Analytics metrics to review:

• CTR (Click-Through Rate): The percentage of viewers who clicked your pin.
• Saves: The number of users who pinned your content to their boards.
• Outbound Clicks: The number of times users clicked through to your site.

In one campaign, pins with a 3 percent CTR generated consistent leads. Pins under 1 percent CTR were removed, even if they had high impressions.

Improving CTR:

• Add text overlays that make the offer clear.
• Use urgency in descriptions, like “Sign up today” or “Limited time offer.”
• Test multiple pin formats. Video pins often perform better than static images for clicks.

Improving Targeting:

• Audit pin titles and descriptions for keyword accuracy.
• Review high-performing pins to find common patterns.
• Remove tags or keywords that attract irrelevant traffic.

Turning Impressions Into Clicks and Conversions

Visibility doesn’t guarantee engagement. You need a clear strategy to move people to the next step. Visibility does PRECEDE engagement, but it doesn’t guarantee it. This is similar to running an ad campaign, you can spend the money running the ads but it doesn’t necessarily mean that they’ll convert.

• Use keywords that match your audience’s search terms.
• Create pins with strong visuals and easy-to-read text.
• Write descriptions that give viewers a reason to click right away.
• Link pins to pages that match the promise you made in the pin.

Your Next Steps for Turning Views Into Growth

Pinterest impressions show how often your content is seen. To get results, focus on quality impressions that reach the right audience.

Weekly:

• Review top pins for CTR, saves, and outbound clicks.

Monthly:

• Replace pin titles or descriptions low-performing pins. Test new formats like video pins or carousel pins.

Quarterly:

• Update Pinterest SEO keywords based on current search trends.
• Refresh pin descriptions to match your active offers.

Consistent monitoring and optimization will increase engagement and improve measurable results.

FAQs about Pinterest Impressions