Advertising on Pinterest has provided a dramatic success story for Fabletics, including 150% year-over-year growth in 2019, but it wasn’t an overnight success. The subscription activewear retailer had to adjust its strategies to align with the unique strengths of the Pinterest platform.
“Pinterest entered our ‘game’ in 2017, and 2018 was about unlocking scale, when we worked through a lot of kinks,” said Aubrie Richey, VP, Customer Acquisition and Media at Fabletics Group. Richey and Julie Piskin, part of Pinterest’s Global Partnership Team, spoke during the 2020 Retail Innovation Conference session titled How Fabletics Achieved 150% YoY Growth on Pinterest.
Part of the adjustment was related to how Fabletics analyzed conversion volumes for Pinterest advertising. “On Pinterest, we were seeing only 40% of total conversions after day one, so we expanded that optimization window and adjusted our CPA [Cost Per Acquisition],” said Richey. The retailer found that it took about one week for Pinterest ads to reach the 80% mark that is Fabletics’ standard, so it “switched to a 7-7-7 attribution window in late 2018 through early 2019,” Richey added.
Additionally, Fabletics learned how important visuals are to a successful Pinterest campaign. “It’s important to lean into video and UGC [user-generated content] wherever possible on Pinterest, to get higher click-through rates,” said Richey. “We invested a lot in video creatives, including our Kate Hudson editorials. These don’t get much play on other channels, but they did phenomenally on Pinterest.”
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Piskin offered several tips for success on Pinterest:
- Advertising is content: “On Pinterest, ads aren’t distractions, they’re decision-making tools,” said Piskin. “They fit into the context of what Pinners are searching for, and 83% of Pinners have made a purchase based on content they saw from a brand on the platform.
- Go beyond the transaction: “For the times shoppers don’t know what they want, because what they’re buying is something new for them, they’re looking for more than just a fast, convenient purchase,” said Piskin. “That’s particularly true when shopping for home and fashion — Pinners are looking for products that feel personal and specific for them to use.”
- For the holiday season, activate early: “Weekly Pinners started their holiday purchases as early as August and September, and we drive conversions throughout the holiday season. Pinners are actively celebrating Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s, and even making up their own holidays,” she noted.
- Stick with Pinterest beyond the holiday: “Don’t take time off,” advised Piskin. “There are more Pins seen in the week after Christmas than the week prior.”
- Stay flexible and tuned in to trends: “We’re still experiencing a lot of ‘firsts’ in terms of the global pandemic — the first Halloween, the first holiday season,” said Piskin. “It’s important to note that all Pinners are planners, so they are the ones searching and creating trends.”
