Before we dive into the blog, hello, my name is Theo. I’m in my third year of college studying business and finance, and during that time (and a little before) I’ve been building Pinterest accounts, my best performing one hit 1+ million impressions a month. My goal with MerivoFlow is to keep sharing what I’ve learned and keep discovering new strategies for ranking and maintaining that rank on Pinterest.

Now, to move on to the fun part: keywords. Pinterest is basically a visual search engine. If you know what people are typing into that search bar, you can design pins (and boards) that match those searches, and that’s how you get consistent traffic without playing the “go viral” lottery.

Step 1: Start with a “seed keyword” (don’t overthink it)

A seed keyword is just the most basic way someone would describe your idea.

Examples:

• “smoothie”
• “small waist workout”
• “meal prep”
• “hair styles”
• “living room decor”

If you’re stuck, ask yourself: what would a beginner type? Not what an expert would type.

Step 2: Use Pinterest search bar autofill (this is the cheat code)

Go to Pinterest and type your seed keyword into the search bar, but don’t hit enter yet.

Pinterest will “fill in” suggestions, these are real searches people are making. This is one of the fastest ways to find keywords that are already proven to exist.

Example: you type “smoothie” and you might see:

• smoothie bowl
• smoothie recipes healthy
• smoothie no banana
• smoothie for weight loss
• smoothie for belly fat

Those phrases are gold because they’re built-in demand.

Quick rule: copy down 10–20 autofill keywords per topic.

Step 3: Click your keyword and steal the “related bubbles” (guided search)

After you hit enter on your main keyword, look at the row of suggested related terms (Pinterest shows these as clickable filters / bubbles).

Those are basically Pinterest saying: “Hey… these are closely connected searches.” Write them down too, because they help you find secondary keywords you can sprinkle into titles, descriptions, and boards.

Step 4: Validate the keyword by studying the top results (the “Pinterest is telling you” step)

Click the top 5–10 pins ranking for your keyword and look for patterns:

What to check:

• Pin titles: what exact words keep showing up?
• On-image text: what wording do they use? (5 minute, easy, beginner, no equipment, etc.)
• Descriptions: what phrases repeat?
• Boards they’re saved to: these board titles are keyword clues too.

If the top results are all “beginner” content, and your pin is advanced, you’ll struggle to rank, even with the right keyword. Pinterest wants relevance.

Step 5: Use Pinterest Trends to check seasonality and timing (optional, but powerful)

Pinterest has a tool called Pinterest Trends that shows trend history and lets you compare terms. This matters because some keywords are evergreen (good year-round), seasonal (pumpkin, Christmas, summer outfits), or event-driven (weddings, graduation, back-to-school).

Example: if you’re making “pumpkin smoothie” pins, you want to start posting before the peak, not during it.

Step 6: Build a keyword “stack” (primary + secondary + long-tail)

Most people pick one keyword and call it a day. Instead, for every pin, you want:

• 1 Primary keyword (the main target)
• 2–4 Secondary keywords (close variations)
• 2–3 Long-tail keywords (specific searches)

Example keyword stack (for a pin):

Primary: small waist workout

Secondary: waist workout at home, core workout, beginner ab workout

Long-tail: small waist workout no equipment, 10 minute waist workout, waist workout for beginners

This helps you show up for more searches without looking spammy.

Step 7: Choose “buyer-ish” keywords vs “browser” keywords

Not every keyword converts the same.

Browser keywords (awareness):

• ideas
• inspiration
• aesthetic
• cute
• recipes

Buyer-ish keywords (higher intent):

• plan
• guide
• checklist
• template
• meal prep for the week
• workout program
• calendar
• shopping list

If you sell anything (digital product, service, affiliate), you want a mix, but don’t ignore buyer-ish keywords. They’re where the money is.

Step 8: Where to put the keywords (so Pinterest actually understands your content)

Pinterest SEO is not just pin description. It’s your whole ecosystem: profile → boards → pins.

Profile keywords: you can add keywords to your username/name line. A clean way is using a vertical line like this: │

Description keywords: keep it natural. A good baseline is 2–3 keywords so you don’t look spammy.

Board keywords: put the keyword in the board title and board description, and keep boards active.

Pin keywords: work your primary keyword into the pin title, pin description, and (when it makes sense) on-image text.

Step 9: Make a simple keyword list you can reuse (so you stop reinventing the wheel)

Create a notes doc or sheet with:

• Topic (Smoothies)
• 20 seed keywords (from autofill)
• 50 long-tail keywords (from bubbles + top pins)
• “Pain point” words (quick, easy, beginner, no banana, budget, etc.)

Then every time you make a pin, you’re not starting from scratch, you’re picking from your list. Pinterest rewards consistency, and this makes consistency way easier.

My “Find Pinterest Keywords” Checklist

• Pick a seed keyword
• Type it into Pinterest search and write down autofill suggestions
• Search it, then write down the related bubbles
• Open top pins and look for repeating phrases
• Check what boards top pins are saved to
• Build a keyword stack (1 primary, 2–4 secondary, 2–3 long-tail)
• Place keywords in profile, boards, and pin title/description
• Optional: use Pinterest Trends to confirm timing/seasonality

Final note

Finding keywords is not complicated, but it is a process. The more you do it, the faster you get. And the biggest “secret” is this: Pinterest tells you what people want, through the search bar, the bubbles, and the top-ranking pins. You just have to listen.

I hope you found the post valuable. If you have any questions or want a certain topic covered, you can reach me at: theoleinemann8@gmail.com.

This post is sponsored by MerivoFlow’s Scheduler. MerivoFlow’s Scheduler is a lightweight pin scheduler that features the ability to post for an unlimited time frame and a content calendar view for $8/mo, making it really affordable compared to other companies in the space. Interested? Check out MerivoFlow tools for more information.

Disclaimer: This post was outlined and edited with the help of AI to improve clarity and readability.