Avatar Hacking & Pinterest Ads

Why data-based targeting and Pinterest Ads offer new opportunities in 2025

Many marketers rely on their intuition when launching a campaign — and in doing so lose the most valuable thing: a deep understanding of their target group. If you want to scale today, you don't need guesswork, you need data. Not generic targeting, but precise avatars. And above all: canals that are not already overrun by every fire.

In a podcast episode with growth marketer Siamak Ghofrani, it became clear: Audience understanding is the biggest lever — and Pinterest Ads is still an underrated performance channel.

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Listen to the podcast episode with Siamak here, in line with the article:

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What many do wrong:

Classic personas such as “Lisa, 27, loves yoga and lives in the city XY” are no longer up to date. They help neither with creative briefings nor with specific ad management. Instead, a data-based approach based on real user signals is needed:

• Comments and reviews from shops, Instagram and TikTok
  
  
• Search behavior and board topics on Pinterest
  
  
• Ad performance data from previous campaigns
  
  
• Own surveys, post-purchase surveys and phone calls
  
  

These points can be bundled and analyzed with AI to clear, tangible avatars to define: including language, pain points, triggers, and expectations.

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Pinterest Ads: The underrated performance lever

Pinterest isn't your typical social platform. It is an inspiration platform with high intent but low frequency. That means less doom scrolling, but more targeted searches. Perfect for products from the areas Home & Living, Food, DIY, Beauty or Fashion — especially in the mid to upper funnel.

What makes Pinterest special:

• Hybrid of push (feed) and pull (search)
  
  
• High share of new customers with the correct setup
  
  
• Branding and visual aesthetics are key success factors
  
  
• Very good collaboration with Meta & Google Ads in a full funnel
  
  

But: Anyone who only copies meta-creatives will fail. Pinterest needs adapted formats, strong headlines, clear color schemes — and above all an organic foundation.

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What many people don't know: Organic content is mandatory

A Pinterest account without an organic structure is rarely successful with paid ads. Why Because organic pins...

• increase trust
  
  
• Create retargeting audiences
  
  
• Enable cheap CPMs
  
  
• and provide valuable performance signals
  
  

Paid should therefore never be thought of in isolation, but always combined with organic structure and boards.

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What creatives must do

Pinterest is a visual network, so there are different rules:

• Logo & recognition in the pin
  
  
• Big headlines (due to 4-tile feed)
  
  
• Branding & color scheme consistent
  
  
• Idea Pins & Carousels with real added value (e.g. recipes, how-to's, mood boards)
  
  

The goal is not quick impulse buying, but a long-term trust build. Pinterest ads perform when they fit and inspire the platform aesthetic — not when they want to sell like they do on Meta.

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What that means for marketers

Pinterest ads are Not a must-have for all brands — but a huge opportunity for many. It's particularly worthwhile to get started for brands that already have stable meta or Google setups:

• as a supplementary funnel component
  
  
• for new reach in underserved target groups
  
  
• or to establish a long-term brand image
  
  

What is necessary for this? A clean target group analysis, suitable creatives and a setup that is designed for inspiration rather than direct conversion.

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