Pinterest urges brands to refresh product catalogs for better shopping ad performance

Pinterest has emerged as a significant channel for product discovery, attracting millions of users who rely on the platform for personally relevant product searches and recommendations. This presents an opportunity for brands to connect with purchase-focused audiences during the early stages of their shopping journey.

In a recent update, Pinterest shared best practice tips for brands to enhance their product listings and formatting, aiming to improve campaign outcomes. The company stressed that a well-maintained catalog feed is foundational to how Pinterest understands what a brand sells, shaping audience reach, ad visibility, and auction participation.

According to Pinterest: “Your product catalogue (or feed) is how Pinterest understands what you sell. It shapes who you reach, what they see and how often you enter the auction, so missing, vague or wrong fields can hold back even a strong campaign.”

The platform highlighted that titles containing brand keywords have been associated with a 28% higher return on ad spend (ROAS), while pattern keywords have been linked to a 22% higher ROAS. Pinterest explained that better inputs give the system more opportunities to match products to high-intent searches, particularly because the platform is driven by discovery, allowing products to appear while users are still exploring options.

To help brands optimize their catalogs, Pinterest recommended that catalog managers include relevant titles featuring the brand and product type, along with at least one useful detail. Brands can find effective examples by searching for similar products within the app and reviewing the titles of top-listed items. Marketers should also rewrite weak titles and descriptions to reflect how people actually search, such as “summer wedding guest dress” or “back-to-school backpack.”

Beyond titles, Pinterest advised brands to ensure that all product information fields are complete, including descriptions, prices, availability, and images. The company also urged brands to upload their full catalog rather than a limited “hero set” of products.

Data tracking is another critical area. Pinterest emphasized the importance of giving its systems access to post-click insights to improve recommendation accuracy. The company noted that “better signals help Pinterest find people who are likely to buy, not just click, and learn which actions are most likely to turn into checkouts.” On average, web advertisers using the Conversions API alongside the Pinterest Tag saw a 9.0% improvement in average cost per acquisition (CPA) and a 23.7% increase in attributed conversions compared to tag-only setups.

Marketers are advised to review their setups to ensure optimization goals are correctly configured and to implement both the Conversions API and Pinterest Tag to provide richer signals. Additionally, Pinterest recommended that marketers monitor conversion data within Ads Manager to verify that events are tagged correctly.

The company also cautioned against over-segmenting catalog listings into too many subgroups, as this can restrict optimization data. Pinterest explained that “shopping ads work best when each ad group or product group has enough SKUs to spot patterns, and fewer, deeper groups give the system more signals to connect your products with the right shoppers.” Over-segmentation can slow the learning process and limit performance.

Specifically, Pinterest recommends at least 500 SKUs per ad group, noting that ad groups with fewer than 100 SKUs have been associated with a 13.6% lower ROAS. Marketers should merge very small product groups that share the same goal and aim for large, meaningful groupings.

Pinterest also advised running campaigns for longer durations to fully leverage systematic learning of user response actions, as users often plan for weeks or months before making a purchase. Maintaining consistency within product purchase paths is equally important to ensure a trustworthy and efficient shopping experience.

Accurate pricing is particularly crucial. Brands must ensure that the price displayed on Pins matches the price on the linked page, and that any additional charges are clearly outlined whenever possible. These practices can help refine the Pinterest shopping process, ensuring that Pin listings and product information are aligned, accurate, and meet user expectations.