How Carly Campbell Hit $4,000 in Earnings with Pinterest Traffic

In this week's episode of the Niche Pursuits podcast, I sit down with Pinterest expert Carly Campbell to talk all things Pinterest, specifically what's working right now in 2025. Carly has been leveraging Pinterest for nearly a decade and shared an in-depth look at traffic strategies, niche selection, seasonal content, and the evolving landscape of AI and algorithms on the platform.

Whether you're just starting out with Pinterest or you're looking to grow an established account, this episode offers practical takeaways backed by real-world results.

Watch the Full Episode

Carly's Background and Pinterest Journey

Notably, Carly isn't just a Pinterest user, she teaches, podcasts, and consults on the topic, making her one of the most seasoned voices in the space.

• Carly has been a full-time content creator since 2016.
• Pinterest has always been her primary traffic driver, even from her very first profitable site.
• Over the years, she's grown multiple websites, run experiments across different niches, and built a thriving community for Pinterest marketers.

The Site Experiment: A Year of Data on Pinterest Success

In July 2024, Carly launched a brand-new site as a case study to see what's working on Pinterest today. The results speak volumes:

• The site focused heavily on a popular, highly visual niche.
• Content creation was intensely seasonal, with over 100 quarter-four posts ready by September.

Within a few months:

• $1,400 earned on Journey in the first month.
• Accepted into Mediavine by early December.
• Over $4,000 in ad revenue by year-end.
• First 100,000 page views per month within six months.

Carly emphasized that while there were upfront costs (about $10,000 invested), the growth trajectory reinforced that Pinterest remains a powerful traffic source — if approached strategically.

Evergreen vs. Seasonal Content

Carly's experience revealed important lessons about content mix:

• Heavy seasonal content delivers fast traffic bursts but sharp declines afterward.
• Evergreen content stabilizes traffic and reduces the emotional rollercoaster.
• For newer sites, a 50/50 split between seasonal and evergreen content is a solid starting point.

She also noted that while seasonal spikes are appealing, slow, steady growth from evergreen content often provides the motivation to stick with Pinterest long-term.

Updating Old Content and Pinning Strategies

With over 450 articles on her site after year one, Carly shared how she approaches content management:

• Top-performing seasonal posts get refreshed with new pins and boards.
• Existing content is updated when relevant, especially for listicles or roundup-style posts.
• New content creation continues, with a slight pivot toward more evergreen material.

This approach helps maximize existing content's potential while steadily expanding the site's reach.

Topical Authority on Pinterest

Unlike Google, Pinterest doesn't box your entire site into a rigid topical category. Instead:

• Pinterest connects pins based on user behavior and pin relationships, not strict site topics.
• Focusing on related content clusters accelerates growth by building pin-to-pin relevance.
• Going too niche can limit your audience, while strategic "niching out" broadens potential reach.

Carly recommends planning content so it naturally connects, without being afraid to explore adjacent topics.

Plateauing on Pinterest

According to Carly, nearly every Pinterest account hits a plateau eventually:

• Expect stable traffic to be a success, not a failure.
• To reignite growth, "niche out" and explore new but related topics and keywords.
• Most importantly, focus on maximizing value per user through monetization strategies like email lists, products, or communities.

She also emphasized that plateauing isn't always a bad thing. Stable traffic is still highly monetizable.

AI and Pinterest: Proceed with Caution

AI-generated content is here, but Carly takes a cautious approach:

• She avoids AI-created articles or images for her own Pinterest efforts.
• AI may have a place for writing short descriptions or generating ideas.
• Pinterest is beginning to label AI-modified images, and user preferences will play a big role in how AI content performs.

Her take? If AI content genuinely serves the user, it's unlikely to be penalized — but spammy, low-value AI content likely won't survive.

What's Working on Pinterest in 2025

Carly shared several insights on recent Pinterest changes and how they're shaping success in 2025:

• A major algorithm update now considers users' last 16,000 engagements (up from 100), increasing content longevity.
• Seasonality is becoming even more pronounced, with Pinterest predicting and surfacing seasonal content more effectively.
• Shopping features continue to grow, but they haven't displaced traffic opportunities in most niches.

Overall, Pinterest remains highly seasonal, but with careful planning and niche selection, significant traffic is still very achievable.

Realistic Traffic Expectations on Pinterest

Pinterest success depends heavily on your niche:

• Highly visual, popular niches (food, beauty, home decor) can realistically drive 200,000 to 300,000 page views per month.
• Mid-range niches (personal finance, relationships) may support 50,000 to 100,000 monthly page views.
• Obscure or non-visual niches (think ferrets over dogs) will likely see far smaller traffic numbers.

Regardless of traffic size, Carly stresses the importance of having a plan to convert those clicks through email lists, products, or other offers.

Final Thoughts

After 10 years on Pinterest, Carly's approach boils down to consistency and adaptability:

• Keep learning the platform's changes.
• Be strategic about your content mix.
• Diversify your monetization.
• Understand that platform shifts are inevitable, but still manageable.

Pinterest isn't going anywhere in 2025, and for those willing to put in the work, it remains a high-potential traffic source.

If you want to hear Carly's full breakdown of Pinterest strategy and what's working this year, be sure to listen to the full episode.

Links & Resources

• Learn More about Carly Campbell
• Listen to the Pin Talk Podcast
• Check out her Pinterest Strategies Course
• Join her Facebook Group

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