How To Promote Clickbank Products on Pinterest With Video (New Method)

Pinterest is handing affiliate marketers a traffic opening that most people have completely ignored. While everyone else is fighting for attention on Instagram and Facebook, Pinterest is actively built to send its users off-platform to blog posts, YouTube channels, and affiliate offers. That is not an accident. It is the platform’s core design. And the method Alston covers in this video takes that design one step further by adding video pins to the mix.

At the time of this video, Alston’s Pinterest account was pulling in 93,000 monthly viewers. That traffic goes directly to affiliate offers and YouTube videos. The new piece he shares here is video pins, a format Pinterest is now actively pushing to the top of search results. If you have been waiting for a clear signal to get started on Pinterest, this is it.

What You’ll Walk Out With

A clear picture of why Pinterest is one of the most affiliate-friendly platforms available right now
The exact steps to set up a free Pinterest business account, including website verification
A board strategy you can build out in your first week without any original content
How to find and vet a Clickbank product using gravity as your primary filter
A step-by-step upload process for your first Pinterest video pin
How to work around Pinterest’s rules on shortened links and what to use instead
What a bridge page does and when you actually need one versus going direct
A free quiz at finder.platformproof.com that matches you to the traffic strategy that fits your actual situation

Why Pinterest Is Different From Every Other Social Platform

Most social media platforms were built to keep people on the platform. Clicks that send users somewhere else hurt their engagement numbers, so those platforms suppress outbound links or bury them behind friction. Pinterest is the opposite. It was built as a visual discovery tool where the entire point is for a user to find something interesting and then go somewhere to learn more or buy it. That means every pin you create is designed to send someone off-platform, which is exactly what affiliate marketing requires.

Alston describes Pinterest as part search engine and part social media platform. That combination matters for a specific reason. The search engine side means your pins can generate traffic for months or even years after you post them, because people keep searching for those topics. A pin you upload today can still be driving clicks six months from now if it ranks well for a popular keyword. The social media side means repinning and board activity help build your account’s authority early on, before you have a library of original content.

These two dynamics working together give Pinterest a different growth curve than most traffic sources. It starts slower but compounds over time. For affiliate marketers who feel like Instagram is oversaturated or TikTok is too unpredictable, Pinterest offers a quieter but more durable alternative. The audience is there and they are actively searching for solutions and products.

Step 1: Set Up a Free Pinterest Business Account

The first thing you need is a Pinterest business account. It is free and it takes about five to ten minutes to set up. Search “Pinterest business account” in your browser and it will take you directly to the signup page. The business account matters because it gives you access to Pinterest analytics, which shows you which pins are getting impressions and clicks. Without those analytics, you have no way to know what is working.

Once the account is live, the most important setup step is adding and verifying your website. This could be your blog, your YouTube channel’s homepage, or a landing page. Verifying your website gives you a small but meaningful boost inside Pinterest’s ranking system. Pinterest uses that verification as a signal that you are a legitimate publisher rather than a spam account. The process walks you through it step by step and takes just a few minutes. Do not skip it. Alston specifically calls this out as one of the things that gives you a head start over accounts that have not bothered to verify.

Step 2: Build Your Boards Around One Niche

Boards on Pinterest are themed collections that live on your profile. Think of them the way you might think of Facebook groups, except you are the one curating the content inside them. For affiliate marketing, Alston recommends setting up five to ten different boards that all orbit the same niche.

In his own account, almost every board points back to affiliate marketing and making money from home. He has boards labeled “affiliate marketing,” “affiliate marketing on Pinterest,” “work from home,” and several more in that same territory. The theme is consistent across the whole profile. That consistency tells Pinterest’s algorithm what your account is about and who should be shown your content in search results and the home feed.

When you first start out, your boards will be empty. The practical fix is to repin other people’s content. Go to the search bar, type in your niche keyword, and save relevant pins to your boards. Repinning is how you seed your account with content and signal activity to the algorithm while you build up your own original pins over time. This is the bridge between day one and the point where you have enough of your own content to sustain the account without leaning on repins.

Step 3: Pin Consistently Every Day

Alston’s recommendation, based on his own experience and research from watching others grow their accounts, is 15 to 20 pins per day. That sounds like a lot but the majority of those can be repins of other people’s content. Your own original pins, the ones pointing to your offers or your content, might be 10 to 15 of that daily total. The rest fill the gap through repinning relevant material from other accounts in your niche.

There is a ceiling here as well. Alston advises not exceeding 50 pins per day. Going past that threshold can actually hurt your account. Pinterest sees excessive pinning as a signal of low-quality or spammy behavior, and your account can lose ranking as a result. Consistency within that 15 to 50 range is the approach. The goal is showing Pinterest that you are an active, engaged publisher, not flooding the platform with content in a way that looks automated.

The New Method: Pinterest Video Pins

Here is where the method Alston describes gets more interesting than the standard Pinterest playbook. Pinterest has added video content to the platform and is now actively pushing video pins higher in search results. You can see this clearly if you search for something like “woodworking” on Pinterest today. The results that appear at the top are video pins, not images. Pinterest made this shift because video content generates more engagement and drives more clicks than static images, and the platform is rewarding it accordingly.

For affiliate marketers, this is a real window right now. Most people on Pinterest are still posting static images. If you start posting video pins, you are ahead of the majority of accounts in your niche at the same time Pinterest’s algorithm is actively prioritizing that format. That gap will close eventually as more people catch on, which is part of why Alston describes this as a new method worth taking advantage of now.

You do not need to create original videos from scratch. Alston specifically recommends repurposing content that already exists. That could be short-form videos you have posted to TikTok, clips from your YouTube channel, or content from other platforms that you own or have rights to use. The goal is to take video content that is already performing somewhere and give it a second life on Pinterest where it can drive a new stream of traffic to your offers.

The key technical requirements are simple: the video must be under 30 minutes long and under two gigabytes in file size. Beyond those limits, you have a lot of flexibility in what you upload. Short clips work. Longer repurposed videos work too. Alston actually notes that longer video pins do better on mobile devices because they take up more vertical space in the feed. A taller pin is harder to scroll past. If you have a longer TikTok-style video, it may outperform a short 15-second clip simply by occupying more screen real estate.

One detail that matters for content planning: most Pinterest video pins play without audio by default on mobile. That means your video needs to communicate something useful through visuals alone. If the value of your video is entirely in the spoken words and there is nothing compelling on screen, most viewers will scroll past before they ever click through to your offer. Adding captions or on-screen text is worth the extra step.

Step 4: Find a Clickbank Product Using Gravity

If you do not already have a Clickbank account, creating one is free and takes about five to ten minutes at clickbank.com. Once inside, head to the marketplace. This is where every product available for promotion is listed, organized by category.

To find products in the affiliate marketing space specifically, go to the e-business and eMarketing category and click the triangle on the left side to expand the subcategories. Select affiliate marketing from the list. Now sort the results by gravity with “highest first” selected.

Gravity on Clickbank measures how many different affiliates have made sales with a particular product in a recent period. A higher gravity number means more affiliates are actively generating commissions with that product right now. It is one of the most useful filters you have when picking what to promote, because a high gravity product is a market-tested product. Other affiliates have already proven they can get conversions with it.

In the video, when Alston sorts by gravity in the affiliate marketing subcategory, the 12-Minute Affiliate System comes up at the top of the list. Before you click promote on any product you find, take a few minutes to look at both the affiliate resources page and the sales page. You want to make sure the product is something you feel genuinely comfortable recommending. If the sales page looks low-quality or makes claims that seem unrealistic, your audience will associate that with you and it will hurt your credibility on Pinterest long-term.

One additional step worth taking: check whether the vendor provides promotional videos on their affiliate resources page. Some Clickbank vendors include short video clips that affiliates can download and use for their own promotion. Alston calls this out as a shortcut that can save you from needing to film or create your own video content. If the vendor has done the creative work already, use it.

Step 5: Generate Your Hop Link With a Tracking ID

Once you have chosen a product, click the Promote button inside Clickbank. Before generating your hop link, add a tracking ID in the provided field. This is a short label you type in to identify the traffic source for that specific link. For Pinterest video pins, something like “pinvid” works. This small step means you can look at your Clickbank stats later and see exactly how much revenue is coming from Pinterest video versus any other traffic source you are running. Without it, all your sales show up in one bucket and you can not tell what is driving results.

Click Generate Hop Links and Clickbank will produce your affiliate URL. It will look like a string of letters and numbers followed by the hop.clickbank.net domain. That link is fully functional but it looks unusual to most people. Some visitors hesitate to click a link that does not clearly show where they are going. That brings up the next step.

Step 6: Handle Pinterest’s Rules on Shortened Links

There is a specific Pinterest policy you need to know about before you upload your first pin: Pinterest does not allow Bitly links or other URL shorteners in pin destinations. This is a common workaround that affiliate marketers use on other platforms to clean up ugly hop links, but on Pinterest it will not work. If you paste a Bitly link into the destination field of a pin, it will either get rejected or fail to pass traffic correctly.

You have two workable options. The first is to paste your full Clickbank hop link directly into the pin’s destination field. The URL looks unusual but Pinterest accepts it and traffic will flow to the offer. For someone just starting out with zero budget, this is the simplest path.

The second option, and the one Alston recommends when you want better results, is to send traffic to a bridge page. A bridge page is a simple one-page site that sits between your Pinterest pin and the Clickbank offer. Its job is to warm up the visitor. Someone clicks your pin, lands on your bridge page, gets a bit of context about what they are about to see, and then clicks through to the sales page. This step tends to improve conversion rates because it gives the visitor a chance to buy into the offer before they are hit with the full sales pitch.

You can build a basic bridge page for free using Wix or WordPress. Alston recommends ClickFunnels specifically because it also lets you collect email addresses on the bridge page. Instead of just passing the visitor through to the offer, you can capture their email first and turn a one-time traffic hit into a list-building asset. The two-week free trial he references gives you time to test whether the funnel approach works before committing to a monthly cost.

Not sure which traffic method actually fits your situation?

The free Platform Proof Finder quiz at finder.platformproof.com asks a few questions about your time, skills, and goals, then gives you a specific starting point instead of a “try everything” list. Takes about two minutes.

Step 7: Upload Your First Pinterest Video Pin

With your product selected, your hop link generated, and your destination URL ready, you are set to upload. Go to your Pinterest profile and click the plus sign to start creating a new pin. Select the option to upload a video file. Once the video processes, Pinterest walks you through filling in the following fields:

Title: Make it attention-grabbing and relevant to what the viewer sees in the video. Alston uses “Can you order a pizza? Then you can make money online” as an example of a title built around a curiosity hook.
Description: A short summary of the video. Include relevant keywords naturally. Mention the income angle, the platform, or whatever topic your video covers. This text is indexed by Pinterest’s search system.
Tags: Pinterest limits you to fewer tags on video pins than on standard image pins. Alston uses around six or seven consistent tags including “affiliate marketing” and “marketing” every time he posts.
Destination link: Paste either your full hop link or your bridge page URL here. No Bitly or other shortened URLs. Pinterest will reject them.
Board: Choose the board where this video fits best. Alston keeps his video pins in a dedicated affiliate marketing video board to keep things organized and to signal to Pinterest what the content is about.

Once you hit publish, Pinterest has a 24-hour review window where their team checks the video against their content policies. They want to confirm the video is relevant, not misleading, and in line with their platform standards. In Alston’s experience, as long as the content is honest and the destination link matches what the video promises, videos clear review without issues. Once it passes, the pin is live and searchable.

Honest Drawbacks: What This Method Will Not Fix Overnight

Pinterest video pins are a real opportunity, but there are a few things worth knowing before you build your expectations.

Pinterest is a slow-build platform. New accounts take time to establish authority. Alston’s 93,000 monthly viewers did not happen in the first few weeks. That number came from consistent posting over an extended period. Do not expect a rush of traffic in week one. Plan for a 60-to-90-day ramp before you have a clear read on what is working.

Video pins play without audio on most mobile devices by default. If the value of your repurposed video is entirely in what is being said, it will underperform. Adding captions or on-screen text so the video communicates its message visually is time well spent.

The 24-hour review window after every upload means you can not post something and get immediate distribution. If you are running a time-sensitive promotion, plan your uploads at least a day in advance to account for the review period.

Clickbank gravity tells you what is selling, not what is genuinely useful. A product at the top of a gravity-sorted list has proven sales, but that does not automatically mean it is good. Read the sales page yourself. Would you recommend it to someone you know? If the answer is uncertain, keep looking until you find something you can stand behind.

The raw hop link option works, but it can reduce click-through rates because the URL looks unfamiliar. If you have any capacity to build even a basic bridge page, the extra step is worth taking. A simple one-page WordPress or Wix site with a short explanation and a clear call to action will outperform a direct hop link for most audiences.

Find Your X

Pinterest video is one traffic method. Whether it is the right one for you depends on what you are comfortable creating, how much time you have each day, and what kind of offers you want to promote. The free Platform Proof Finder quiz at finder.platformproof.com asks a handful of questions about where you are starting from and gives you a specific direction based on your actual situation, not a generic answer that applies to everyone. It takes about two minutes and points you toward the approach most likely to produce results given your current resources and goals.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to pay for a Pinterest business account?

No. The Pinterest business account is completely free. You sign up, add your website, verify it, and you have access to the analytics dashboard at no cost. The only paid option on Pinterest is running promoted pins, which is paid advertising. Everything described in this method uses free organic traffic through standard pins and video pins.

How many boards should I create when I am starting out?

Alston recommends five to ten boards, all related to the same niche. Do not spread across unrelated topics. A focused account that consistently covers affiliate marketing will build authority in that space faster than a scattered account covering ten different subjects with no common thread. Start with five boards, fill them with repinned content to get the account active, and add more as you build out your own original material.

Is pinning 15 to 20 times per day really necessary?

It is the recommendation for growing a new account, but the majority of those pins can be repins of other people’s content rather than original posts. The volume matters early because it signals to Pinterest that your account is active and engaged. Once your account has some authority and your own pins are getting picked up in search results, you can reduce the frequency. In the beginning, consistency and volume matter more than perfection on every individual pin.

Are there content restrictions on Pinterest video pins?

Yes. Pinterest accepts video pins that are under 30 minutes long and under 2 gigabytes in file size. Beyond those technical limits, the content must follow Pinterest’s community guidelines. Misleading claims, content with no genuine value, and material that violates intellectual property rights can result in removal during the 24-hour review window. Repurposed content from TikTok or YouTube that you own or have rights to use is generally accepted without issues.

Why does Pinterest block Bitly links?

Pinterest blocked URL shorteners because they were commonly used by spammers and scammers to hide the actual destination of their pins. By masking the URL, bad actors could mislead users about where a click would take them. Pinterest’s response was to ban shortened URLs across the platform to protect users. The workaround for affiliate marketers is to either use the full hop link directly or link to a bridge page hosted on a real domain that clearly represents where the visitor is going.

What does the Clickbank gravity score actually measure?

Gravity measures how many distinct affiliates have made at least one sale with a given product during a recent period. A higher gravity number means more affiliates are actively generating commissions with that product right now. For someone new to affiliate marketing, sorting by gravity and choosing from the top results is a reasonable shortcut because those products have demonstrated real conversion rates in the market. Products with no gravity have not proven they can convert, which is a bigger risk for a beginner to take on.

Do I need a bridge page or can I link directly to the Clickbank offer?

You can link directly to the Clickbank offer and it will work. Alston explicitly describes this as a valid option. The practical limitation is that sending cold Pinterest traffic straight to a sales page without any context tends to result in lower conversion rates. A bridge page gives the visitor a moment to understand what they are looking at before they are confronted with a full sales pitch. If you are starting with no budget and no time to build a bridge page, go direct first. Once you see early results and want to improve them, adding even a basic bridge page is a high-value next step.

How long does it take before Pinterest video pins start driving real traffic?

There is the initial 24-hour review window after every upload. Beyond that, new accounts typically take several weeks to a few months before they see meaningful organic search traffic. Pinterest rewards consistent accounts over time rather than rewarding bursts of activity. The accounts that build to numbers like Alston’s 93,000 monthly viewers did it through sustained posting over an extended period. Commit to at least 60 to 90 days of consistent uploading before drawing conclusions about whether the method is working for your niche and content.

Sources

Alston Godbolt, “New Method To Promote Clickbank Products On Pinterest,” YouTube, https://youtu.be/jRDVUAS-lII
Pinterest Business Account: https://business.pinterest.com
Clickbank Marketplace: https://www.clickbank.com