Pinterest adds AI customer targeting and one-click Shopify ads
Pinterest added two AI-powered advertising tools to its Performance+ suite, both aimed at small and medium-sized businesses that don’t have a dedicated ads team or a big budget.
Tool 1: Performance+ New Customer Acquisition
The first tool targets a core growth problem: finding buyers who have never heard of you. Businesses upload their existing customer data, and Pinterest’s AI identifies common characteristics and behaviors to find lookalike users likely to convert.
Advertisers can set how much weight they want to place on new customer acquisition versus retargeting, giving direct control over where the budget actually flows. In early testing, Pinterest reported an average 64% increase in new customer conversions across participating businesses.
Tool 2: One-Click Shopping Campaigns for Shopify
The second tool is specific to Shopify merchants. Eligible users can launch a Pinterest shopping campaign directly from their Shopify account using pre-built templates built on Pinterest’s recommended settings. Most optimization features are enabled by default, so there’s minimal configuration required before going live.
Why Pinterest Is Pushing This Now
Pinterest recently reported lower-than-expected revenue growth. Expanding its SMB advertiser base is part of the response, alongside a push into international markets. Simplifying the ad setup process is the lever they’re pulling to bring in smaller accounts that previously found the platform too complex to bother with.
If you’re already running Shopify and looking for a lower-friction paid channel to test, the one-click campaign path is worth a look. The NCA tool is the more interesting play for anyone trying to grow their customer base rather than just retarget existing buyers.
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