Pinterest VA Review: Everything You Need to Know Before Buying!
If you’re looking for a comprehensive review before you invest in one of the programs, my Pinterest VA review has you covered!
Before we get started with this Pinterest VA review, I want to let you know that YES! I am a real Pinterest VA student who has landed real clients. Here’s my very first Pinterest invoice as proof. (Keep in mind this is from five years ago and rates are much higher now.)
What is a Pinterest VA?
A Pinterest VA is someone who assists businesses, brands, and bloggers with their Pinterest account.
The “VA” in “Pinterest VA” stands for “Virtual Assistant,” which just is a fancy way of saying you’re assisting someone virtually with certain tasks (in this case, Pinterest).
You may also hear the phrase Pinterest Manager. A Pinterest Manager is, as you would guess, someone managing Pinterest tasks – which you also do as a Pinterest VA.
These two phrases are often used interchangeably and you can call yourself whatever you’d like.
What is Pinterest VA?
Pinterest VA got its start back in 2015 when founder Kristin Larsen quit her high-stress interior architecture job to pursue working online from home full-time.
After successfully utilizing Pinterest to launch her personal finance blog, she began offering her Pinterest management services to a wide variety of businesses and found that the need was far greater than she could manage on her own or even with a small team.
Instead of launching a large agency, she decided to turn her knowledge into a course – and the first Pinterest VA program, Become a Pinterest VA Today!, was launched.
Today, the brand offers three program options to help aspiring Pinterest VAs and managers:
- Become a Pinterest VA Today!
- Pinterest Manager Academy
- Pinterest Expert Business Academy
Who’s Writing This Pinterest VA Review?
Hi! I’m Jessica and this is my Pinterest VA review. I became a student way back in September 2017.
This is truly one of the worst photos ever taken of me (made even worse by the sunlight blazing in my eyes), but I am sacrificing my vanity and posting it to share that this photo was taken at 11:22 am on a Wednesday morning. Because of Pinterest VA, I can hang out with giraffes at the local zoo at 11:22 am on a Wednesday because I set my own schedule!
I learned about Pinterest VA about six months before I invested in the program and my only regret is not taking the program as soon as I learned about it. Joining Pinterest VA ended up being one of the best decisions I ever made in my life!
If you’re intrigued by Pinterest VA like I was, let me share my journey before I tell you what I know about the programs…
My Pinterest Journey
2017 was a busy year for me.
I started a food blog, started a virtual assistant business, started a Pinterest virtual assistant business, and quit my job all within the span of a few months!
I was introduced to Pinterest by way of my food blog. (Pinterest is a great way to get traffic to food blogs!) Some random Googling one night led me to Pinterest VA, a program that planted the idea in my head that I could actually get paid to be on the platform. This sounded like an amazing idea to me and I hopped on the waitlist immediately.
Before I took a Pinterest VA program (I ended up taking Become a Pinterest VA Today!, the only program available at the time), I purchased a general virtual assistant course.
While the general course was helpful, I knew I would need to offer specialized service offerings like Pinterest in order to charge higher rates to clients rather than the $15-$20/hour general virtual assistants were charging at the time.
After I purchased Become a Pinterest VA Today! and nailed down my service offerings, I was able to:
✅ Quickly land a few Pinterest clients
✅ Fill up my client roster
✅ Say goodbye to my job
✅ Become a full-time service provider!
2017 wasn’t just a busy year – it was an amazing year.
How Pinterest VA Helped Me
Investing in the program helped me in a few big ways:
✅ It filled in the gaps in my Pinterest knowledge (although it would have taught me everything I needed to know had I been brand-new to Pinterest)
✅ It helped me figure out how to best package my services
✅ It showed me how to successfully pitch and land clients
✅ It gave me guidance in some of the “scarier” parts of business (like EIN numbers and contracts – which weren’t so scary when I understood what they were and how to use them)
✅ And best of all, it gave me the confidence to put myself out there by showing me that a Pinterest management business is an actual business that I can succeed at!
Using what I learned in the program, I landed ten total clients over the first few months.
How the Brand Has Grown Over Time
As I mentioned earlier, I took Become a Pinterest VA Today!, the only program offered at the time. It was a standalone program and I was okay with that because 1) it was the only option offered at the time, and 2) I’m fairly self-motivated and don’t need additional support, although I would have been happy to take it if it had been available.
Since that fateful day of September 4, 2017 when I purchased the program, two big things have happened.
One, the program offerings were expanded to also include:
- Pinterest Manager Academy, which includes the base program, lifetime access to the community, lifetime access to exclusive leads, and additional training modules.
- Pinterest Expert Business Academy, which includes all the above plus several more training modules on high-end services such as digital products and intensives plus 12 weeks of individualized feedback.
Two, yours truly became a part of the Pinterest VA team as a moderator of the community! This has given me the ability to see the program in a whole new way because, not only am I a success story myself, but I get the “inside scoop” on all the success stories coming out of the programs.
I am inspired and motivated daily by Pinterest VA students who have changed – or are in the process of changing – their life by offering Pinterest management services. The success stories range from those like me who have become full-time service providers to those making an extra $500 to $1,000 per month in their spare time.
Is Pinterest VA Up to Date?
In addition to expanding the program offerings, the material is enhanced as needed to best serve students and their clients. This allows students to come back to the material over time as they progress in their business rather than the program just being something they go through once and never use again.
What I particularly like about the enhancements is Kristin ensures they’re done in a measured, sensible way.
What I mean by this is she doesn’t hear a rumor about a Pinterest change or experiment and hastily makes a change to the program just to be “on trend.” She waits until the information is solid and tested before she makes a change to the program.
This is in line with how I manage Pinterest. There will always be rumblings about an algorithm change or feature change, but I find it best to stick to what I know works. I dig into new features as they’re released, but I don’t stress about any of the noise out there! (This is true of any online platform.)
The program is also enhanced as needed in response to student feedback. For example, all the programs now include a module on how to set up a website for your business, including the four must-have website pages.
This module was launched in response to some students requesting a step-by-step path for launching their Pinterest business website. By the way, you don’t need a website for your Pinterest business, but it can be good to have!
Is Pinterest VA Legit?
I hope I’ve started to answer that question in the last 1,200 words, but yes, Pinterest VA is definitely legit!
Something that caught my eye from the beginning is Kristin’s partnership with Tailwind, a Pinterest scheduling platform that is an official partner of Pinterest.
When I first started using Pinterest for my blog in 2017, there were two popular scheduling platforms: Tailwind and another platform.
A lot of people were huge fans of the other platform because it was easier to use (not from a technical standpoint, but from a “laziness factor” standpoint).
I, however, was too nervous to use it because it wasn’t an official Pinterest partner, which meant Pinterest could pull the plug whenever they wanted and ban its usage.
Knowing that Kristin was partnered with Tailwind, a true partner of Pinterest, gave me peace of mind that I was buying a legit program that recommended real strategies and processes. I happily used Tailwind for every single one of my clients.
So when Pinterest banned the other platform literally overnight in 2018, my business chugged along as usual.
Other Pinterest managers who hadn’t taken Kristin’s program (or had and chose to ignore her recommendation to use Tailwind) were in chaos, scrambling to completely restructure their pinning process before their clients canceled their management contracts!
In addition to partnerships with companies like Tailwind, Kristin also sometimes partners with successful students to enhance program content.
For example, the Canva (pin design) module in the programs was recently revamped with instructive videos by Rachel, one of Pinterest VA’s star students and expert pin designer.
I know I’ve shared a lot about the programs without getting into specifics of each program tier, but I promise that’s coming in just a minute! Before I do that, I want to share how Pinterest VA helps their students get hired.
How Pinterest VA Helps Students Find Clients
When I purchased Become a Pinterest VA Today! back in 2017, Pinterest VA hadn’t grown into what it is now (the industry leader in the Pinterest management industry), so client leads weren’t available.
I landed all of my clients through cold pitching. Cold pitching may not be exciting, but it works!
What’s better than cold pitching is warm pitching. In this case, that means clients are already interested in Pinterest management services and are looking for someone to chat with them, identify their needs, and guide them to a package that’s the best fit.
In 2018, Kristin noticed that she was receiving a lot of client leads in her inbox because potential clients saw her as the resource for Pinterest management. And with that, the community and exclusive leads were born!
The community has undergone a few changes since its inception, but it’s now called the Pinterest Manager Academy Community and is where all of the exclusive leads are released.
Kristin has helped a little over 1,000 clients hire a Pinterest VA through these exclusive client leads, helping Pinterest VAs earn over $3.4 million dollars in the process.
These leads are available to all students of:
- Pinterest Manager Academy
- Pinterest Expert Business Academy
… which takes me to my next section. Let’s talk about the different programs!
Become a Pinterest VA Today! Review
Become a Pinterest VA Today! is the perfect program if you’re looking to start a side hustle in Pinterest management.
⭐ Who it’s for:
It’s a good fit if you’re looking to mainly DIY your journey as it does not include any community support or exclusive leads. If you feel confident in your ability to self-study and apply what you’ve learned, this is a good program to choose.
⭐ Content:
Here is a sampling of the content provided in the Become a Pinterest VA Today! program:
- How to Start Your Pinterest Business
- Build Your Business Website
- How to Adopt a Success Mindset (with Kristin’s Mindset Coach)
- How to Find and Land Clients
- How to Set Your Rates
- Service Packages to Offer
- Technical Training in Three Key Areas
Pinterest Manager Academy Review
Pinterest Manager Academy is ideal for those looking to generate a solid four-figure monthly income with their Pinterest management business.
⭐ Who it’s for:
It’s a good fit if you like added support as it includes lifetime access to the Pinterest Manager Academy Community on Facebook and Pinterest VA’s exclusive client leads.
⭐ Content:
Pinterest Manager Academy includes all the content in Become a Pinterest VA Today! plus several additional schools to help you level up your service offerings and command a higher income.
Here is a sampling of the additional content provided in the Pinterest Manager Academy program not found in Become a Pinterest VA Today!:
- Promoted Pins Training
- Shopify for Pinterest Training
- Verified Merchant Program Training
As noted above, in addition to the program content, Pinterest Manager Academy also includes:
- Lifetime access to the Pinterest Manager Academy Community (on Facebook)
- Lifetime access to client leads exclusive to Pinterest VA
Note: There is no way to become a member of the Pinterest Manager Academy Community without purchasing the Pinterest Manager Academy or Pinterest Expert Business Academy programs.
Pinterest Expert Business Academy Review
Pinterest Expert Business Academy is for those who are looking to scale their business to a five-figure monthly income to include high-level services such as digital products and client intensives.
⭐ Who it’s for:
Pinterest Expert Business Academy is a good fit if you’re looking for individualized support.
In addition to lifetime access to the Pinterest Manager Academy Community and Pinterest VA’s exclusive client leads, you also receive feedback from the Pinterest VA team:
- 12 weeks of weekly content reviews
- Twice-monthly strategy calls
⭐ Content:
Pinterest Expert Business Academy includes all of the content in Become a Pinterest VA Today!, all of the content in Pinterest Manager Academy, plus several additional schools to help you take your business to an expert level with the help of high-end, highly profitable services.
Here is a sampling of the additional content provided in the Pinterest Expert Business Academy program not found in Become a Pinterest VA Today! or Pinterest Manager Academy:
- Promoted Pins Training
- Shopify for Pinterest Training
- Verified Merchant Program Training
As noted above, in addition to the program content, Pinterest Manager Academy also includes:
- Lifetime access to the Pinterest Manager Academy Community (on Facebook)
- Lifetime access to client leads exclusive to Pinterest VA
Note: There is no way to become a member of the Pinterest Manager Academy Community without purchasing the Pinterest Manager Academy or Pinterest Expert Business Academy programs.
For more details about all of the programs, check out the programs page.
Pinterest VA Reviews
Phew, that was a lot to digest! 😊
Let’s end this Pinterest VA review on a really exciting note. In addition to this post (one big Pinterest VA review!), here are a sampling of additional Pinterest VA reviews:
Looking for another Pinterest VA review? You can read more student success stories here.
You can also catch up with Kristin on TikTok (her second-favorite platform after Pinterest!).
Any Questions?
If you have any questions about this Pinterest VA review, my experience with Pinterest VA, or any other questions about the programs, just ask!
