[vc_row][vc_column width=”1/1″][vc_column_text]A few months ago, I was introduced to the latest social media craze—Pinterest. If you are familiar with the site, then you know it has the capacity to cause huge chunks of your day to disappear. Described as a virtual pinboard, it gives users the ability to visually bookmark interesting content from the Web onto one of their boards. You can have one board or many, and most boards follow some sort of theme. The best part is that you can share your boards with others. Much like Facebook and Twitter, other users can choose to follow all of your boards or just the ones that interest them.
At first glance, Pinterest may seem like an endless sea of DIY home projects, craft ideas, and recipes. However, delve a little deeper and you will discover that Pinterest can be utilized as an effective marketing tool, especially within industries that have a visual aspect.
• Images or videos pinned by users link back to the original website or blog posting—making it a great way to drive traffic to your site.
• Users can repin content to their boards, making it visible to their followers.
• Followers have the ablity to “like” a pin or leave a comment.
• They can also choose to share their pins via their Twitter and Facebook accounts or embed the link into a blog.
• Adding a “pin it” button to your website or blog posts makes it easy for users to share content.
• Finally, boards can be classified into several broader categories for the general public—such as Apparel, Travel, Health, Sports, etc.—translating into even more exposure by users who otherwise may never have been introduced to your product. Can you see the snowball effect forming?
Department store giant Nordstrom uses Pinterest to feature beauty favorites, seasonal trends, accessories, and so on. When Nordstrom pins a new item to one of their boards, followers will automatically see the image posted in their feed. When a follower clicks on the image, they are taken directly to that item within Nordstrom’s online store. Restaurants can pin pictures of their most mouth-watering dishes. Resorts and hotels can post images of their guest rooms, grounds, and amenities.
The possibilities are endless. The key is to think creatively:
• Conduct market research by posting product concepts and inviting feedback from users.
• Showcase new products.
• If your firm offers event planning, use it to keep track of ideas or post photos of events you have done.
• Post DIY tutorials that use your products.
• Engage your customers by inviting them to post pictures of themselves using your product.
Don’t just use Pinterest to self-promote. Following other users and repinning their content is sort of like a retweet on Twitter. This will help you discover influencers, get on their radar, and maybe they’ll reciprocate by following your boards.
Currently, setting up a user account is by “invite only.” But trust me, getting an invite to join is super easy and pretty quick. Don’t underestimate its power—if a pin goes viral, it can funnel thousands of hits to your website. If you are interested in making the most of your social media efforts, Pinterest is an essential if not invaluable tool.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
