Pinterest
Although a popular visual content-based platform for women, any business can use Pinterest to create and share creative, rich media. Restaurants, manufacturers, retailers and travel sites use Pinterest to display food, products and places, whereas other businesses may post interesting infographs displaying data in an entertaining fashion.
Anyone can browse Pinterest, but to participate on the site, you will need to sign up—which you can do through your Facebook or Twitter account. Once registered, you can begin to set up your own pinboard and expose your content, products or other media.
Using Pinterest
The most important concept of Pinterest is to think visually. Posts with strong visuals will increase user engagement and increase your “pins.” Infographics are very popular on Pinterest because of the creative displays of information. Creating infographics with relevant, interesting information will appeal to your audience.
Pinterest should not be focused on self-promotion, but rather on pinning emotion-causing visuals. Showcasing the qualities of your services and products will generate content sharing and lead to increased brand awareness. Taking the time to introduce your personnel while pinning the images on a “company profile” board can help gain your popularity on Pinterest as it will showcase actual people enjoying life. It may sound cheesy, but remember that smiles are contagious.
The following six tips can also bring interest to your boards:
- Follow the Pinterest etiquette—credit sources, be nice, and keep your profile community-based
- Crowdsource and ask fans to pin pictures of themselves with your products
- Adding a “Pin it” button to your website, blog, or a visual shared can help spread content
- Optimize your visuals with multiple keywords and hashtags (#)
- Comment on content and add positively to the conversation
- Continue to create and collect quality content and images
What to Avoid
Be careful of falling into a forced-advertising habit. Advertising directly on your board turns fans away as content becomes forced. When posting advertisements, deals, offers or services on Pinterest, do so in a social and creative manner. Posting only advertisements without accompanying social content will annoy your followers.
Do not let your page go dormant. Although it may seem daunting to create and share content often, remember you can pin content developed from other users—just remember to credit them. By pinning other content, your business appears to be participating in the community.
Increasing Your Followers and Popularity
To boost your overall popularity on Pinterest, you must continue sharing interesting content and connect with your audience, but you also need to let people know you are on Pinterest.
It is important to continue notifying customers that you have a Pinterest presence, as well as any other social media network presence. Creating “Pin it” buttons on blog posts, your website and emails is a great way to notify clients you are on Pinterest. Placing Pinterest and other social network logos with links to your pages are essential in spreading your online presence. Inviting your business contacts to visit your page can also boost your page’s traffic.
The End Goal
Successful businesses use Pinterest to let customers get to know the people behind the logo. Pinterest allows companies to portray themselves in a friendly, creative, and emotional manner. Pinterest should liven up the workplace for clients and invite customers to join in the fun. Pinterest acts as a doorway you want customers to walk through. Once you capture your own branding on Pinterest, then it can become a lead generator when fans become loyal and excited by your work and services.
If you are ready to begin, learn how to set up your Pinterest page below.
How to Start: 4 Steps
Step 1: Create a Pinterest account and follow step-by-step instructions
Step 2: Invite your friends and colleagues, share your page, and invite your business contacts
Step 3: Begin pinning. Follow the advice above to communicate with your audience
Step 4: To further boost and engage audiences, check out Pinterest’s Promoted Pins
For more information and help, contact one a digital marketing consultant at 4 Site Digital or check out Pinterest’s Help page.