So, you’ve come in a little late to Pinterest. No worries, though, you can still jump on the social media bandwagon and gain a following. As you may already know, Pinterest can be addictive.
For me, I love the idea of organizing all the pretty pictures into categories called “boards.” I can easily zoom in on a graphic I like, make a comment, repin (the equivalent of a reblog or a share) or simply “like” someone else’s pin.
Boards and pictures are also placed under easy-to-find topics such as Technology, Hair and Beauty, Women’s Fashion, Film, Music and Books, Science and Nature, and so on.
It’s pretty easy to discover the most beautiful pictures and interesting ideas on Pinterest. Just click on the topic you like or choose “everything” and scroll down. It’s a virtual feast for the eyes. As such, I’m not surprised to see that Pinterest has become a pretty popular social media community.
A Few Convincing Statistics
On BlogHer’s annual study on social media dated March of this year, a whopping 81 percent of women from the general US population said that they trusted Pinterest and blogs. This is compared to only 67 percent of women who said that they trusted Facebook and 73 percent who said they trusted Twitter.
Those surveyed also responded more to Pinterest recommendations—47 percent compared to those who acted on Facebook recommendations (33 percent) and Twitter recommendations (31 percent).
Even males are finding the site to be useful. ComScore says that 25 percent of consumers buy a product or service after discovering it on Pinterest, with the number of males who do going up to 37 percent.
As such, we can see that Pinterest is a great resource and tool for a company’s marketing efforts. As a beginner user, here’s how you can use this social media space for your benefit.
Fill Up Your Profile
When you subscribe to Pinterest, you’ll be asked to choose a user name. You can use your business name for this for maximum exposure. Don’t forget to fill up the “About” section. This description shows up on your Pinterest page and is the best way for followers to see a summary of what your pins will be about. Make the description as succinct and as interesting as possible.
Also, don’t neglect your profile picture. According to Pinterest, the ideal profile picture has square dimensions and is sized 160×160 pixels or more. Rectangular images are resized, centered and cropped, so this shape may not be ideal for Pinterest. If your image is larger than 160X160, Pinterest automatically resizes it for you. However, if your image is too small, your profile picture will look stretched.
Your best bet is to stick as close to Pinterest’s recommended dimensions and aim for a square shape.
Go Social
Don’t forget to connect your account to your other social networks, too! Connecting your Facebook and Twitter accounts would make Twitter and Facebook icons appear on your Pinterest profile. This way, people can check you out on your other social networks. You can also add a link to your website, which is a great way to keep people connected to you wherever you may be.
Additionally, remember not to over-self-promote. While one of your primary objectives might be to publicize your products, you should place equal importance on engaging other Pinterest users. Follow boards that are in line with your interests, comment on or like particularly interesting graphics that relate to your business and remember the basic rules of etiquette! Say thank you, give credit and be nice!
Create Interesting Boards And Pins
Pinterest is all about getting visual. The top pins according to comScore are usually food, home, arts and crafts, style or fashion, products, vacations, humor, travel, inspiration, education and children. Users can create boards for their varied interests.
Create your own boards and give them short and specific names that capture people’s interests. You can create quotes, infographics, and even YouTube videos to pin on your boards.
Optimize Your Website For Pinterest
Make it easy for your blog readers to follow you on Pinterest. First, place a “Follow me” button on your website. Next, use the “Pin It” button to make it easy for others to grab images from your blog. Lastly, use Pinterest for iPhone, iPad and Android, so you can keep your Pinterest account updated even when you’re on the go!
These are just some of the Pinterest basics that will help you gain followers on your new social network. Happy pinning!
Hi Carol and Leiden,
Thank you for giving us the scoop on Pinterest. Although I took the time to add more boards and do more pinning I keep forgetting. I’m so use to using Facebook and Twitter that I haven’t gotten the hang of pinning people’s posts and images.
I just have to make it a point to do that each day and I’m having a lot of people like my pins now. I am getting traffic from that site but I start being more active I’ll probably start getting more attention.
Thanks for these stats, pretty interesting.
~Adrienne
To be honest Adrienne, I haven’t done a lot with Pinterest myself so I’m thinking it’s time to get on board! New year’s resolutions for us??
Hi Leiden,
Indeed, I hear that Pinterest is getting big. For me, there was the scare of sharing pictures that may be virus infected or pictures that may have some type of copyright issues, but if careful with both issues, it’s worth it to invest some time in Pinterest.
They also have dead dropping gorgeous pictures on there.
Thanks for the share!
I had the same hesitation as you Sylviane. I just make sure to link back to the source of the photo. I think 2013 is going to be the year I finally get into Pinterest. Especially if it’s going to make sales!
Hi Sylviane, I have found some bad images on Pinterest, but now Pinterest seems to be alerting me to those dangers. Those have been very rare bad eggs though.
Hey Leiden. Thanks for posting about Pinterest. I did an article about it a awhile ago, but like many others, I’m used to using FB and Twitter so I don’t always remember there is another very popular social media site. Thanks for the reminder.
Barbara
It’s definitely hard to stay on top of everything, Barbara. I tend to ignore Pinterest too but I’m going to give it a shot. I know it’s gotten some traffic for my blog so that’s good news!
Hi Carol Lynn, I love Pinterest, it just seems to be a respite from the rest of the world.
I would suggest following and joining group boards to get more followers on Pinterest. When you contribute to a group board, your pins get seen by a lot more Pinterest users who may then travel to your boards and follow you!
That’s interesting, thanks for the tip Carolyn. I can see why Pinterest would be fun, because there’s less “brainpower” and mostly things to enjoy looking at. I’ll have to check out the group boards. Thanks!
I would also suggest adding a Pin It button to your blog to get more pins/traffic. Pinterest has sent a lot of traffic to The Wonder of Tech, perhaps because of my Pin It button.
I agree, people like that easy pin option. Plus if you have interesting photos it can be a great source of incoming traffic.
Hello Leiden,
I have a pinterest account, never pinned anything yet, as I have not grasped the purpose….I do have followers there, not sure how I got them, but I do plan to learn more as it seems to be a popular site. Thanks for sharing your article as it did get me in the mood to go to my account and follow it through further.
The good thing about Pinterest is its pretty easy to use. It’s basically just about finding photos you like and collecting them onto your boards. But it can help drive traffic to your site, or even get you some sales (depending on what you’re selling) so it’s a fun tool that can also be good for business.
Hi Leiden,
Now they are MUST do basics, right? 🙂 Well, I’ve completed ’em for my profile and keep pinning there. I like visual stuff over there and never went to a blog or website via a pin though 😉 Mostly it’s about repinning which that stats show users mostly do repinning on Pinterest.
Mmm… But still I’m not stopping by everyday on Pinterest. I see more interaction on the days I stop by, like I see on Twitter. May be ’cause of non-stop stream. no? However I’m getting little traffic from Pinterest too. Yet I can’t figure out how ’cause I’ve never click on a link attached with a pin.
May be, is it the description we add in a pin? I less likely repin those cluttered with text. However I love interaction there which is more fun for me than getting traffic 🙂
Ah Carol, I’ve seen some improvement on adding hastags end of the tweets after the link 😉 Not did with all my tweets though. Let’s see 😉
Happy Last Weekend of 2012, Leiden and Carol 🙂
Cheers…
Thanks for stopping by, Mayura. I agree that Pinterest is great for visuals, but not so good if you’re going to clutter it up with long descriptions of text. Although I do think it’s possible to have a conversation there in the comments, but it’s not as likely since people like to look, pin and repin. Not so much commenting.
Sometimes a short description is nice to explain what something is, maybe a little fact or bit of information. But short-and-sweet is the way to go. Pinterest isn’t a blog!
I’m glad you’re seeing some changes in Twitter. I would love to know if any of those things works to help get more clicks!
I love the stat that says several sales sites are reporting that they get more active sales that come from Pinterest than they do any other site – including FB. Thanks Hale
I bet if you have products or a “visual” business you can get a ton of sales on Pinterest. it’s definitely worth a look!
Staying basic is all I need and you nailed it. I also think creating boards with no real expectations yields you more repins. It takes time, but its possible. When you take the focus off trying to get traffic, you end up finding people that love the topic of your board without all the gimmicks.
Smart marketing helps, but everyone uses them, thus frustrating users that can’t figure out why it doesn’t work for them. I say find what works for you, find unique photos that really tell a story. Create boards that showcase your personality and repin from other users.
Totally agree Sonia! There’s no “one size fits all”. You really have to figure out what works for you and go with it.
Hi Carol.
thank you for the great tips!
I appreciate that you shared the categories for the top pins. Wow food is right at the top.
After reading you post I may get more active on Pinterest.
Cheers,
Yorinda
You can thank Leiden, she was my guest poster for this one 🙂 Pinterest is fun and it can be a good place for visual biz. Try it out, you never know.
Followers always add extra visibility and profitability to your profile. Pinterest is the latest social media sensation and people are now interested to buy pinterest followers . But even your tips Leldon are quite useful to gain extra followers.