Pinterest and Pins and Boards, Oh my!

One of my personal favorite social media sites is Pinterest. I have always been more of a visual learner; looking at pictures and writing things down has always made more sense to me. Pinterest appeals to this need because, after all, my favorite part of Facebook and Twitter are the pictures that other people post. With Pinterest, I am able to scroll through the "Pins" that the people I follow post and the "Pins" of the entire Pinterest community. I choose to follow other Pinterest users that have similar interests to me, so I want to look at their "Pins". Looking at these "Pins" gives me ideas that I can utilize in my real life, may it be for an outfit, a new recipe, a home design idea, or some sort of craft. Pinterest allows even the most uncreative person to feel creative. It can be addictive, and I could spend hours on this site. It acts like a virtual scrapbook for all of my favorite images. Each user's "Pins" are categorized into Boards. Boards can be as general or as specific as you want, and there is no limit to how many you can have. One of my boards is a "Style" Board, and I have used it to pick out my fall wardrobe, even though it is only July. Pinterest is also great if you are busy or on a budget. Pinners post a lot of workouts, quick and healthy recipes, and budget ideas. As a college student, I am always finding new money saving ideas on Pinterest. Unfortunately, whatever budgeting tricks I find stop applying after I've pinned a few outfit ideas.

I'll admit, Pinterest does appeal more to the female demographic, but it can also be useful to implement into your own business marketing plan. It can be a great place to showcase your own work without feeling intrusive to your audience. You get to interact with your audience by re-pinning from them, and they can re-pin from you. Also, all of your new "Pins" will show up on their home page, so will see your pins with little to no effort. One idea is to show "behind-the-scenes" at your business. Let your audience feel like they are a part of your community. This looks genuine, and customers feel a connection to you. Another good idea is to have a board dedicated to related topics. Show your follows, other topics, or products that they might be interested in. For example, if you are a pool retailer, have a board for pools toys or outdoor furniture.

Pinterest is invite-only, but they accept everyone. I suggest you check it out, regardless of what you plan to do with it. You just might learn something new.



By: Lauren Menichella