Have you heard of Pinterest? It is an online bulletin board social media site where you can share images of things you like. Social media gurus are calling it "online crack" for women, and with 11.7 million registered users as of May 15 (of which 97% are women) it's easy to see why!
So how does Pinterest work? Registered users can either upload images they like from their computer or they can add a tool bar to their web browser so they can download images from websites using a "pin it" button. A user's Pinterest page is neatly divided into different boards such as "Home Decor," "Recipes I'd like to Try," "Craft Project Ideas," "Summer Fashions" "Places I'd like to Go," etc.
The pinned images are then available for anyone to view. Images can be liked, commented on or "repinned" by other users. And, just like Twitter and Google+, if a person uses # (Hashtags) they can search the site for specific items. On Pinterest's home page they also show the most viewed images of the day in addition to the most recent image posts of people you are following.
So how can businesses use Pinterest? To creatively promote their brand! For example, a shoe company didn't just put pictures up of their shoes. Instead they posted all sorts of creative pictures as to wear their shoes could take you. The shoes were still in the picture but so were famous landmarks from around the world, and the company also encouraged its consumers to post their own pictures of where their shoes were taking them.
Businesses should also make sure that the images on their websites are able to be pinned on Pinterest. And depending on your business you might even want to create a Pinterest Photo Gallery tab on your website. Want to learn more about Pinterest? Then read this article: http://smallbiztrends.com/2012/05/small-business-pinterest-starter-guide.html and then get pinning!
