Tanya Knowles
Pinterest is:
- Filled with women audience.
- Only suitable for food and wedding content.
- Not just as big as the other social networks.
- Just like Google Buzz, only to buzz away over time!
ALL WRONG!
Let’s bust the above myths with a couple of real facts that might change your notion about Pinterest.
- Pinterest was the fastest growing social network in 2014, with its reader base jumping by 97 percent!
- An average Pinterest user spends 14.2 minutes pinning and re-pinning, every time they log in.
- The half-life of a Pinterest pin is 1,600 times longer than a Facebook post.
Whether you’ve got an online business or a brick & mortar store, Pinterest can be used as a powerful marketing weapon.
But, how?
Good question!
Here’s a list of the best Pinterest marketing methods that you can apply for your business today.
Make Fun Boards
Being serious never works over the internet, and being more specific, in the online social communities.
If you are fun and interesting, people will follow you. Otherwise, they won’t.
Emily Shiola of Digital Trends advises you to think outside the box and create fun boards, which are quirky, useful and shareable. The more exciting you are, the more pins you get.!
Free Contests
Pinterest is the universal “billboard” of the internet. Just put up a great poster there, and people will flock to your place of business. And what can be better than posting about a great contest that gives you loads of prizes for FREE?
As a marketing person, you already know that “free always sells”.
So, go ahead and post some great free contests now.
Money saving Coupons
What can get you instantly popular on Pinterest is – giving away coupons (By the way, Brittney Helmrich believes in this idea).
Who doesn’t want to save money, right?
And when someone is rushing through hundreds of images in a hurry, the one thing that might actually catch her attention is a plain, simple coupon that helps her save $ 130 on her Thanksgiving grocery shoppings at Walmart.
Don’t worry. You don’t have to give coupons on grocery shoppings only. You can give away coupons on anything that is related to your industry.
That works too!
Be Active On Other Boards
Yes, this is very important.
As Debbie Hemley says, it’s not just about being active on your own boards. You must follow other businesses. And when you are on Pinterest, it is always better to get a bit more proactive and start engaging in conversations, rendering helpful advices here and there across other boards too.
This is the essence of participating in a social community. You just have to be social!
Build Relationships
This is a biggie, and this is applicable to all businesses, even if you are a Fortune 500 company.
You need to interact with your customers.
This helps you propagate your brand and lets your followers relate to it.
As per Beth Hayden at Copyblogger, you need to post behind-the-scene pictures of your company. You need to post pictures of your employees, along with a few personal biographical lines beneath them.
You need to post about social and corporal events that you are holding across the country. Always update your followers and customers about what you are up to, and no other place better than Pinterest suits your purpose.
Be The Go-To Expert In Your Niche
Keep abreast of everything that’s happening around. And share them with your audience. Whether it is the recent interview with an industrialist, the recent scientific breakthrough or the new product launched by your competitor, always stay on top of things.
And share them with your audience. Simple. This serves two purposes for you. One, you get to stay active in your community. Two, you show your expertise to your followers and customers. Two birds with one stone!
Employ Rich Pins
Rebecca Radice advises in this PostPlanner post that you should employ rich pins in your business strategy.
These are pins that include extra information right on the pin itself.
Right now, there are five types of rich pins: movie, recipe, article, product and place” as per Pinterest’s definition.
What does that mean for you? More information means better hooks for your prospects and customers. So, use rich pins whenever you can.
Have fun!
These are arguably the “best of the best” ways to market your online business with Pinterest today.
Of course, you can always get creative and try out newer ideas. In fact, if you have tried out any, do let us know in your comments below.
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