Keep Pinterest On Your Small Business Marketing Radar

January 20, 2012 Jillian Koeneman pinterest for small business, social media marketing blog

By Freshlime guest blogger, Jennifer Kosmas

Social media has provided us with many ways to connect with family members and friends and plays a huge role in the way we do business today. One of the latest methods of social media to emerge is called Pinterest.

Pinterest is a social bookmarking tool used to “pin” images found around the Web into categorized collections or boards. Think of it like an interactive, shareable scrapbook. Like any good social network, you can follow other users, share their content, make comments and tag users. Similar to a Twitter stream, you get real-time updates of what the people you follow are pinning. You can also easily share your pins on Facebook and Twitter.

The audience on Pinterest is different from the major social networks because most people use it to find inspiration, whether they are hosting a party, getting married or looking for a recipe for dinner. In other words, many are using Pinterest to help guide their buying decisions. If a user finds something they like on Pinterest, there is a good chance they will at least click the source link, and at most, make a purchase.

Pinterest helps businesses and new products to “get seen.” Doing a Google search for specific items more often then not brings up brands that are already known. Pinterest helps users find new products, brands and styles they would normally not come across by plugging keywords into a search engine.

Building links via Pinterest happens every time someone pins something from your site. The chance is great that the same thing can be pinned even hundreds of times, which is just like free advertising for your business!

Many boards are dedicated to one product or brand helping to create brand advocacy. Those in the community of retail, lifecycle, food, home décor, design and travel with visually appealing content have the most to offer.

There are many businesses that have already joined the Pinterest club such as HGTV, West Elm, Better Homes & Gardens and Whole Foods who are seeing positive results because of it. Those who do join this “invite only” community need to remember that putting aside self-promotion and relying on visually-appealing content will help them to achieve much success!

While Pinterest may not be for every brand or small business, it’s certainly something marketers need to be aware of and should put on their radar.