I’m going to go out on a limb and guess that you’ve heard of a little site called Pinterest. The visual-based social networking site has really taken off in 2012, and it probably seems like everyone you know is talking about the benefits of using it.

It began with individuals – creative types – pinning images that they liked, recipes and crafts they wanted to try. From there, it spiraled out and businesses started testing different techniques to figure out how they, too, could leverage Pinterest’s popularity.

Today, some major brands are using Pinterest as a channel for their content marketing. They’re sharing their own materials and others’, as well. Many of them use the site to promote a lifestyle associated with their brand.

You’ll find any number of major brands on Pinterest, and there are several that that you probably hear about regularly. Whole Foods, for example, is a popular one. However, since Whole Foods is discussed so often, I want to give you seven other big brands to consider.

7 Big Brands Leveraging Pinterest for Business

Lowe’s

I’ve written before about how Lowe’s is a really stellar example of how to rock social media. It should come as no surprise, then, that their Pinterest page is full of awesome.

The home and garden giant’s page largely represents a DIY kind of lifestyle, including recipes, crafts, decorating ideas, landscaping ideas, and more. While these might not seem to be directly related to Lowe’s, consider the products that they sell. In order to try out any of those recipes, you’re going to need a stove or a grill. Oh, hey – Lowe’s sells those!

Do you need tools, lumber, or other materials for crafts and other DIY projects? Lowe’s sells all of that, too!

How about paint or carpeting, window treatments, the windows themselves, or even shutters to spruce up your house? Find all of that at Lowe’s.

Flowers, mulch, potting soil? You guessed it: Lowe’s.

This is great content marketing at work: sharing ideas in which your products can be used, but making it more about education than selling.

Major League Baseball

If you’re a lover of all things pertaining to America’s favorite pastime, MLB‘s got the Pinterest page for you.

It’s a little bit like a baseball museum curated online. There’s plenty of serious content where you can read about the teams, players, and history, or view images of the stadiums. Then there’s the more lighthearted content: bits about the mascots, the hats, or other weird baseball news (remember when a robot threw out the first pitch at a Phillies game last year?). There’s even a board devoted to facial hair (Brian Wilson’s beard, anyone?).

On top of that, they provide some recipe ideas for your MLB food needs. There’s also an entire board devoted to fan pictures.

All in all: a great range of content. A definite must-follow for any baseball fan.

Oprah

You’re probably well aware that everything Oprah touches turns to gold. Though Oprah’s show is over, she can still share her favorite things with her audience by way of Pinterest.

And she does.

Oprah’s Pinterest page features everything from inspirational quotes and images to ideas for entertaining to fashion, and everything in between.

There’s some content that’s all about Oprah and her endeavors, but it’s balanced out by other lifestyle pins. If you’ve been lamenting the fact that you can’t rush home from school or work every day and veg on the couch while you watch Oprah, you should definitely check out her Pinterest page.

Bergdorf Goodman’s

When someone mentions the iconic Bergdorf’s, what do you think of? Style? Fashion? New York?

Good news! You can find all of that and more on Bergdorf Goodman’s Pinterest page. Clothing, decorating, shoes, make up, jewelry, men’s styles, and so much more – Bergdorf’s has, at the time of this writing, 50 boards!

They’re active pinners and keep the fresh content moving in order to promote a glamourous lifestyle.

Bergdorf’s has got a board for every season and occasion, so it’s hard to go wrong by following them.

The New York Public Library

Speaking of iconic, how about the New York Public Library? They’re promoting a literary lifestyle, and they’re doing it with a dose of great content marketing strategy.

Sure, they’re pinning about books. Makes total sense, right? They are, after all, a library. But they’ve also got an ‘Image of the Day’ board. They’ve got boards about nature, science, genealogy, and fashion. There are boards devoted to literary greats, as well as all-things NYPL (and yes, that includes the lions!).

What do libraries and content marketing have in common? They both promote education. Pinterest provides the NYPL a prime space to do this. You can get lost on their page, clicking through all of the books and history. A must-follow for all book lovers and history buffs!

NBC News

Something that Pinterest is very clear about in its terms of service is that no user should be broadcasting his or her own work. Pinterest is not a site for broadcasting.

So how do those who are in the business of broadcasting also use Pinterest to appeal to their fans?

NBC News has boards organized by news category, onto which it pins news stories from various sources – not just NBC. This particular term of service is interesting not only because it reduces broadcasting, but also because in doing that, these businesses must share others’ content.

I hope I don’t have to tell you that sharing others’ content is pretty important in your overall content strategy.

While it looks like NBC is still building this account up and growing their follower numbers, I’d still recommend this one to all news junkies.

Lamborghini

It’s often said that Pinterest is a site for the ladies. Not true.

And while I’m not going to sit here and imply that an interest in cars is strictly a guy thing (I promise you, it’s really not), guys never seem to get tired of looking at pictures of hot cars.

Lamborghini has images of various cars past and present to appeal to a crowd like that. At its very base, that’s what Pinterest is, too: the consumption of images. So while many of the other sites mentioned in this post are using Pinterest images to point to some wordier content, Lambo is letting the images speak for themselves, for the most part. Sure, there’s content involved. But the focus is really on the image, itself.

What are your thoughts?

What are some of your favorite brands on Pinterest? What brands do you wish would start pinning? Let us know in the comments!