James SpillanePinterest is buzzing right now. It has been causing quite a stir recently and it is still undergoing incredibly rapid growth and extremely high conversion rates. It’s a social media platform totally focused on visuals, and you may be aware that the common perception is that unless your business is based around retail and pretty pictures of dresses, weddings or cookery – it is unlikely to get very far with Pinterest.
So what if your business offers B2B services, or is in a, erm, shall we say ‘less glamorous’ industry like engineering or insurance?
How do you take advantage of the marketing potential and great conversion rates that Pinterest offers?
Well you might be surprised to hear that there are a growing number of businesses in unlikely industries that are taking Pinterest by storm. It is completely possible for your business to be a Pinterest success – you just have to approach it from a slightly different perspective.
What are businesses doing that sets them apart?
Well, they’re being creative and thinking differently. Instead of viewing the fact that Pinterest works visually as a disadvantage – see the ability to create and link to related images as an opportunity. Through the sharing of related images, Pinterest actually offers a great new arena for businesses that would traditionally struggle in a visual environment.
It doesn’t have to be hard – Pinterest can be a lot of fun! – but to give you a helping hand, here’s our list of top 10 things you can implement into your pinning strategy to create a successful Pinterest profile to generate traffic and leads – whatever your business.
Simplicity is key
Give your pinboards a clear focus. Keep your goals in mind and curate your boards carefully – don’t let them get cluttered and choose only top quality pins that fit the board theme precisely.
Be unique
Cause a stir with unusual and striking pins. Be quirky and encourage comments and repins with provoking content.
Get Acquainted
Use the 200 word bio section to introduce your business to the Pinterest community. Be dynamic and choose the words wisely to communicate your core values and company mission.
You can include a link too, so it’s a fantastic opportunity to drive traffic back to your site.
Be clear
Have a clear message behind every pinboard and everything you pin and communicate it effectively. Know your own goals and create boards and pins to help you achieve them. Clarity is key to making memorable boards that inspire others to take action.
Be Human
Inject personality and humor into your boards. Create boards that reveal the human side of your business, such as ‘meet the team’ or ‘company lifestyle’ boards.
The more personal you are, the more you will encourage interaction from your fellow pinners.
Prove your worth
Pinners will believe in you if you prove yourself to be credible. Establish your credibility by giving them examples.
Give them pinboards full of testimonials or images demonstrating how what you offer is enhancing people’s lives.
Make them care
An emotional hook is guaranteed to get people involved. Take a moral stance with what you pin and incorporate emotional images and stories to tug on your followers’ heart strings and give them the opportunity to better themselves by sharing your message.
Tell a story
Stories have an extremely high engagement level, so use this to your advantage and share your story.
Explain what it is you do.
Give details and quotes on your pins to give as much as possible to your followers. Keep your audience up to date with what is going on – are you running an event? Are you about to release a new product? Are you attending any industry parties? Let them know!
Quality is key
Fuzzy, low res images and incorrect formatting will not give your profile a slick, professional vibe. Maintain quality at all times.
Invest
If Pinterest is going to work for you, you’re going to have to take it seriously. It requires an investment of time and resources and a daily or weekly commitment.
If your account isn’t active, people won’t see your pins and the work you have put into your profile will be wasted – keep that momentum going!
Stay Relevant
You want to be thinking outside the box with your boards, but don’t stray so far that your message becomes confused.
Keep your goals and your intended audience in mind at all times.
Engage
It’s not all about you – never forget that Pinterest is a social site!
Start conversations, add comments on and share the pins of others. If someone comments on one of your pins always comment back. Create community boards to encourage your followers to get involved with your business. Set up a board that invites them to post images of themselves using your products and run competitions. Give something to the Pinterest community and you will reap the benefits in return.
Share your wisdom
Pinterest can be a great vehicle for sharing information and letting others benefit from your experience. People love to learn and visual learning is the easiest form there is. Be informative and establish your authority within your industry. Demonstrate to people why they should get involved with your business.
Always keep your goals in mind, use these ideas to give your Pinterest profile some ooh la la, and don’t be afraid to experiment to see what works for you! Is your business rocking Pinterest? Get in touch and tell us about it.
This article was written for Business 2 Community by James Spillane.
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I am not convinced that Pinterest generates ROI for the time needed to make it work. I agree that one should have a presence,, another place to show your stuff. I have asked several times for the beef. Show me the metrics and ROI. No seen any as of this writing. I am cautious that this is not another Groupon. There stock today is sub $5.00 and going down. All I heard for 18 months before IPO was that Groupon could walk on water, the next business model, on and on. Less then a year later, they are struggling to survive.
I am not convinced that Pinterest generates ROI for the time needed to make it work. I agree that one should have a presence, another place to show your stuff. I have asked several times for the beef. Show me the metrics and ROI. Not seen any data as of this writing. I am cautious that this is not just another Groupon. There stock today is sub $5.00 and going down. All I heard for 18 months before IPO was that Groupon could walk on water, the next business model, on and on. Less then a year later, they are struggling to survive.