What Is Your Pinterest?

On July 11, 2012, Rachel [Thompson, of Bad Redhead Media] had tweeted some astonishing figures. Pinterest had out rated ALL its competition social media outlets, except Facebook, in usage. Granted it was for only one month, but could this be an increasing trend? One thing we know for sure is that Pinterest is another avenue for authors to market their books, which costs NO MONEY! As a person who frequently is approached by authors as someone who they can bounce ideas off of, I am shocked by the number of authors who are unaware of how to use Pinterest to develop their novel’s brand and get some free marketing to boot!

So, my question is “How do you Pinterest?” In regard to Pinterest, one has to be very careful in “spamming;” unlike other outlets, Pinterest frowns deeply on self-promotion and it violates their TOS!

I think a good jumping off point is describing what a brand is. The easiest way to think of a brand is “Who is your book?” and “What are some key descriptions of your book?” Think of your book as a person. What would be some adjectives you would use to describe it?

So, with those questions in mind, you are ready to move to the next steps in your Pinterest profile!

1. Develop word/words that describe the answers to the questions above. Make a list of those words. For example, does your book have a cooking theme in it? Boards focusing on cooking are a must! How about a Southern setting? Then, focus on Southern themes cooking, scenery/photography, etc. One of the best examples I have seen of this is the writing duo of Cecilia Aubrey (http://pinterest.com/ceciliaaubrey/) and Chris Almeida (http://pinterest.com/calmeidaauthor/) These ladies write romances together and one of Cecelia’s key boards focuses on, well, let’s just say “the romance dance!” But it works for her board and she currently has 230 followers. What I love most about these ladies’ boards is that they have really figured out excellent key words to describe who they are and have found wonderful pictures to meet those .

2. Develop boards based on your key words. Next, to give variety and not look like you are spamming, what are some words that describe you? What are your hobbies? Make sure to develop boards for “your characteristics” as well!

3. Don’t forget to do a board for your book!

4. Be creative with the names of your boards! Have fun coming up with them. People are drawn to the unusual. Use your creative genius in the marketing of your book…not just in the writing!

5. Have a blog; the same concepts apply with your blog! Here are two examples of authors who also have blogs ad have made their Pinterest profiles work for them. First, Terri G. Long, author of “In Leah’s Wake” and author of the blog Terri Guiliano Long (http://tglong.com/site/) and, of course, our host, Rachel! (Ed. note: aw, thank you.) While marketing her blog and companies, she lets followers have an insight into her processes.

One thing I love most about Pinterest that I see with no other social media outlet with a “funness” for creativity. I have only been on it for a couple of months but I LOVE IT! Have fun with it and go crazy, but do it in a controlled craziness that will introduce Pinners to your book(s) and/or blog.

What is YOUR experience with Pinterest and what are your thoughts on my tips?

We welcome your comments below!