Pinterest, the Web’s shiny new toy, is still buzzing after its launch in September of last year. Its retail stats don’t lie: a call to action pin description sees an 80% increase in engagement which causes users to take immediate action. Shoppers referred by Pinterest are more likely to make a purchase than visitors who arrive from other social networks, and will spend 10% more. Brands big and small are active on the site and marketers and PR pros are finding value on it.
If you’d like to give it a shot, here’s how to get the most out of Pinterest.
1) Categorize your pictures well. When you create a board to group your pictures together, make sure you select a category on the “edit boards” page. The categories are a little broad and don’t have a ton of variety, so choose what is closest for you, or just select “other.” We’re hoping Pinterest makes improvements to this in the future.
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2) Create your boards with keywords in mind. We touched a little bit on this in our recent post about optimizing your social content for search. If you’re selling purses, don’t just write “Purse: $50.” Instead, try “Orange leather purse with gold chain and clasp closure, fall runway trend.” That way, people who are searching for “fall runway trends” or “leather accessories” will come across your page.
3) Caption your Pinterest pins adequately. You have a ton of room to do this. It’s not 140-character land (thank goodness) so take advantage of all 500 characters and describe your pin well, so others aren’t left trying to figure out what your pin is or how to get it. Don’t forget to add a link so your audience can inquire if they need to. I can’t tell you how much it irritates me when I see an awesome picture on Pinterest, click on it and there’s a two word caption with no link to more information about the product. Be as user- friendly as possible to people engaged with your items.
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4) Search for your colleagues and influencers, and follow their pinboards first. Don’t sit around waiting for them to find you. That little search box in the upper left hand side does wonders. After you type in your search terms, you can filter your results by pins, boards, or people.
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5) Create a regular pin schedule. Pin several days of the week, if you can. This way, your content will show up in your follower streams and they’ll be more likely to re-pin; thus sharing your pins with their followers.
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Got any Pinterest tips? Share them with us in the comments section below.
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