Pinterest has gained a lot of publicity over the last few months. The company was only launched in March 2010 and since then, not only has the company received $27 million in venture funds from Andreessen Horowitz, but the site’s popularity has grown massively with around 11 million visits per week. In January 2012 it had more traffic than social network giants like YouTube, Linked In, and Google+.
Even though Pinterest has shown massive popularity, especially for such a short period of time, many people still have no idea what it is or how to use it, so without further ado here is the beginners guide to becoming a fully fledged Pinterest enthusiast.
Pinterest was created as a place to organize and share online images that you find interesting, influencial or inspiring. After they have been uploaded or shared on Pinterest the images then become known as Pins, which then can be placed on themed, customizable Boards. You can design and create Boards for any topic you can think of; ballooning, sewing, skiing, football, cooking… The possibilities are endless. If you want to use Pinterest, though, you have to be invited. You can sign up for invites on the site but this can take a long time, but you probably already know someone who uses Pinterest who will gladly send you an invite.
Obviously there is nothing wrong with just pinning pictures of cool stuff all day, Pinterest can be used as a really beneficial tool for people with a specific purpose in mind. Artists use it to organize inspiring images for their work. Cooks keep an online recipe box. College students might create a shopping list of things they need to buy for school. Some people create a Board for each room in the house and then pin decorating ideas for that room. More than one person can contribute to each board so collaborating with co-workers, classmates or family members on a project is easy with everyone’s ideas in one place.
Pinning things is very simple with the Pin It Button, which is a simple drag-and-drop browser extension. When you find an image you like, just click the button and select the picture. Decide which board you want to assign the picture to, add some text, and there you have it. If the Pin is something you want to buy, you can include the price in the description and it will attach to the Pin for easy reference. If you find inspiration on the go, take a picture with your iPhone and add it to your Boards with the mobile app (Only available on iPhone, since August 2011). You can also Repin posts from other people.
One Pinner is great but the more the merrier, right? To find other like-minded Pinners, access the Everything drop-down menu and filter Boards by category. When you see a Pin you like, you can leave a comment, Like it, or Repin it to one of your own Boards. If there is a board that you really identify with, follow its updates, or head to the Pinner’s profile and follow all of their Boards. It’s an open network so follows don’t require permission and you don’t have to follow anyone back.
You can share your Pins on Facebook or tweet them to help increase your network across all three services (and strengthen your Klout score). Hit the Popular button to see what pins are trending at the moment. It’s a great way to access new content and to find Pinners who share your interests. To share a Pin with another Pinner; use an @mention in the description, the same as you do on other social sites. They will get an email to let them know they’ve been mentioned.
Nearly all Pins are photos, but you can pin videos, too. Use the Videos button to see everything from movie trailers to yoga tutorials and the latest viral videos. If you are looking to buy a present for someone, you can look at the Gifts menu to find Pins that have a price associated. And because Pins almost always link back to the source website, buying something you like is easy.
Pinterest might seem like a great place to promote your business, but be careful if you choose to do this. It is not a great idea to spam your Boards with nothing but your own products or projects, it is not outright banned but they do not take kindly to it. This does not mean you cannot use Pinterest for promotion just use it as an opportunity to build your brand by linking and connecting with people who share the same style and ideas, or by pinning images that inspire your company’s work. You can use Pinterest for self-promotion, just do so creatively.
