It’s easy to market on widely used, general purpose social networks like Facebook and Twitter—as long as you know what you’re doing, anyway. But smaller, niche networks like Pinterest are a little trickier. Sure, you can post your outside content there like you’d do on any other network, but that’s a bit impersonal all by itself and won’t gain much attention. How do you use Pinterest’s unique networking format to make your brand stand out? Here are some tips.
- Consider your audience. Blogs posts and videos are great for Facebook and Twitter, but Pinterest is less about sharing commentary and more about sharing ideas. So try a how-to post that relates to something in your field—something your followers will be interested in. Pinterest is also a much better platform for posting pictures and links to your individual products. But don’t overdo it, and confine your product posting to one or two specific boards that people can choose to follow or not. And above all, make sure that in your description you say something fun, helpful and worthwhile, rather than simply, “Hey, buy our latest product!”
- Link back to your site. The point of social media marketing is ultimately to drive people back to your site. When you post your content on Pinterest, you have a perfect opportunity to do that. Use your pins to backlink to your site’s landing pages.
- Post things from other people. The great thing about Pinterest is that you don’t have to limit yourself to your own content. It’s a collection of things found around the web. So look for other relevant content from your industry that your followers will find interesting, and pin that too. Be careful of copyright issues, though. Always give them full credit, link back to their site, and when in doubt, ask to make sure you can post before you do. This isn’t about taking credit for other people’s ideas, but about selflessly providing your audience with something you think they’ll enjoy, while also improving your visibility and cementing your reputation in the process.
- Let your hair down. This goes hand in hand with posting other people’s content. It’s a chance to say, “I enjoyed this, and I think you will, too.” You can even (in moderation) post and repin things that aren’t directly related to your brand or your industry. A fun video, a beautiful photo, a cool-looking recipe… Establishing yourself as an authority in your field is important, but Pinterest is a casual, intimate community. Showing a little bit of who you are underneath the corporate brand is a great way to ingratiate yourself to your followers and connect with them.
- Reciprocate. Your own pinboards aren’t the only opportunity to make a splash on Pinterest. Other people may want to share your content as well. So make sure that you have a “Pin It” button on your products, pictures, blogs and all other important content on your website, so that anyone can pin it to their boards and increase your visibility.
Pinterest was designed to be the virtual equivalent of a bulletin board. People use it to post the content they like, but more importantly, to keep track of the content they don’t want to forget. So in promoting your brand on Pinterest, the question you need to ask is, is your brand something worth remembering?
