Pinterest for beginners

A few months ago we decided to give Pinterest (www.pinterest) a try—and now we’re hooked! It’s a lot of fun, and kind of addicting. In case you haven’t heard about its meteoric rise, Pinterest is now the third largest social network. We’ve seen a few of you on it (and we’re now following your pins), but if you haven’t heard of it or aren’t sure how it works, here’s a quick breakdown.

“Pinterest is lets you organize and share all the beautiful things you find on the web.”

What is Pinterest
Pinterest is a pinboard-style social photo sharing website (http://bit.ly/KcFl7n). You can upload content (create a pin), but most people link to content found on other websites (pin).

Why are Marketers Talking About it
Pinning photos from websites drives traffic to those websites when someone clicks on the image. According to some reports, Pinterest is driving more traffic to sites than Facebook or Twitter.

The Pinterest Vernacular
Pin + Interest = Pinterest. Don’t know the lingo? Here’s an overview.

Pin: A pin is an image, either one you’ve uploaded or something you’ve linked from another website.

Board: This is how you organize your pins. You can pin without creating boards, but it’s a better idea to create boards with themes and categorize them. This will make your pins more searchable and increase the likelihood that your pins will be repinned.

Repin: This is a social network, so you’ll be able to see other people’s pins. If you see something you like, repin it.

Like: Sometimes you’ll see something you like that doesn’t quite fit on one of your current boards. If that’s the case, you can “Like” it instead. You can see all of your likes together and repin them to boards in the future.

Follow: Just as with other social networks, you can follow people, companies, etc. The twist here is that you can just follow a board or you can choose to follow all of their pins.

How it Works
Create an account by linking it to your company Facebook page or Twitter account. From there, you can start pinning immediately, but it’s a good idea to first set up some boards to help organize your pins. When creating boards, think about your business, customers, menu, offerings, and the types of events you book. As the name suggests, you should pin things you are interested in, but you should also consider what your audience is interested in (after all, you want likes, repins, and follows). Catersource recently posted a blog (http://bit.ly/KvZz5b ) with tips for selecting what to pin.

What’s the Point
Aside from being a lot of fun, you may wonder what’s in it for your business (http://bit.ly/Kr163t). Pinterest is so new, it’s hard to say definitively what the value is for businesses, but it’s clear the potential is huge. The jury is still out on how useful it is for B:B marketing. While direct leads seem unlikely, building brand awareness is definitely a possibility. However, there is a lot of potential for B:C marketing. It all comes back to the amount of traffic Pinterest is driving to other websites. For example, if a caterer creates boards with pins of menu items, displays, etc and those pins link to their ordering site they can increase traffic to their site and perhaps get a few orders out of it. Basically, you can create a virtual showroom for customers, prospects, and the general public. You can also look at what your competitors are doing and get ideas.

Check out our boards
Whether you’re looking for ideas for your Pinterest boards or ideas for spicing up your menu, take a look at our Pinterest page (http://bit.ly/JtQDi7).


Pinterest for beginners A few months ago we decided to give Pinterest (www.pinterest) a try—and now we’re hooked! It’s a lot of fun, and kind of addicting. In case you haven’t heard about its meteoric rise, Pinterest is now the third largest social network. We’ve seen a few of you on it (and we’re now following your pins), but if you haven’t heard of it or aren’t sure how it works, here’s a quick breakdown. “Pinterest is lets you organize and share all the beautiful things you find on the web.” What is Pinterest Pinterest is a pinboard-style social photo sharing website (http://bit.ly/KcFl7n). You can upload content (create a pin), but most people link to content found on other websites (pin). Why are Marketers Talking About it Pinning photos from websites drives traffic to those websites when someone clicks on the image. According to some reports, Pinterest is driving more traffic to sites than Facebook or Twitter. The Pinterest Vernacular Pin + Interest = Pinterest. Don’t know the lingo? Here’s an overview. Pin: A pin is an image, either one you’ve uploaded or something you’ve linked from another website. Board: This is how you organize your pins. You can pin without creating boards, but it’s a better idea to create boards with themes and categorize them. This will make your pins more searchable and increase the likelihood that your pins will be repinned. Repin: This is a social network, so you’ll be able to see other people’s pins. If you see something you like, repin it. Like: Sometimes you’ll see something you like that doesn’t quite fit on one of your current boards. If that’s the case, you can “Like” it instead. You can see all of your likes together and repin them to boards in the future. Follow: Just as with other social networks, you can follow people, companies, etc. The twist here is that you can just follow a board or you can choose to follow all of their pins. How it Works Create an account by linking it to your company Facebook page or Twitter account. From there, you can start pinning immediately, but it’s a good idea to first set up some boards to help organize your pins. When creating boards, think about your business, customers, menu, offerings, and the types of events you book. As the name suggests, you should pin things you are interested in, but you should also consider what your audience is interested in (after all, you want likes, repins, and follows). Catersource recently posted a blog (http://bit.ly/KvZz5b ) with tips for selecting what to pin. What’s the Point Aside from being a lot of fun, you may wonder what’s in it for your business (http://bit.ly/Kr163t). Pinterest is so new, it’s hard to say definitively what the value is for businesses, but it’s clear the potential is huge. The jury is still out on how useful it is for B:B marketing. While direct leads seem unlikely, building brand awareness is definitely a possibility. However, there is a lot of potential for B:C marketing. It all comes back to the amount of traffic Pinterest is driving to other websites. For example, if a caterer creates boards with pins of menu items, displays, etc and those pins link to their ordering site they can increase traffic to their site and perhaps get a few orders out of it. Basically, you can create a virtual showroom for customers, prospects, and the general public. You can also look at what your competitors are doing and get ideas. Check out our boards Whether you’re looking for ideas for your Pinterest boards or ideas for spicing up your menu, take a look at our Pinterest page (http://bit.ly/JtQDi7).