Guillaume Delloue
Social Media Specialist
If you remotely follow social media (and we all do), you have probably heard of the new sensation that is Pinterest. In the month of January alone, the user-interest-driven website accounted for an astounding 3.6% of total referral traffic––that’s more than YouTube, Google+, Reddit, Linkedin, and Myspace combined, and only a fraction behind Twitter. It’s those types of usage numbers that are driving the chatter that Pinterest might be the next game changer. Here are three reasons to start pinning some of your brand awareness goals on this new social phenomenon.
1. If You Pin It, They Will Come
One of the hardest parts of digital marketing is understanding where your audience lives and getting your brand message out to them. However, Pinterest eschews that arduous task by placing you in front of users who would be naturally interested in your brand.
A Pinterest page consists of visual bulletin boards on which users “pin” images or videos, along with a short description. The boards can be named anything (e.g., “Vintage Photos”, “Nothing but Good”, “Everybody in Gap” etc.). The social media site has even created a convenient “Pin It” button that can be installed on any browser––when a user sees something they like, they simply click the button and the image/video is pinned to the appropriate board.
The process is the same for brands like you. If you curate compelling boards, users will notice an interesting “pin”, and then follow an entire list of similar, pinned photos; thus presenting them to your brand indirectly. Users are introduced to what you do and how you do it in an organic, non-evasive way, with no extra effort by you! Too impatient for users to stumble upon you? You can always add a Pinterest badge to your homepage or share your pins on other forms of social media. If only all advertising were this streamlined. (And did I mention addictive?)
2. People Sharing with People
Pinterest also has a prominent social feature that doesn’t rely on preconceived relationships for users to start sharing (part of their mission statement is to, “connect everyone in the world through the ‘things’ they find interesting.”) Generally speaking, Facebook users connect with one another before sharing content. Pinterest reverses that dynamic by making common interests drive relationships. If a user likes someone else’s pins, they can start “following” that profile or individual boards without ever actually knowing them. This makes for more genuine networking as users are connected through commonalities as opposed to people they have encountered in day-to-day life. The larger audience pool means your brand is more likely to be spread between two people, regardless of their relationship.
Pinterest also effectively hijacks Facebook’s dominion on “sharing” by making it convenient (and fun) to share large quantities of pictures. The splash page is a grandiose collage of images that takes up the entire screen. It’s fast, clean, and visually appealing, especially as users curate and customize the site.
3. It’s ‘Who You Are’, Not ‘What You Do’
When spreading your brand’s message, it’s integral that your audience get a sense of your culture and objectives, versus your products and price-points. Like other social media tools, brands ought to observe the 80/20 Rule and not barrage their pages with self-promotions. The Pinterest idea is to promote a lifestyle; one that encapsulates your brand’s personality. Some of today’s biggest brands have already taken advantage of this feature.
With boards like “Edible Celebration” or “Eat your Veggies” (pictured above), Whole Foods Market promotes a lifestyle that’s both health-conscious and artistic, highlighting food culture’s aesthetic appeal. The Travel Channel is another winner, featuring images of idyllic beaches from the farthest reaches of the globe, exotic animals, or neon-lit urban landscapes. By providing its followers with a window to the most incredible places and sights on the planet, it effectively carries over the sense of adventure and wonder form their television shows, minus the commercials.
Pinterest provides a dynamic visual space through which brands can communicate to their fans. It can be used to not only keep loyalists engaged but also as a way to recruit new followers.
The key is to define your brand’s lifestyle and post images/videos that creatively mirror it. An important statistic to keep in mind: at the time of this writing, a study by Google Ad planner revealed that women make up 80% of visitors on Pinterest. That ratio will most likely change in the future, but at the moment, brands that appeal to female demographics will definitely benefit the most. Mommy bloggers in particular have shown tremendous enthusiasm. If your brand appeals to them, you’d be wise to join. For all the others, at least spend some time getting acquainted with its features. 2012 may just be The Year of Pinterest.