If you have been on the fence about jumping into the Pinterest game, now could be the time. The social media site has officially welcomed businesses into their community, with terms of service and business pages/accounts. While a number of companies had already incorporated Pinterest into their marketing, commercial use had been prohibited. The new TOS instructs those who are operating a Pinterest page for their business to migrate over to a business account: “If your boss is making you use Pinterest, you need to set up a business account.”
This news times perfectly with the heavy focus that yesterday’s PW Women’s Leadership Conference had on social media, including a session on Using Pinterest for Business (view the video). Presented by Rebecca Vaughan-King of Imagine Design, it broke down what the site does, determining if it is right for your business and how to get started.
First, the basics. For those who don’t know, at its most basic, Pinterest is an online pin board. Users create boards with different themes such as “Dream House” or “Fashion” or “Logos.” They then pin images into these boards, either from other websites, uploading their own photos or “repinning” items already on Pinterest. The photos link back to the source page, so that if you were to pin an image from your website or blog, this is where users would be taken back to if they click on the image.
How do you know if your company should invest time in Pinterest? Vaughan-King explained that if you are selling to women ages 25-54, with income ranges of $25k-$100k, your market is on Pinterest, and you need to be there engaging them. So maybe a large defense contractor would decide to skip it, but it should pretty much be a requirement for say, wedding planning or interior designers. Especially since it is such a visual medium.
In addition to the video (please look past the camerawork to the great insights!), take a look at Vaughan-King’s PPT, which outlines solid information for any business considering taking the Pinterest plunge. If nothing else, now is a good time to stake your claim, registering under your business name so that if you decide to start a page later on, your name will be waiting for you. Read the Business Terms of Service to get started.
