Pinterest for Business?

You're about get some great Pinterest Business Tips. More than that, you're about to learn of some unique qualities of Pinterest. These qualities have created an amazing environment which supports and strengthens small businesses. They've made Pinterest the fastest growing global social network to date. How can a group of image collections help your business? You're about to understand how this works. If you truly grasp the power available to you, you'll want to gain a foothold in your niche... by using Pinterest and these 8 steps to begin!

Why Pinterest?

This is a fair question. It's one that needs to be asked in order to grasp a full appreciation of Pinterest. A recent study provided by 3M Corporation showed that humans process visuals 66% faster than text. Ever heard the term "eye candy?" Pinterest tempts us with eye candy. Beautiful visuals of a life we want. Pictures of glamorous, clever, humorous, or simple products or services to improve our life grabs us and sucks us in. The proof is in the stats.

The traffic flow from social media sites to online store fronts has changed just over the last year. In a study of a fashion website, researchers looked at where traffic came from. They looked at how much sales volume was generated from each site, as well. The analytics showed that the average amount of traffic generated from Facebook visitors to this website produced $85 in consumer spending. Care to take a guess at the average spending amounts from Pinterest users? It was $180!!

Prior to last year, Facebook was thought to be "the" site to promote your business. However, from 09/2011 until 02/2012, Pinterest number of unique users grew by 866%. People are attracted to more visual websites, like a moth to a flame. The more we understand about the way humans process information and how it effects spending habits, the more businesses will see the value in Pinterest. To think, Pinterest was the fastest growing site to ever break past 10 million users. Advertisers are beginning to take this site for "killing time" a bit more seriously.

What does a typical US Pinterest user look like? About 86% are women. That's enough to make entrepreneurs' pulses race. The one's who get REALLY excited already know women have input to how 85% of American dollars are spent. Also, somewhere between 70-75% of users have a college education. Generally, the greater one's education, the more stable the income, and higher amount of discretionary income available. Half of US Pinterest users had an annual income greater than $50k. More than half of Pinterest users have children. Most live in a Midwestern state. There. Most users of this site fit this woman. Now what?

Here's what you've been waiting to hear: 88% of users who pinned something on Pinterest purchased an item they pinned. Also, 49% of users purchased 5 or more products they pinned or repinned.

Obviously, "she" takes her pinning seriously. She doesn't just like what she sees. She BUYS what she likes. Retailers like The Gap saw the potential early on. The Gap takes beautiful pics of women wearing clothes and places them on their Pinterest Board. It strikes a cord with a viewer. She likes what she sees. She pins it. She moves over to The Gap website. She buys. Take a look at The Gap's Pinterest page and see how traffic is being driven toward HUGE profits.

Pinterest Business Tips: 8 Easy Steps to Dominating Your Niche on Pinterest

1.) Start a Pinterest Business Account. A business can have a virtual storefront. Images of hot, trending products will make people salivate. Pinterest has a way for businesses to even include the product price for the item pinned. It's not difficult to begin setting up your site.

2.) PLAN your layout. Your pages are called Boards. On each board are the pins/visuals. Think about how to organize your business on these boards. There's not much more frustrating than disorganization in a store, or a virtual storefront!

3.) Create a board and begin pinning. Pinterest has made it easier to move pins around from one board to another if you don't like the placement. (This takes away all reason for your boards being disorganized!)

4.) Share pins on Facebook and Twitter. Leverage your entire social network!

5.) Optimize your Pinterest site with SEO as you are able.

6.) Add a "pin it" button to your website.

7.) Use high quality pins. Do your research on photos which are more appealing. Wearable product sell better when displayed on a person rather than just on a surface. Use smiling models. Often, generic photos which don't include a face, however, allows the "buyer" to see herself with the product. Books have been written and updated on the psychology of sales. It's a worthy investment of time to research this.

8.) Use visual calls to action. If you're selling swimming pools, pin images of not only the installation process, but families enjoying the pool on a summer afternoon. You are NOT selling a container that holds water. You ARE selling family enjoyment, family bonding, and a social outlet that includes friends. Don't overlook the imagery that sells.

You're a Service Provider Rather Than Product Provider?

You're wondering, "How do I use Pinterest to sell a service?" Well, it works about the same way. This is the best Pinterest Business Tip to remember: It's all about driving traffic. Where? Back to "home base."

Here's a couple examples. Let's take a look at the Pinterest page of Denver's Rocky Mountain Vitality Massage. Massage is one of those things many enjoy but are also particular about. This is a thoughtful, simple Pinterest board. This Pinterest board was also chosen because every business has challenges to overcome. The legitimate spa and massage industry is no different. Through the proper use of visuals, these challenges can instead become advantages.

Here's the good about their page: It allows potential customers know what to expect. They demonstrate the storefront from the outside and the inside. It shows a clean place. The visuals supply a relaxing feeling.

As a business tool, though, they could do so much more. In fact, they are missing out on a bit of traffic. There's not a limit on the pins. Keeping it simple is a good strategy but, just a few more photos of the rooms would have brought reassurance to viewers. Some simple staging techniques to highlight the environment would have gone a long way. Showing a customer draped or semi-clothed while relaxing, awaiting a massage might have attracted more customers. It would draw people in who have varying comfort levels. Also, using a Pinterest Infographic sharing all the services they provide would have been helpful.

Traffic Generator: They might have even pinned a promotion or coupon to generate traffic. It might have been created to drive the traffic of their friends and friends' friends. For example, you can ask 6 friends do two things for you and your business: "1.) As your friends to "follow" you on Pinterest, 2.) then ask them to go to your webpage to get your monthly newsletter. When your friends do both of these steps, then you'll get a 1/2 off coupon for ...X!" You get the idea.

Finally, this Pinterest page is not optimized so Pinterest- AND Google-users can find their visuals. As a suggestion, at the very least, including a URL on each of your posts to encourage traffic back to your website.

Another example of a service: Pinterest Board. Keywords should be included on the board and on each pin. How else will a board or pins be found? Think about the words people will use to find you and include them in your pins. Include URL links in all of your pins. Have about 200 characters of text with each pin. That typically gains the most numbers of repins. Finally, T-A-L-L images are more likely to be repinned. That's about it.

There is so much to learn. It can be overwhelming. Is it worth wading through this social media site to find a way to use it? ABSOLUTELY! Remember, start small, with just one Board and a few pins. Soon, you'll wonder how your business survived without Pinterest!