Beyond Wedding Planning and Recipes:

for Organizations

Social Media Alliance of ChattanoogaAdrienne Royer

February 23, 2012

Pinterest Basics

• Pinterest is a digital bookmarking network designed to "connect everyone in the world through the 'things' they find interesting.“

• Started in 2008

• Launched in 2010

• Valued at $200 million by Andreessen Horowitz in October 2011.

• Secured $37 million in venture capital in 2011

• Employs 16 people, including founders Ben Silbermann & Evan Sharp

Pinterest Stats•10.4 million members• 9 million are connected to Facebook• 11.7 million unique visits in Jan. 2012 compared to 1.2 million in Sept.• Fastest site in history to break the 10 million unique visits mark• Growth has been organic and largely ignored by Silicon Valley and the media until the past two months

Pinterest vs. Facebook

• 1.5 million visits a day• Average user spends 14+ minutes a day

• 500 million visits a day• Average user spends 23 minutes a day

Pinterest DemographicsDriven by women

Key users are 25-54

Source: Ignite Social Media

Pinterest DemographicsUsers are educated

Users are middle class

Source: Ignite Social Media

Pinterest Geography

Source: Ignite Social Media

Why Are Women Important?

• 9 out of 10 women are the primary shopper for their family

• Women buy or influence 85% of all consumer purchases

• American women spend about $5 trillion annually, which is more than half of the U.S. GDP

• 22% shop online at least once a day

• 92% pass along information about deals or finds to others

• 171: average number of contacts in their e-mail or mobile lists

• 78% want to be part of a special or select panel

• 58% would toss a TV if they had to get rid of one digital device (only 11% would ditch their laptops)

• 51% are moms

Source: She-Economy.com

What Do Women Think?

• 59% of women feel misunderstood by food marketers• 66% feel misunderstood by health care marketers• 74% feel misunderstood by automotive marketers• 84% feel misunderstood by investment marketers•91% of women in one survey said that advertisers don’t understand them•70% of new businesses are started by women

Source: She-Economy.com

Why is Pinterest Successful?“Pinterest is how a woman’s brain operates.”-Valerie Royer

Pinterest is the hottest new social-networking tool. And it’s digital crack for women.”-Petula Dvorak, Washington Post

Why is Pinterest Successful?

• Pinterest breaks down the silos of creative, lifestyle and mommyblogs• Allows research to be informative, social and FUN!• Saves & bookmarks “I might need that one day” information in a visually appealing and simplistic order

Design Balanced with Function• Masonry style allows images to be different sizes, yet balanced and visually appealing• Background images are muted and peaceful colors are used• Infinite scrolling• Create unlimited number of themed boards• Switch between pin & board views• Social aspect allows you to follow friends, re-pin (based on re-tweet) and comment• Roll out and beta phases were slow• Built a core group of fans with creative thought and industry leaders

Design Balanced with Function

Design Balanced with Function

Design Balanced with Function

Benefits of Pinterest

1. Drives more referral traffic than Google Plus, LinkedIn & Youtube combined

Benefits of Pinterest2. Increased sales

Ideeli reported a 446% increase in traffic from Pinterest & sales resulting from visits have increased by a factor of five.

"We continue the Pinterest conversation with [the] members by following their pins, and we love to give feedback outside of the shopping category -- whether that means commenting on a great recipe or [giving] a heart next to our favorite pet pics. We also see Pinterest as a growing resource to better understand our members and the larger retail landscape.”

-Sarah Conley, social media manager for Ideeli to Entrepreneur

Benefits of Pinterest3. Improves SEO

• Linking account to Facebook & keeps activity going that is indexed by Google• Pin descriptions use keywords and hashtags• Adding “pin it” buttons to sites, connects the two & encourages visitors to capture links to your site• Pinterest information in Google Analytics is more descriptive

Who is on Pinterest?Top 10 Brands According to Mashable1. Perfect Palette

244,163 Followers 113 Boards 6,925 Pins2. Real Simple

34,995 Followers 50 Boards 1,795 Pins3. The Beauty Department

29,706 Followers 24 Boards 255 Pins

4. HGTV18,122 Followers 16 Boards 539 Pins

5. Apartment Therapy17,066 Followers 3 Boards 266 Pins

6. Kate Spade New York16,847 Followers 9 Boards 1,526 Pins

7. Better Homes and Gardens15,859 Followers 59 Boards 1,111 Pins

8. Whole Foods15,650 Followers 23 Boards 678 Pins

9. West Elm11,828 Followers 31 Boards 1,064 Pins

10. Mashable11,546 Followers 13 Boards 264 Pins

How to Use Pinterest?1. Understand the Environment!

• Pinterest is not about sales or marketing

• Pinterest is about information, aspiration and inspirations

**Always use a social network or tool for 2-3 months in your personal life before adding it to your professional communications mix.

How to Use Pinterest?2. Pin Regularly• Unlike Facebook and Twitter, it’s acceptable to pin in bursts throughout the day. *Be careful if your Twitter and Facebook accounts are linked to your feeds.

• Try to pin at least once a day to keep your boards fresh.• Always link back to the original source of a pin

for attribution.• Always click through the link before re-pinning

to make sure the link is correct and works.

How to Use Pinterest?2. Use Smart SEO• Always use descriptive content for each pin. • 500 character limit

• Like Twitter, you can use hashtags to emphasize keywords

• Connect with other pinners by using the @username like Twitter

• Adding the $ to pins, automatically categorizes them as gifts

• Make sure to add a description and category to each of your boards

• Be mindful of links. Make sure pin goes back to a webpage and not just a graphic

• If you have Flash on your website, make sure you have some graphics. Can pin videos and graphics but not pins

How to Use Pinterest?3. Build Relationships• Pinterest is a 2-way communications method

•Follow people back! Following is voluntary. Your followers are brand ambassadors.

•Re-pin and like other people and brand’s pins. Don’t pin in a vacuum.

• Comment on other pins

• Track who is re-pinning you and follow back!

• Make your pins sound like a real person wrote them. Don’t wrote in Press Release!

• Use other networks to build followers from Facebook, Twitter and email

• Add “pin this” and “Follow us on Pinterest” buttons to your site

How to Use Pinterest?4. Use Personality• Authenticity is key. You need to be genuine and develop a voice for your brand.

• Don’t “sell” stuff. Drive relationships and traffic through information and visual elements that identify your organizations.

•Have fun!

•Not everything is about the bottom line. Social media won’t drive sales but it can assist them.

•Pin things that aren’t necessarily attached to your brand or organizations but relate to your identity.

Interesting Pinners• Hobby Lobby• Chattanooga Times-Free Press• Whole Foods• ETSY• Marth Stewart• Nordstrom• Nieman Marcus• Amnesty International• Samaritan’s Purse• Make-A-Wish Foundation• Heritage Foundation• Ann Romney

Further ReadingPinterest Designhttp://designshack.net/articles/business-articles/addictive-ux-why-pinterest-is-so-dang-amazing/

Pinterest Demographicshttp://www.ignitesocialmedia.com/social-networks/pinterest-demographic-data/

How Brands Can Use Pinteresthttp://www.location3.com/how-brands-can-use-pinterest/

Problems with Pinterest for Brandshttp://techcrunch.com/2012/01/29/7-reasons-why-pinterest-isnt-yet-ready-for-tech-brands/

What Pinterest needs to addhttp://theblogfrog.com/1020999/forum/148432/10-things-we-wish-pinterest-could-do.html

Beyond Wedding Planning and Recipes:

for Organizations

Questions?

Contact me at aroyer@gmail.com or @AdrienneRoyer

Follow me on Pinterest! www.pinterest.com/AdrienneRoyer