Pinterest is certainly one of the most time consuming social networks. I know I totally get lost looking up DIY projects and creating boards of mini decor for my fictional house. Pinterest was a big hit during the recession, as one may not have been able to afford the house of their dreams but they sure could have it all on Pinterest. Maybe after the economy started to turn around people started buying all their dream items stored away on their Pinterest?

That’s one of many benefits for brands on Pinterest: linking pins to the product pages for items, which drives traffic to websites. I know in my personal use of pinterest for brands in the workplace I’ve seen clients garner as much as 55% of their web traffic directly from Pinterest. It’s actually crazy when you think about it that such a silly thing as a fictional wedding board someone creates could be what gets a bride to hire your company to plan that wedding.

Another benefit for brands are hashtags or descriptions under pins on Pinterest. Those keywords can help your items show up in searches. I know I’ve started going to straight to pinterest especially to look for cute gift ideas or decorating ideas. If I have a particular color scheme or person I am shopping for it’s very easy to search and find relevant pins.

Speaking of shopping, Pinterest now has a great tool for e-commerce sites called “price drop.” Now when you pin something, perhaps a lamp you fancied but didn’t actually buy because it was a little pricey, Pinterest will alert you when it is actually in your budget. You’ll get a conveient email sent to your inbox telling you that it’s now on sale. In a product-based company this gives you a fantastic advantage because it drives customers to your site multiple times and gives them a call to action to purchase products.

As a brand your Pinterest page gives you a way to take customers inside your company. Personalizing boards with creative names and photos you can help give customers a better idea of the inspiration behind your brand. And then when they pin one of your products or images it typically stays on their board for eternity, so your brand repeatedly gets free marketing.  Additionally all their followers see that pin as well, so that’s more impressions for you.

Happy Pinning 🙂