have you caught the pinterest bug yet? it’s addictive and perhaps the most useful website i use on a regular basis. although i created a pinterest account when it first came out before it was that well known, i recognized the site’s potential and was excited to make the most of what the site has to offer. don’t feel like you need a big fan base or company in order to create a well-curated pinterest account - anyone can make one.
general tips:
1. pin, and pin often: just like a great blog, a well-curated pinterest provides its followers with frequent pins every week. by generating a reliable stream of content for your followers, you can become a reliable source for new, interesting content.
2. be organized: the perfectionist in me loves pinterest because i have the freedom to create any type of board i want, delete, add and re-arrange according to my preferences. think of your boards as folders that can be as detailed and specific as you like. for instance, i used to have a board dedicated to fashion looks i liked. i soon realized that i personally prefer to view fashion looks according to season, hence a “fall and winter fashion” board and “spring and summer fashion” board. you could create a board for accessories or you could take it even further, and create separate boards for shoes, jewelry, scarves, etc. just be consistent!
3. too many/too little: think carefully about how many boards you create. if you don’t have enough and pack all your content into one or two boards, it can be overwhelming for the viewer. contrastingly, too many boards can be overwhelming as well. general rule of thumb: i avoid creating a new board unless i really feel the pin doesn’t fit into any of my current boards and i know that i will be able to fill this new board with similar pins over time. if i create a new board and realize i am rarely if ever contributing to it and it doesn’t have a lot of pins within it, i usually delete it.
4. what’s your style?: since pinterest is an aesthetically-driven site, think about what message you’re sending to others. well-curated boards have a “look” or “feel” to them. if you’re a minimalist at heart, your pins should reflect that. if you love preppy looks, followers with similar taste will associate your pinterest with preppy pins. again, think about successful bloggers: they are consistent in their style and the lifestyle or look they are promoting. do the same with your pinterest.
5. be selective with your pins, too: by understanding your aesthetic predilections, you should be able to pin with confidence. don’t pin everything you find! to give you an idea, i must be subscribed to at least 300+ blogs on my google reader and scroll through thousands of images daily, but i may only pin 3 or 4 things that really catch my eye. be selective: only pin things that you can’t stop thinking about and are certain you would refer to these images in the future.
6. provide information: i generally avoid captions with my pins - i like the look of a clean board just filled with images without distracting comments. that being said, i make it a point to caption anything that falls in my “wishlist” categories. if i post a pair of shoes from a store that i want to buy, i include the name of the shoes, brand, etc as well as price. this is important. i notice a lot of pinterest boards don’t utilize the price feature as much as they should. when i come across a product i may want to buy, my initial question is always: well, how much is it? why not make the extra effort and provide this information?
tricks:
1. if you don’t like to have the price featured in your caption but would like the pin to be flagged with the price, type out the price in the caption bar and post your pin. after a few seconds, you can edit your pin and delete it from the caption. it will remain flagged.
2. under your account settings, you can link other accounts/info: twitter, facebook, blog, etc. if you want to promote these things, make sure to add them!
3. if you don’t want your pinterest to show up in search engines like google, you can simple check the box in your settings that disables this feature.
4. use your links to watch items: on ebay, you can add an item to your “watch list” to monitor bids and the price of the item. you can do the same on pinterest. i do this all the time for my wishlist boards: if there’s an item i really want, but am waiting for it to go on sale, i just pin it and keep an eye on it. every week or so, i click on the link which takes me directly to the shop and i can see if the price has gone down, if it’s sold out, etc. it’s how i figured out that theory sweater was on sale yesterday! i’ve gotten a lot of things on sale this way.
5. cultivate your own taste: “good taste” is such a subjective thing, but usually those who exhibit it are aware of their likes and dislikes. the more you expose yourself to something, the more you’ll understand what you like. pinterest has made my shopping life so much easier for a multitude of reasons. when i go shopping, i think about what fashion looks i’ve repinned and why: if i keep re-pinning black blazers all week, it’s usually an indication that i’m lusting after one and should focus on purchasing one instead of buying an unnecessary pair of shoes or something i don’t need. furthermore, it’s helped me realize what my personal style is: i love clean, simple classic looks so i am more aware of my shopping habits and if a particular item fits into this look. i’ve also learned a lot about my personal aesthetic tastes that i didn’t necessarily realize before pinterest: i love white interiors, have a huge thing for celine bags, and can’t get enough of the no-makeup-makeup trend. trust me, the more you pin, the more you’ll learn about yourself and your own tastes!
hope these help! happy pinning :)
