Social Media 101: Pinterest

Pinterest launched in 2012 and in its young life has surpassed 10 million users — faster than any other social media platform. Since its launch, its audience has been predominantly female, but it is steadily attracting the male market. About 30 percent of Pinterest users are men.

No matter the gender, the fact is these users are looking to buy and research products. According to a report from Experian Marketing Services, social media sites accounted for 7.72 percent of traffic to e-commerce sites. Last year, Pinterest drove the most traffic to websites at 10.9 percent compared to Facebook, which directed 5.3 percent of its traffic to the website, while YouTube followed at 3.8 percent and Twitter was at 2.8 percent. The fact that Pinterest users are so product/service focused is a significant reason why your dealership should integrate this media into your marketing efforts.

It is no surprise that Pinterest inspires consumers. The point of this media is to share, collect and create visually appetizing content, which you can easily organize and categorize in your account. You can either upload your own content and pin it or search for content and pin it. Pinning is basically anchoring down images to the boards you have created. An unlimited number of boards can be created and located in your account. Via your boards, you can collect and categorize all the pins you create and find. For example, you want to pin a picture of a motorcycle so this graphic saves forever in your account. In order to pin it and easily find it in the future, you might add this graphic to the board you labeled “motorcycles.”

To effectively use Pinterest for the dealership you must build, pin and connect.

BUILD

Build a Pinterest business account with your dealership’s brand and brand standards in mind. In the “About You” section, you have 200 characters to sum up your dealership. This is keyword friendly, so add SEO content that search engines can use. Add a picture of your dealership’s logo for the profile. And add links to your website and other social media platforms.

Build an account with boards that properly classify your products, services, interests and causes. It is a good idea to create pins that advertise your products and services. However, this is not an inventory listing tool. Pinterest is about building a rapport with your target demographic. You should create boards that center around your target demographics’ interests like bike rides, charities, chapters and OEM brand loyalty/pride.

PIN

Understanding and appealing to the dealership’s target demographic applies to what pins you create and what images you pin. When you create your pins — The suggested size of a pin is 800×1200 pixels. Pins should incorporate dominant colors, focus on objects rather than people and include SEO content. The pin should have a name, title and description, which should include content-related hashtags and keywords. Last, add your logo, website, or tagline to the image if possible. This will increase your brand’s image and integrity. When you repin — click to see the source of that image. You want to verify the graphic is hosted by a reputable website and determine if the website’s content is compatible with your dealership’s interests.

Furthermore, the frequency of pinning and repinning is vital. Do not allow an extended period of time between pinning, nor should you “pin dump” all over your account. It is easy to fall into a pinning binge because of all the new graphics available for you to create and/or repin.

CONNECT

Focus your time and energy on engaging, organizing and following your audience. You can categorize your followers and take time to follow their pinning activities. Once you learn more about your desired followers, message them with a pin you think they will appreciate. Send over content that will ask them to do something like check out another board or an event your dealership is hosting. A call-to-action should be fun and informative. An infographic could be ideal for these messages because you can include text on the image like a banner. Pinning and repinning is fast and easy, but creating a dialogue between the dealership and followers with visual content will generate better results.

Pinterest is a creative way to promote items and services while engaging with consumers online. You are set-up to sell and the audience is interested in buying. However, that does not mean you can push advertisements. Your primary goal for social media like Pinterest is creating rapport and engagement to attract your desired online community.

This is part of a Social Media 101 series by Amanda White of PowerSports Network. To read other blogs in the series, click here.

Amanda White is an account manager for PowerSports Network.

Website: psnsales.com