The Power of Pinterest for Small Business

Written by Guest Blogger Katie Woods

By now you’ve heard of Pinterest, even if you’re not quite sure what it is. Well, listen up! Pinterest is not only here to stay, it has become a top five social media site in less than five years of existence. More important than that, the value of Pinterest for small businesses is quickly and consistently outweighing results from others in that top five category (yes, you, Facebook).

First things first. What is Pinterest?

Pinterest is a social tool that allows users to discover, collect, and share ideas for their lives – hobbies, projects, events, recipes, trips, articles, interests – by collections called boards and bookmarks called pins.

Get it? Pin + Interest = Pinterest

As an avid pinner, I can attest to the fact that Pinterest is an amazingly addictive site. It is my personal source for sparking creative ideas, and it influences many (okay, most) of my purchases. The good news for your business is, it’s not just me. There are millions of others just like me waiting for your business’s product to be their next pin (and in many cases, purchase).

Don’t believe me?

In a 2013 Consumer Sharing Trends report, Pinterest proved to be the surprising underdog of 2013 as it is steadily outgrew email and nearly eclipsed Facebook and Twitter, becoming the third most used social sharing tool after a 58% sharing growth rate for the year.

But, how does that affect your business?

In an article by Social Media Today, some surprising statistics suggest Pinterest may just be the most worthwhile social media channel for businesses activity. For example:

• • Conversion rates for Pinterest are 50% higher than other social media, meaning Pinterest drives more traffic to your website for purchases.
• • Pinterest generates 4x more revenue per click than Twitter and 27% more revenue per click than Facebook.
• • 47% of U.S. online consumers have made a purchase based on recommendations from Pinterest.

Still not convinced?

Since its launch in 2010, Pinterest has surpassed 70 million users, outshining Google+, LinkedIn, and YouTube… COMBINED. This statistic alone makes it a viable way for almost any small business to boost SEO, which in many cases, results in more sales.

Even locally, small businesses and organizations are discovering ways to leverage Pinterest’s muscle. With the help of Pinterest, Habitat ReStore in Decatur doubled their sales, adding it to the growing list of Pinterest’s small business success stories. Habitat for Humanity of Morgan County Resource Development Director Landis Griffin correctly stated in her 2012 guest post, Power of the Pin, “If you thought Pinterest was just for crafters and moms, then think again. Pinterest has become the new way for companies to grow their business at no additional cost.”

Yep, pinning is winning. Now that I have your attention, stay tuned for my next blog post which will cover tips for harnessing the power of Pinterest for your business. Same Sage time, same Sage channel.