A picture is worth a thousand words—that’s the idea behind the social media platform Pinterest. The virtual pinboard isn’t just a beautiful online photo album; it has also made a name for itself in traditional communication.
But first, for those who don't know it yet: Pinterest, made up of the words "pin" and "interest", offers users a place to organize their visual finds from the web (including animated GIFs and videos as well as images) thematically and share them with others. The images can be shared, commented on and favorited in a similar way to Twitter.
In addition to ideas for craft projects, recipes or travel ideas, users from all over the world (mainly the "women" target group, which is otherwise underrepresented on the web) also like to share products such as new clothes, jewelry, furniture or decorative items - simply everything a woman's heart desires. As Pinterest is ideal for presenting products clearly, more and more companies are now using the platform and actively integrating it into their own marketing strategy. Design and fashion products in particular, but also tattoo inspiration or landscape images - simply anything that looks good in a photo is perfect for use on Pinterest. Thanks to the new "place pins" function, you can now even add your pins to an interactive map within your Pinterest account. This is a particularly interesting function for companies in the catering and hotel industry: the possibilities for positioning a brand have increased enormously with the new function.
The American supermarket chain "Whole Foods Market", for example, presents its products on various themed boards: from topics such as cooking, eating, gardening to healthy eating. The link to Whole Foods products is simple: the recipes, instructions and tips usually contain ingredients that are available from the organic supplier. Whole Foods Market is thus running a successful content marketing campaign and has already been able to inspire over 191,000 followers with this strategy.
The car manufacturer Mercedes presents not only every model series in the range on a total of 53 pinboards, but also insights into car shows, developments and design concepts. This appeals to car fans in particular, who associate the brand with positive emotions and impressions rather than purely with the products.
In addition to the international players, local companies such as chocolate manufacturer Lindt are also trying to break new ground. Lindt not only shows its own products on its Pinterest account, but also addresses other topics, such as various chocolate creations, with which interested fans and customers can create new combinations and try out recipes themselves. Added value that interests users beyond just chocolate.
What makes Pinterest particularly interesting? In my opinion, the digital pinboard reflects the trend towards more images on the internet, combined with increasing mobile internet usage. Companies can build up a focused community without big words, but with strong imagery, and at the same time keep their products in the conversation, which of course makes perfect sense from a marketing point of view. I'm curious to see when the first offline campaigns with Pinterest will be launched.
Manuel P. Nappo, Director of Studies CAS Social Media Management HWZ Hochschule für Wirtschaft Zürich.
www.fh-hwz.ch/smm
