5 Unique Pinterest for Small Business Ideas

So you own a small business, and decide it’s time to delve into the ever-changing Pinterest landscape. But building a Pinterest for small business isn’t easy. So you read a few tips online, an FAQ here, a helpful blog there… Eventually you get a pretty good handle on the basics. You know that Pinterest isn’t the same as Facebook or Twitter. It’s a different platform, with its own unique strengths and challenges. You have your boards set up, and a pretty good amount of followers. Amy loves your company culture board, while Joey just can’t stop pinning your content. Life is good. But you want more.

At this point, everyone knows the Pinterest basics.You want to do something different, something to set yourself apart from the competition. It’s time to get unique. Following are 5 Pinterest tips that you might not have heard before. Every organization is different, of course, so the actual application of these tips is going to be different for everyone. Take our tips, put a personal spin on ‘em, and do something truly Pinterrific.

Pinterest IRL

1. First off, don’t think of Pinterest as something that only takes place on the web. It’s a living platform. Something people use and talk about throughout the day. So why not consider real life applications of the platform?  If you create your own custom clothing designs, perhaps you can provide iPads so that potential customers can sift through your Pinterest account . Have them check out boards chock full of clothing ideas, from both your own location and your competitors. Maybe even provide a few celebrity pics. Even if you don’t make your own clothes, Pinterest can provide outfit combination ideas. The same concept applies to hairstylists as well. Make a board for kids cuts, one for men, and another for women. Reserve one board for satisfied clients and their oh-so fashionable cuts.

Creative Content

2. Here at Tailwind, we love to remind users to make boards in association with what your followers want to see. This is especially important with Pinterest for small business, where close customer relationships are everything. The obvious way to do this is to look at what your followers have liked in the past, on both Pinterest and other social media platforms. Maybe take another look at those surveys you sent out a while ago. But making boards that your fans will love doesn’t necessarily require choosing a topic you already know they love. Think outside the box, and come up with special boards that appeal to combined follower interests or something new you know they’ll appreciate. Think of it as introducing a new product to the marketplace. Although you can rely on past success of a hot product when developing a new one, you can also combine other beloved products or make something completely new. Fashion boutiques can wow with smartly dressed kitten memes, while a jewelry store could invoke fuzzy feelings with pictures of heart shapes in every day life. (see Drew Barrymore’s book for some truly incredible pics).

Recipes for Success

3. This one’s short, but still a biggie. Make a board for recipes. Even if your business is only loosely related to food, fill that board up with scrumptious souffles and tasty tarts. Pinterest is a hit with aspiring chefs, and there’s no reason you shouldn’t get a piece of that pie. Come up with creative ways to link your product and your favorite tasty tidbits. A tire store could focus on circle shaped foods, an aquarium could opt for delicacies of an aqua hue.. The possibilities really are endless.

Memories Matter

4. As we’ve said before, Pinterest is mostly aspirational in nature. But even though Pinterest for small business is frequently about who users want to be, quite a bit of it also about remembering who you are. Take a look at a few of your friends’ pages. Odds are that more than a few of them devote boards to chronicling their own lives. So there’s no reason that your company can’t do the same thing. Designate one board as a sort of timeline, choosing a few pics to represent big events in your company’s history. A few boards for your company values and culture couldn’t hurt either.

Let’s Get Social

5. For this last one, let’s do something to help out your resident social media specialist. Don’t leave all your Pinterest business up to one person. Social media is social, so be social about it! Get everyone together, from CEO to cleaning staff, and come up with some great stuff. Everyone probably has their own idea of what the company means to them. These ideas might be similar, but they’re bound to differ in a few key areas. You don’t have to be directly involved with the platform, or really even understand what Pinterest for small business is, to come up with something useful.  Your social media superhero can take these incredible ideas and make practical applications out of ‘em. Win win, right?

Have any tips of your own to share? Let us know in the comments!