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SEARCHLinkup Marketing's Valorie Reavis helps salons and spas get their Pinterest boards holiday-ready.
Valorie Reavis, social media marketing specialist and founder of LinkUp Marketing
The holidays are almost upon us and the panic is starting. What presents should I get for Grandma? What would Mum love this year? How can I say thank you to my babysitter? The kindest thing you can do is give those last-minute shoppers some inspiration and the easiest way to do that is to get active on Pinterest. In early November, the social networking phenomenon reported a 25 per cent hike in boards relating to gifts and wishlists. Can you imagine how many there are now?
Pinterest has become the way to window-shop online, anytime, anywhere. And those businesses that have embraced it are getting the festive vibe. But it’s never too late to jump on the bandwagon and get your Pinterest presence dusted off and ready for Santa. Here’s some hot-off-the-press advice on how to pin profitably.
Word-rich pins: Most pinners find products through Pinterest searches, and the way to be found is to make sure each of your pins and all your boards have word-rich descriptions. Party hair, seasonal colors, holiday styles; if you can name it, make sure you say so in the pin.
Info-rich pins: Details such as price, availability and where to buy enrich your pins and make them easier to find. But that’s not all. If someone pins your product, that person will receive notifications if the details change. Companies are finding that little bit of extra notice is often all that’s needed to inspire purchase. Click here to see how Pinterest explains technical know-how.
Web-tastic pinning: Pinterest has just added a hover pin-it button, which has got retailers whooping for joy – and why shouldn’t beauty salons join in the fun? Check with your web designer to make sure all those pictures of your lovely retail baskets and gifts, which you uploaded to your website blog, are hover pin-it ready. Then, when a visitor is browsing your site and the pin-it button hovers enticingly over your pictures it will be too irresistible not to pin. Don’t forget to add that catchy word-rich description to each picture.
Creative pinning: Give a bit more thought to your own pinboards and look for ways to make them stand out. Think up fun campaigns that will attract attention and get pinners coming back for more. For instance, you could set up a board featuring a different holiday offer or gift idea for each day in the run-up to the fun, with lots of fabulous pictures to illustrate it up on your gift board.
And while you are at it: Make sure you add pin-it buttons next to your products in your email campaigns, making it easy for your target audience to pin an interesting idea for later. According to Pinterest, Sony has done exactly that, and succeeded in generating 3,000 pins from just one email!
Go overboard: Consider organizing your boards into different gift categories to capitalize on those hard-to-buy-for groups. You know I mean…ahem, guys! Think about what services and retail gifts you can offer for men and pin them together on a board. Do the same for cuddly grandmas and image-obsessed teenage nieces.
Create original content: It’s not too difficult to create pins that will generate activity around your brand. Think outside the box. Pins do not need to be single images. You can put together montages of step-by-step party hair, giving pinners ideas on how to do their hair. Watermark them and the sit back as your work (and brand name) are seen by thousands around the world.
Valorie Reavis is part of Linkup Marketing, an online and social media marketing specialist focusing on search engine marketing, salon email marketing programs and social media marketing for salons and spas. If you have any queries for the Linkup team check out the website www.linkupmarketing.com, email info@linkupmarketing.com, find them on facebook.com/linkupmarketing or follow them on Twitter @linkupmarketing.
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