Very Pinteresting

by Jill J. Burns, Early Bird Designs

Pinterest is my favorite social media platform. I suppose it’s not surprising that as an artist, I would be most interested in a site that is mainly images. As many of you know, Pinterest is a 

virtual bulletin board where you can collect and organize images by creating boards and pinning content for different topics that appeal to you. Now lots (over 17 million) of people use Pinterest for all kinds of reasons – perfect for collecting ideas for that bathroom remodel or planning Grampa’s 80th birthday. You can make that one a community board and family can pin their finds. But for me, and other artists/makers, it is great resource for inspiration, source

images for new work, and keeping current with trends. Having a tidy place for my curated images is super sweet. I still cut out images I find here and there and paste them into my sketchbook.  

Sometime old school still works too.  Boston Handmade has an eclectic group of boards with something for everyone. If you follow the boards any new content will come up on your homepage.

Pinterest as a marketing tool

Did I mention that lots of people use Pinterest? Well businesses have figured out it can be a powerful marketing tool. Artists and makers should get it on that action too. Since many folks 

make boards for projects they are planning, -- weddings, parties, wishlists and gift giving ideas – your
work could end up on someone board, which then gets repined, liked and spread through the virtual world like a wild fire. Pinterest has added a new feature so you can enrich your pins and have images linked to their original source. It makes things convenient for viewers to go directly to your Etsy or website. 

Here is some more info on using Pinterest to its fullest marketing potential from Copyblogger and ArtBizblog.

Pinterest the largest rabbit hole of them all?  

Now we all know that social media turns procrastination into an art form. Since Pinterest is a feast for the eyes, hours can drift by looking at one compelling image that leads to the next, and the next. Not gonna lie, Pinterest is pretty seductive that way. So darn visually mesmerizing. So watch out!