With over 70 million users, Pinterest has become one of the most powerful and engaging social networks on the Internet. At the end of 2013, it was second only to Facebook in generating referral traffic—with more potential to drive visitors to your author website than Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+, and even StumbleUpon.
We’ve already reviewed the benefits of using Pinterest for authors. If you blog regularly or share your published work on your site, Pinterest’s easy-to-share nature makes it an excellent way to multiply your content’s distribution.
But how do you get people to actually pin your stuff and share it with their friends? Here are some tips for creating original content on your website that encourages sharing on Pinterest:
Create Pinnable Images
Pinterest is largely image-driven, so most pins are created in order to share a specific visual. However, many people are also pinning specific web articles and information they’d like to share.
Take advantage of both inclinations. Make sure your blog posts feature vibrant images that relate to the information found on your site. This combination of eye-catching visuals and useful content will produce more pinning possibilities for your audience.
For example, take a look at the images included with each Web Design Relief and Writer’s Relief blog article—they all feature the title of the article in large, clear type. When people pin our articles, it’s easy for their followers to see exactly what kind of information is being shared, so they are more likely to click the link.
Make It Easy To Pin Your Content
Now that you’re on track to create pinnable images, the next step is to get people to share them. While Facebook and Twitter have long been the top two share buttons to include on your website, if you haven’t added a Pinterest share button yet—now is the time to do it.
If your author website is built on WordPress, most social sharing plugins have now integrated Pinterest sharing. Our current favorite Pinterest-specific plugin is the Pinterest “Pin It” Button. Not only can you display a “Pin It” button on every page, but you can also have it appear whenever a visitor hovers over any image. The easier it is to pin an image, the more likely your visitors will do it.
Consider What’s Pinnable
Think like a pinner: What makes certain images more appealing to share than others? What kinds of articles are people most likely to pin and repin?
People who use Pinterest like to share images that are relevant to their lives and interests. So consider who your reader is, and make sure your content is informative, enlightening, and strikes a chord with your audience.
Is your book about food or geared toward foodies? Post the recipe for a dish featured in your book. Are your poems about nature? Share photos of the great outdoors that you’ve taken on your adventures, accompanied by excerpts of your published works. When someone pins these posts and images from your site, their followers with similar interests will also be more likely to click through to your website.
Join The Fun!
Set up your own Pinterest account and link it to your website. Then start building your own Pinterest boards based on your interests, personal tastes, and hobbies. Your boards don’t have to be limited to your own content. Repin from other boards that you enjoy; share images and content that you find on the Web—and have fun!
Pinterest boards are extremely SEO-friendly, so the more focused your boards are, the more likely they are to come up in Google searches. As your boards gain followers, you can establish yourself as a curator for your own niche. This will help build “brand awareness” around you as a writer and bolster your author platform online.
The Bottom Line
Remember: A large part of social networking is getting involved and letting people know that you exist. Pinterest is having a big moment right now in the world of social media, and as of the publication of this article, it’s not showing any signs of slowing down. Take advantage of this momentum by making the content on your author website perfectly pinnable with our tips.
Photo by mkhmarketing
QUESTION: Are you on Pinterest? What kinds of articles are you most likely to pin?
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