During a recent #massagechat, we were talking about using social media (Facebook, Twitter, etc) to market our massage therapy practices and someone brought up the topic of using Pinterest. Now, I’ll admit that I have a Pinterest page, but I haven’t pinned anything yet and I’m not exactly sure how to use it to promote my business.
One of the participants, Sonia Hazard, is using Pinterest. She shared a link to her page, so I immediately surfed over there to take a look. Boy, was I impressed! So impressed, that I contacted her and asked if she would write a blog post about how she uses Pinterest. She was kind enough to agree.
So we have a guest post by Sonia Hazard, who you’ll find on Twitter as @NiaMassage.
Do I really need Pinterest?
So you want to start a Pinterest Board, but you don’t know what or better yet HOW to pin? The bigger question is – “Why should I even start a Pinterest Board for my business?!”
Well, first of all, it’s the new way people spend a lot of their time. Many people are on Facebook, but people are SPENDING their time on Pinterest. 87% of women and 13% of men median age 25-54 (with median incomes of $50 -79,000 per year) spend their time there. Many Social Media experts will tell you that you should ‘be’ where your Target Market is. Now, if your Target Market isn’t even online, then this post isn’t for you. (But isn’t a portion of all our Target Markets online, these days?)
Second: It can drive traffic and eyes to your own website. You can link your blog, your services, and add your presence on your boards. Show what you do at work – pictures and video can be added to your board. If a picture is worth a thousand words, how much would a video be worth to your potential client? You can also add a “Pin It” Button to your website, and others can pin your site to their page.
(It’s OK to toot your horn, but if others do it, then even better!)
If someone likes what they see, they can ‘Like’ it, or better yet, they may re-pin it to their own board, sharing YOUR site with their friends.
If you have an Etsy site, pin your products on the ‘Products You Love’ board, and if someone is interested, they can go right to your page, and buy it.
Does it have to be just your content? No, you can always re-pin posts that you see, but please do not take other’s content as your own work. I re-pin lots of posts that I see, but I don’t re-pin everything. That’s what the ‘Like’ button is for!
Third: I get a little inspiration from what’s being posted on the boards. You can check out what other Massage Therapists are doing, gain inspiration from countless posts from Architecture to Wedding & Events, or even create a Vision Board for all your goals that you have for you and your business. It always helps to get inspiration, when and wherever you can get it!
Finally, it is a great way to share your brand as more than just a Massage Therapist or Bodyworker. You can share your favorite tips, relaxing vistas, healthy recipes, positive quotes – the possibilities are endless. Just remember – this is a reflection of the business, so be aware what you pin to your boards!
This barely scratches the surface of what goes on in Pinterest. Look into the website to see if it is a good fit for you, but if you want to join, you have to either request an invite, or ask one of your friends for an invite. (I’m sure that some of your friends are already there!) They’ll be happy to share some of the madness.
Personally, it’s a lot of great fun for me, and it’s a great way to share my business with more people.
I encourage you to check out Sonia’s Pinterest page. Let us know what you think and if you have any questions.
Sonia Hazard, LMT, NCMT is a Positive Attitude Adjuster, otherwise known as a Licensed Massage Therapist. Working in several settings for the past 10 years helped her hone and create the company that she’s created in January, 2011, NiaMassage, LLC. ‘Nia’ is Swahili for ‘Purpose’, one of the seven principles of Kwanzaa.
Her Pinterest page is filled with her love of massage, self-care, as well as all kinds of cool things!