Pinpointing the Value of Pinterest for Brands [Infographic]

Everyone’s talking about Pinterest. Users love it, and with the unveiling of buyable pins, brands now understand its immense e-commerce opportunities.

In 2010 when Pinterest was founded, brands began making a presence for themselves on the social network. Now, in 2015, the channel has transitioned from a lifestyle e-pin board, allowing users to create wishlists of links to their dream home or perfect outfit, into an e-commerce powerhouse where consumers can directly purchase their beloved items.

I recently participated in an AdWeek webinar where the presenter offered up her favorite quote from a survey done asking users why they like Pinterest.

“Pinterest boards represent people’s best selves, which is likely related to the positive emotions I have after being on the site.”

Does Facebook make their users feel this way? Twitter? LinkedIn? 66% of pinners say they use the service to save and collect things that inspire them. If your brand isn’t convinced, here are a few more arguments as to why you should incorporate Pinterest into your social media marketing strategy:

There are more than 100 million Pinners worldwide. 67% of Pinners are under the age of 40, a 27% jump from last year.
Pins are forever. Like a blog, Pinterest is a form of evergreen content that will always live on your account.
Pinners WANT to see brands on Pinterest. 2/3 of content on the site is from businesses, and 83% of users prefer to follow their favorite brands over their favorite celebrities.
Pinners purchase. 87% of users have purchased a product due to something they saw on Pinterest, and 93% of users have used the platform to plan a future purchase. 67% of Pinners look at pins on their mobile devices while in-store shopping.
Two words: Referral Value. Around 5% of all referral traffic to websites comes from Pinterest, which is second only to Facebook. In addition, the average order value of a Pinterest referral is 58.95%, almost a full $4 higher than that of Facebook. Sorry Zuckerberg, but Pinterest is #winning.
It’s a trend tool. By staying up to date with what your followers are repining and liking, your brand has the opportunity to predict emerging trends.

And now that you've been persuaded, here are 6 Pinterest best practices:

Pin often. The more frequently you pin from your account, the higher your pins will appear in relevant search queries. Plus, no one wants to follow an inactive brand!
Follow your followers. If the average consumer is anything like me, they're excited by online brand interactions. Following and repinning your followers is the easiest form of interaction on a social network. Retweeting, replying, and reposting on other networks can be tricky business, but repinning a quality image or link is a low risk solution to social engagement with your customers.
Create custom pins. Whatever you're selling, make sure to showcase it on Pinterest. (This one should be a no brainer!) When you do, make sure to pin directly from your website versus uploading content from your computer. When someone repins your content, Pinterest will always source the original pin back to your website.
Take advantage of rich and buyable pins. Rich pins are pins that include extra information right on the pin itself. There are 6 types: app, movie, recipe, article, product and place. Buyable pins are a secure way to buy products through Pinterest.
Optimize your pin descriptions. Studies show that pin descriptions consisting of 200 words or less are the most repinned. Make sure to give your follower context into what they are about to click.
Add a "Pin It" button to your website. Allow users visiting your website to save what they like! There's a good chance they'll return to the pin later to purchase the item.

What we're trying to say is, pinning = #winning.