We have Pinterest boards with hundreds if not thousand of pins.  Boards filled with images that link us to everything under the sun. We spend hours searching and pinning the stuff that we find interesting or ‘Pinteresting’. (Ha ha! Sorry couldn’t resist) There are ways that together, we can make Pinterest even better. Whether you’re new to Pinterest or  a super user, join me on a 3 part series on how to become a better Pinterest pinner.

It has been said that Pinterest has evolved to become the 3rd largest social media network, just behind Twitter and Facebook. Did you notice what it has been called? A ‘social network’.  According to Merriam-Webster.com, social is defined like this:

Cooperative and interdependent. Hmm, if I remember my lessons from Sesame Street right, being cooperative is a way of sharing, not just taking but giving too.

You don’t want to be considered uncooperative and selfish do you? You want to be the kind of person that shares on Pinterest right?  Lets see how you can be a thoughtful and courteous member of the Pinterest social network.

Part 1

Don’t be a showoff

One question I’ve heard and have even asked myself is; If you are a blog writer or a website owner, should you pin your own stuff?

I say yes, with a catch. As long as you pin other things too, it’s OK to pin your own stuff. Nobody wants to be around someone that only talks about themselves. The same goes on Pinterest. Re-pin what you and your followers would find interesting. Don’t only just re-pin, bring in new pins from the internet too. We all like new stuff to share. (See how below)

Source: whorange.net via Tula on Pinterest

*** For business folks***

If you work for a company that has a Pinterest page, bring in pins that your clients would find interesting. For exapmle: If you own an appliance store, pin articles on how to maintain your appliances or pictures of how appliances have changed throughout the years.

Pinning from Blogs and Websites

Have you ever clicked on the ‘About’ button at the top of the Pinterest page? There you’ll find all sorts of information from a description of what Pinterest is to a link to their blog and even job openings.

One very useful thing you can find there is a link to download the ‘Pin It Button’. This bookmark allows you to pin images directly from websites or blogs directly to your Pinterest boards.

Here’s how to get it:

1. From any Pinterest page click on About in the upper menu bar
2. Select Goodies
3. Follow instructions on how to install button into your browsers bookmarks
4. Pinterest will include a link back to the source of the picture in the pin.

It is not possible to pin from every blog or website. Some websites have blocked Pinterest from pinning their pictures because of copyright concerns or just not wanting their content to be pinned. I can respect that.

To be extra kind to those who do allow their pictures to be pinned, include the site or blog name in the description of the pin. (We will go over descriptions in more detail in part 2)

Thanks for joining me on this first lesson on how to be a better Pinterest pinner.  Stay tuned for part 2 of how to be a better Pinterest user.

If you need any  help with pinning to Pinterest, let me know. Leave me a comment or send me an email.