Although many users still only see Pinterest as a place to find delicious recipes, cute clothing and even cuter animal pictures, the demographics are widening. We already know the number of men on Pinterest is rapidly growing and it’s become a great place to market for B2C and B2B companies alike, but did you know it’s also a great way to catch criminals? How about using Pinterest to find your lost pet or dream job?
Keep reading to find out how three very different accounts accomplished three amazing things by using Pinterest in unconventional ways.
Pinterest’s Most Wanted
Although the days of hanging up “Most Wanted” posters to catch bad guys are long behind us, the Pottstown, PA Police Department found a much more modern way to snag criminals. How? By putting up their mugshots on Pinterest.
Taking the place of old-fashioned “wanted” posters, the Pottstown PD created a “WANTED BY POLICE” Pinterest board. The pins include the person’s mugshot, the crime they are wanted for and their last known address.
In an interview with NPR, Pottstown Police Captain F. Richard Drumheller explains that the department has “seen a 57 percent increase in [arrests], and we actually got more people based on our tips and our calls” thanks to the Pinterest board.
Reuniting Pets and Owners
On May 20th. 2013, our home state was hit by some of the most destructive tornados in recorded history. The Oklahoma tornados destroyed 13,000 homes, caused more than $2 billion in damages and displaced 33,000 people. In the midst of all the chaos, many pets were separated from their families.
In an effort to reunite displaced animals with their owners, the Facebook page, Moore Oklahoma Tornado Lost and Found Animals, was created. The page allowed those affected by the tornado to post pictures of their lost pets, or to post pictures of pets they found in the aftermath of the storm. To help expedite their efforts, the Pinterest accounts “Tornado Cats” and “Tornado Dogs” posted photos segmented by type and color of the pets.
By having all the lost animal pictures organized on Pinterest, it was easier for people to share the images and match the missing pets with their owners. In fact, both the “Tornado Dogs” and “Tornado Cats” accounts have boards dedicated to showing the happy family reunions.
Using Pinterest to Work for Pinterest
With the end of her Masters program fast approaching, Eliza Doton began thinking about how she could snag her dream job.
“I was very interested in working at Pinterest,” Eliza said, “but it’s hard to get a paper resume to come across all the other noise that’s out there sometimes. I just wanted to show Pinterest that I was different and really serious about working for their company.”
To make her resume stand out, Eliza presented it in a way “only a passionate fellow pinner could understand.” – She made it into a pin!
Click to see the rest of the Pin
Instantly, the pin went viral.
“Between the day before I posted this online and the day after, the views on my blog went up over 800%,” said Eliza. “It was just amazing how everybody really took onto this and it went viral. I just had a personal blog and this really put it on the map for me. Studying analytics is never very exciting, but finally I kind of know what’s going on with it!”
So, did it work? As Eliza recounted, “[Pinterest] contacted me and said ‘I saw your Pinterest resume, I’d love to chat!’”
By using Pinterest in unconventional ways, these three tasks found new life, and show how important it is not to pigeon-hole Pinterest. As Eliza so wisely pointed out, “Pinterest has now evolved to where you can find exactly what you’re looking for.”
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