I bet that most of you don’t know that Pinterest can drive you more traffic  & more $$$ than even Facebook and Twitter!   Yes, the news says that Pinterest is the #3 traffic source behind Facebook and Twitter.

BUT the dirty truth is that with these 2 secrets you can make a butt load more money and generate hordes more traffic from Pinterest.

#1 Dirty Little Secret – the average household income of a Pinterest user is $100,000 and above and they are women.  

Everyone knows that women LOVE to shop.    So wouldn’t it make sense that Pinterest with all its glitz and glam would be the place that WOMEN would shop! 

Heck, it is the “new” thing.

Remember back in the day when scrapbooking was all the rage.   We, women would go ape nuts over the newest scrapbooking gimmicks and spend a small fortune buying them.  I would know because I was one of those women.

Scrapbooking has been replaced by Pinterest.    So imagine all of us crazy women offline scrapbooking – fast forward a few years and imagine us scouring Pinterest purchasing items that we just happen to stumble upon and like!

That my friend is the power of Pinterest….a hidden treasure trove!

So how do you get people to find your images and purchase your products and services?

#2 Dirty Little Secret – SEO is more important than the image itself.

HUH?  You might be scratching your head – thinking well I thought it was the glamour and all these shiny images that were getting women to buy like crazy.

Well it is sort of.    But you have to be able to drive traffic to your image.   Here is where dirty little secret #2 comes in.

Pinterest’s search function is based off of SEO “keywords” – so to put it in plain English –

Whatever is in the description field of your image is what shows up when people do a search on Pinterest.

So if you have a picture of a beautiful health product for sale with no description – good luck having people find it in the vast sea of Pinterest.  

BUT, if you have “lose 5 lbs” in your description – then when someone types in lose 5lbs in the search bar – your image will pull up!

So the dirty little secret is to make sure you have a good description about your image!

Now, I can’t force you to put these 2 dirty little secrets into practice but what I can tell you is that if you want to learn more dirty little secrets about Social Media, then I am the person to talk to! 

My buddies Cori, Michael, and myself teach these kinds of dirty little secrets every week in our Premier Academy of Social Media.    And our students simply RAVE about it.

http://premieracademyofsocialmedia.com/

I'd like to meet you- and, I know that on the first day inside the Premier Academy, you'll be amazed knowing that with what you just learned, your investment more than paid for itself.  

And there'll still be more and more to come.

Anyway, it's your call, I'm gonna go hang out with my hubby, he just walked in the door : ) 

Talk soon, 

Angela

How ironic is this?

To get followed on Pinterest – SEO is more important than the images!

So what does that mean to you a marketer?

Pinterest's search feature is all about keywords.   So for example, if you type in fish in the search bar, you will get a bunch of images of fish.

The result – if you have a picture of a fish pinned to your board with no description than it will NOT appear in the search results. However, simply adding a description (adjectives help!) will immediately get eyes on your pin.

For the same fish picture try: “Beautiful rainbow trout swimming in crystal water in Montana. Fish. Fly fishing. Outdoors. Tree. Rock. Earth. Sky. Fire. Justin Bieber”. Okay, maybe skip Justin Bieber.

They’re basically the same rules as Yahoo search circa 1996. Load up relevant, popular keywords in the description of your pins and boards and you are guaranteed to get more views/likes/follow.

More at B2B Marketing & Pinterest: 5 Tips for Becoming the Ultimate Pinner – Business 2 Community

As a business owner, this is a very important concept that you really need to begin doing. Otherwise you will be missing out on a bunch of traffic that could lead people to your products.

My best advice is that “practice makes perfect.” When you first begin writing keyword-rich titles and descriptions you might draw a blank and not know exactly what words people are going to use to find you, but once you start doing this you will slowly begin noticing what others are tagging and how they are using keywords. It will get easier with time.

So, start today and begin utilizing Pinterest SEO. You might also want to check out the rest of the article from above because they have some other really great Pinterest Tips.

Angela

P.S. Would you like to learn everything there is to know about Pinterest? How about for only $1?! Check out the Premier Academy of Social Media

Want your images to get repinned on Pinterest?

Check out this awesome infographic that totally breaks down the ins and outs. It has measured and reported on everything from how the length of the description effects repins to how the image size does the same. This should offer you some insight into what grabs peoples attention on Pinterest.

This data should be useful for Pinterest users who’d like to get more repins on the images they’ve pinned, as well as content producers who want their content pinned and repinned more.

Data about Pinterest is sparse because they’ve been slow to release their API, but I was able to utilize search engine APIs to pull some data about the trendy new social site. I gathered information on over 11,000 pinned images and did some analysis to create the infographic below.

This data should be useful for Pinterest users who’d like to get more repins on the images they’ve pinned, as well as content producers who want their content pinned and repinned more.

I hope to be able to do more research into Pinterest, especially as they release their API. Let me know what data you’d like to see.

This article came from - http://danzarrella.com/infographic-how-to-get-more-pins-and-repins-on-pinterest.html# and http://premieracademyofsocialmedia.com/how-to-get-repinned-on-pinterest

I hope you enjoyed it!

Angela Giles

Recently, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Stephen Monaco, a talented Social Media Strategist who ranks #38 out of the Top 100 Twitter Marketers!   Wow, is all I can say.

When Stephen and I first started communicating it was via email.   I found him to be warm and very down to earth, despite his outstanding business success at an early age. 

Stephen served as VP of Marketing and co-CEO for a raw start-up company that grew through 40 consecutive profitable quarters to $50 million in annual revenue, and built a global brand that attained  70% market share, and onto the Inc. 500 List.   That in itself is an outstanding feat. 

He then went on as a consultant to advise businesses on how to change their thinking from a conventional “if we build they will come” mentality to a more enlightened theme of strategy must come first, followed by the social presence; accompanied with social media monitoring, listening, engaging, learning, and adjusting, so engagement  and customer loyalty will ensue.

During our interview,   I asked him how he was able to get to #38 on the list of the Top 100 Twitter Marketers and what advice he would give other Social Media Marketers.

Stephen candidly replied “Be yourself, be unique, and be real.”

He also insisted that the best Social Media blueprint for any business owner to follow was one based on creating a strategy first and foremost.     Stephen articulated “Simply decide what your business wants to achieve, develop a strategy around it, then moved forward while being true to your own mission and brand.”

These were solid words of wisdom, because I, myself have seen hundreds of  so- called “Social Media” gurus fall by the way side because they did not have a strategy, they copied someone else, and they did not measure their results.

I would suggest to any of my readers and fellow marketers to follow Stephen on Twitter :

https://twitter.com/stephenmonaco

Stephen is simply an amazing marketer with a down to earth mission that is based upon serving others.  

Feel free to connect with him on any of these other networks.

www.linkedin.com/in/stephenmonaco    LinkedIn

http://gplus.to/stephenmonaco     Google+

http://www.facebook.com/The.Stephen.Monaco   Facebook

www.stephenmonaco.com/bio/    Full Bio

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_Monaco   Wikipedia

Now that you have a Pinterest account, what the heck can you do with it that is different from everyone else?  Well I found this great article about some fun and creative ways to run a  Pinterest Contest on the Premier Academy of Social Media.

So how do you run a Pinterest Contest?

By now you’ve no doubt seen a few contests run exclusively for Pinterest.  It is time to go ahead and run your own.  Here are four different types of Pinterest Contests that can help you drive massive amounts of traffic to your website!

Pin It to Win It – Probably the most popular contest where a user creates a “Your Company Pinboard” and pins X amount of items to the board. Your company can then select the winner based on the best board.

Most Repins – Users create a board and the winner is selected based on how many Repins or Likes they have. Those partaking in the contest will often reach out to their networks on other social media sites asking for Likes.

Scavenger Hunt – Have users create a Pinboard and offer clues to pin images from all of your sites, including your main website, Facebook, Twitter, blog, YouTube and any other site you maintain. There are endless possibilities here allowing you to drive people to all of your different sites while keeping the contest fun and engaging. For example, you can provide clues through your different social media sites; Monday’s clue will be tweeted, Tuesday’s clue will be posted on Facebook, etc.

Sweepstakes – Simply have a user Repin a particular image and choose a random winner out of those who entered.

For contest submissions you can require the user to post the link to their Pinboard on your sites such as your Facebook page, Twitter or your blog. If you use Twitter, be sure to set up a hashtag that allows for easy tracking.

Be sure to clearly define the rules!  Post the contest rules on your official company site/blog or Facebook page.

 

I know that Pinterest is in it’s infancy as far as social media sites go, but I really think it is going to be around for a while because people just love it’s uniqueness and now with these great ideas you can go out and really engage people and get them hooked on your brand. Who knew Pinterest could be so fun!

Go out and share a couple pins today and maybe even set up a Pinterest Contest.

Pinterest has quickly become a powerhouse in the social media world and with growth and expansion comes a lot of poor etiquette and spammy content. It is more than okay to use Pinterest for your business, but you want to use Pinterest in the manner that was intended, to share great images. That is why I wanted to share part of this great article from Entrepreneur.com about what not to do on Pinterest..

Don’t use Pinterest for direct marketing – be creative
Pinterest states that the site should not be used for direct marketing, advertising or sales. Excessive and overt self-promotion is clearly unacceptable, so make sure you’re pinning diverse content, not just pictures of your products. You need to get creative and use Pinterest for indirect marketing. For example, fill pin boards with seasonal items, color coordinated images, gift ideas and so on. For inspiration, Scholastic has a variety of creative pinboards that are excellent examples of indirect marketing.

Don’t forget who the Pinterest audience is
Approximately three out of four Pinterest users are currently women. While the site is beginning to attract more male users, you shouldn’t waste time pinning a lot of content that women are unlikely to be interested in.

Don’t pin anything and everything
Cluttering your pinboards with everything you think people might like is a mistake. Just as people don’t like to sift through clutter in search engine results and on websites, they don’t want to be overwhelmed on Pinterest. Stay focused, but don’t be afraid to pin interesting content that your target audience would enjoy and that’s at least loosely connected to your business. Such content can help give your brand more personality….More at 7 Do’s and Don’ts for Marketing With Pinterest

To summarize: Be a real, genuine person while using not only Pinterest, but any social media site. People want to connect with a real person, not an over-confident, pushy brand. If you are not yet using Pinterest, what are you waiting for? Just keep in mind there are rules and etiquette that you should definitely take into consideration.

If you have any more Do’s or Don’ts for social media, please share them here!

A Social Media Manager is akin to a juggling act.   A juggling act of blogging, tweeting, pins, posting, commenting, sharing the love, ROI,  videos, networking, branding, and the list goes on and on.  And to top it off a good Social Media Manager works around the clock.   ‘

So who would want to become a Social Media Manager?

You, Me, and anyone else who loves the rush and excitement of the various Social Networking Sites!

It is the perfect JOB for an ADHD nut like me! 

So what are some of the MANY responsibilities of a Social Media Manager.  

• ·         Create an effective social media strategy and campaign
• ·         Brand advocacy and penetration
• ·         Content creation
• ·         Blogging on various platforms
• ·         Seed and drip content on the HOT Social Networking sites
• ·         Create and edit videos that drive traffic
• ·         Build a network of loyal brand advocates
• ·         Start and engage in conversation
• ·         ROI
• ·         Understand and use the right tracking tools
• ·         Use Up-to-date Social Management tools
• ·         Know the right questions to ask to engage conversations
• ·         Keep a pulse on social media trends
• ·         Help the corporate culture integrate social media into their paradigm
• ·         Day to Day activities across relevant platforms
• ·         Crisis publicity management
• ·         Community outreach
• ·         Put out and create fires – lol J
• ·         And the list goes on and on

Now tell me, do you still want to become a Social Media Manager?   Heck yah, I do – I love the rush and the money is great.

Here is a really cool FREE webinar that Small Biz Social, a Social Media Manager Agency, puts on that teaches people how to become a Social Media Manager.

Register here:

https://www3.gotomeeting.com/register/892314150

Angela

Pinterest is by invitation only.  Visit www.Pinterest.com, click “Request an Invite,” and enter your email address to be notified when you have access to create your account. If you prefer, you can ask a friend who already has a Pinterest account to invite you.

Tip:  Register your account with the same email address you use for your business’ Twitter account so you can easily share your new pins through your Twitter account, too. Once you receive an invitation to sign up for Pinterest, you’ll want to sign up through the Twitter option, not the Facebook option. This will enable you to tie your Pinterest account to your business’ Twitter Account, not your personal Facebook profile.

Activate your account, and then optimize your Pinterest profile under the settings tab. Make sure and brand yourself using either your name or your company name. 

Tip:  Use your branding “name” as your username.

Complete your profile information, including a company description, logo or professional photo, and a link to your website.  

Tip:  Your company description should be keyword rich using keywords that related to you and your chosen niche.   For example, I am a social media manager, so I include the words social media manager in the description field.

You want to be sure and keep “Hide your Pinterest profile from search engines” checked to OFF, so your profile can get indexed in search.

Come hang with me on Pinterest:

http://pinterest.com/angelakgiles/

God Bless,

Angela Giles

The statistics just came out.   The average Facebook user spends almost 8 hours a month hanging out on Facebook!   WOW!

Facebook is the #1 Social Network to hang out on.    It is also the #1 networking site for relationship marketing and social buying.   So how can you build a thriving business and dominate Facebook?

It is pretty simple.   It is all about engaging your connections.   Let me explain.   When you first meet someone offline and you begin to get to know them, you engage in what we call chit chat or otherwise known as small talk.

If you click, then you move forward and begin to develop a relationship with that person.   You start sharing more about yourself.

It is no different with Facebook.  But before we get into that – let me tell you what the #1 Mistake is that People make on Facebook. 

“They try to sell their business to their new connection during the first meeting.”  It just DOES NOT work!!

You must treat people with respect.   So getting back to what we were discussing earlier, you have to develop the relationship with your new friends on Facebook before you ever introduce your business to them.

In fact, it is industry standard that a person must engage with another person at least 7 times before they purchase from you or go into business with you.

This concept is covered in a lot more depth in my “7 Touch Series.”  It is how you go from engaging people on Facebook to turning it into a cash cow.  If you haven’t gone through the “7 Touch Series”, grab a seat in our upcoming free webinar “How to Dominate Facebook one step at a time” on Wednesday, May 2, 2012.

Register here:
https://www3.gotomeeting.com/register/521366078

Come hang out on my fan page and ask me any question on Facebook marketing and I will answer it for you!

http://www.facebook.com/angelakaygiles

Blessings,

Angela Giles

Here is a really cool and unique idea!

Use Pinterest Gift Marketing to generate massive buzz about your products and services.   You can pin a gift idea by putting a $ amount in the description of your pin

.

When you enter the $ amount it will automatically add it to the image.  And here is the COOL part!!

Your pin will also be added to the gift section too!!!!

Woohooo – so go to town my friends – make an image out of one of your products, add a price and see what happens!!

Can we just say viral?!

Come follow me on Pinterest -

http://pinterest.com/angelakgiles/

Blessings,

Angela