Bloggers are flocking to Pinterest, particularly those whose blogs
include some element of photography or design. The social media
site—which recently became
the third most popular
behind Facebook and Twitter—gives them another outlet to display their
photos and provides the ability to interact with their fellow bloggers.
There are a number of steps you can take to interact with these bloggers
on Pinterest and get them to notice you (or your client).
Follow them/follow their boards.
On Pinterest, users share images by “pinning” them to a “pinboard,”
which is basically an online bulletin board with images and captions. In
that way, a “repin”—in which a user shares another person’s picture—is
akin to a “like” on Facebook or “retweet” on Twitter.
A number of bloggers will pin images from their own blogs as well as
pictures from other people’s blogs. To see what sort of content they are
pinning, follow all of their boards. When a person gets a new follower
on Pinterest, they usually receive an email alerting them of it. This
will get your name in front of them. But don’t just stop there, follow
the pinners that they follow to learn what they’re sharing, too.
Repin their pins.
Popular bloggers may not notice your name in their email right away, but
if you keep repinning their pins, your name will consistently show up
in their Pinterest feed and email box. The goal is to get them to see
who you are and that you’ve been taking a genuine interest in their
content before you pitch them.
"Like" their pins and/or leave a comment.
Here's another way to interact with their content. "Liking" their pins
involves less commitment than actually repining something, plus it will
show up in their Pinterest news feed. Commenting will get attract more
attention than a “like,” because people tend to read the comments on
pins before they share them.
Tweet about their pins and share (and tag) them on Facebook.
If a blogger is on Pinterest, they probably have a Facebook and Twitter
page associated with their blog. Make sure that when you “like” one of
their pins—or repin some content from their blog—that you post about it
on Twitter or Facebook and give them proper recognition by tagging them.
Maybe they don’t watch their Pinterest feed often, but they will keep
an eye on their Twitter @replies and Facebook mentions.
Email them and reference their Pinterest content.
Finally, once you’ve spent some time getting to know this blogger and
the types of things they like to pin/blog about, you can email them
about your client. Make sure you mention that you have been following
their pins and like their style.
At this point, they should recognize that you’ve been following their
social media efforts, something they will appreciate—especially if you
actually read their blog and know what they like to read about. From
there, help them see how your client would align nicely with their
current blog/social media topics. Reference things they’ve posted and/or
pinned for extra points.
Nicole Rose Dion is social media coordinator/graphic designer at The Abbi Agency. Find them on Twitter @theabbiagency.