I’ve been a member of the group Marketing for Romance Authors for quite a while, and I also follow their blog. We’ve been talking about using Pinterest recently, which isn’t something I know a lot about. Fortunately there are lots of authors in the MFRW with plenty of expertise, so with their permission, I’ve reproduced this blog post written by the ever-helpful Paloma Beck, as I found it a great introduction to using Pinterest. Thanks, Paloma!
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Let’s talk about Pinterest.
It’s not just for fun. It can be another FREE social networking tool for authors. MFRW grabbed onto this tool and has successfully been sharing pins with potential readers for awhile now. We provide MFRW authors the chance to be highlighted on our boards but wouldn’t it be even better to have your own Pinterest account?
This post is intended to walk you through the process of getting started. Try it. Then leave a comment and tell us how you did. Or if you already have a Pinterest account, comment and share how you use it.
1. Open an account and set up your profile (being sure to add your links). Your profile will look similar to twitter – you have a limited amount of space to identify yourself so be mindful of your words. BONUS: You can even use your facebook account to set up your account and make it even simpler!
2. Install the PIN IT button onto your browser toolbar. This little button makes it a one-step process to put your pins onto boards while you’re on-line. To install it, click the + button on the top of the pinterest screen, then click on Pin It button and it will take you through the process.
That’s it for set up and now you’re ready!It’s that easy? Yes, yes it is.
Now you get to have some fun but we’re going to call it work so… time to get to work!
Just CLICK on the + button along the top again. Choose Create a Board. Name it. Categorize it. CLICK Create Board. Some good choices are things that interest you (
check mine out for ideas) and that can tell readers more about you as an author and as a person. NOTE that you can always add more boards at any time. Some ideas include a Books Board, Guest Post Board, Features Board and a Review Board. You can even create a board for each of your books or series, published or WIPs. Add a board for important quotes and potential character ideas.
4. Add Pins.
There are lots of ways to do this. First, you can use that same + button along the top to add pins from the web or to upload some from your computer. You can use your Pin It button to add any photos from any website. You can also browse the general Pinterest site by clicking on the word Pinterest in the top center of the screen, browse and re-pin. Put some fun pins on your boards – don’t worry right away about perfection.
Be cautious of copyright in regards to photos you pin! It’s best to use photos you own or, if not, be sure the original source is listed in the pin’s description. You can verify the source link is there by clicking on the pin and viewing the pin’s details.
Pinning Your Books?
This is where you definitely want to use the Pin It button. By pinning from a buy link -i.e. pin your book from Amazon- when others click on it, they’ll be linked automatically to a place to purchase your book. If the pin came directly from a particular site, clicking the pin once it’s opened will take you to the place from where it was pinned.
How does this help your business?
AUTHORS who use Pinterest well (& each a bit differently):
Want to do just enough? Here’s a Checklist for the BASICS:
1. Pin all your blog posts and books with links back to your blog or purchase location.
2. Click that little “tweet” button every time you add an important pin. These pins will get shared -through a vast network- and should bring people back to you.
3. Include the link to your Pinterest Profile wherever you include all other social networking links. It’s another outlet for you to get recognition.
Here’s a Unique Board –
Writer’s Resources– with lots of good pins for authors. You can create engaging boards like this too.
So, what are you waiting for? Pin It!
Paloma
Paloma Beck is a Romance Author living a life of contradiction… she’s a happily married carpooling mom writing erotic romance. It’s almost naughty! Paloma writes full-time and has three series in the works with others on the fringes. Her books span both the contemporary and paranormal romance genres.
CONNECT WITH PALOMA ON PINTEREST.
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I hope you found this post as useful as I did! Do you use Pinterest? If so, what do you use it for? And what kind of boards do you follow? If you have any tips or comments at all, I’d love to hear from you!
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That’s it for set up and now you’re ready!
4. Add Pins.
Helena Fairfax 
Good post. I put it on my blog.
http://authorstalkromance.blogspot.com/
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Thanks Marsha! I checked out your blog – it looks great! Thanks for reposting!
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I love Pinterest, Helena, and I keep improving my boards every so often. Still to do some work on a couple of them but I’m a visual person and I love all the pinning!
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Hi Ros, I’m planning to start up next week, so I’ll check your boards out for some ideas – thank you!
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I do love Pinterest, I find it such a great resource for so many things including writing :) Thanks for sharing the links.
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Hi Harliqueen, yes, it does sound a great resource. My daughter uses it to pin knitting patterns and recipes she’s found, which is a good idea, as I;m forever losing them! I’ll check out your boards when I get up and running. Thanks for your comment!
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I love pinterest too. I pin photos of things that might be in my work in progress. I have a board for each of my pubbed books and made one for my wip now, working name is Dead Right. I enjoy surfing and finding posters that speak to me too. I really don’t think I use it for promo much, just for fun. I do try and remember to put up friends and favorite books too. Find me at http://www.pinterest.com/janetglaser/
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Wow, JQ, that looks great! Thanks for sharing your boards. Once I’ve got started I’ll begin to follow you. Thanks for your comment!
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Thanks.
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Thanks for this information!! Seems easy!! It’s on my list of things to do.
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Yes, it seems easy, doesn’t it, Margaret? It’s just getting round to setting up an account! But a lot of the boards I’ve seen look great, so I’ve put this next on my to-do list. I expect you’d have a lot of great photos to share, Margaret. If you do get started, let me know!
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Helena it does look interesting. I’ve found some Pinterest sites when I’ve been googling something or other and wondered how it was all done. It seems to be such a flexible resource and I’ve found that some book bloggers also use it. Now I’ve got to grips with WordPress and Facebook my next step is to have a go on Twitter. We have an account for our blog but Caroline has been maintaining it. Perhaps Pinterest will be a future venture! Once again thank you for such an interesting post.
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I’ve just set up an account, Tina, and I can see why people love it. It’s a useful place to organise any web pages you’ve found, which is excellent for research. I can see why book bloggers would love it, too, as you can pin other reviews, book covers, etc. If you get set up, let me know!
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I will do Helena. Some bloggers are already doing it and I agree it does look very attractive. I’ll be looking out for your boards when they are up and running. :)
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Glad I finally got around to reading this, Helena. I like Jq’s board(s). I’ll have to hop on the bandwagon, but oh my when do I find the time. I can see how fans will enjoy Jq’s board for her WIP. I’ll share.
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Hi Marsha, glad you like the post! I’ve actually created some boards now. It was fun! Here’s my link if you ever get time to look: http://www.pinterest.com/helenafairfax/ I do find it a handy place to collect stuff I’ve seen and liked on the web, and it’s not the time suck I imagined. If you get round to starting up, let me know! Thanks for your comment!
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