The social networking site Pinterest has grown partly due to the popularity of home design photos on its various boards. Baldwin Kitchen & Bath in West Reading uses the site to communicate with customers.
By Teresa McMinn
Reading Eagle correspondent
Jason Schaedler remembers the time not that long ago when folks who wanted to remodel their home would leaf through magazines and clip pictures of the items they wanted for their project.
Not anymore.
The Internet changed all that, and the latest social media trend is bringing even more change.
Today, many customers use Pinterest to design their home improvement project, said Schaedler, manager of Baldwin Brass Center and Baldwin Kitchen & Bath in West Reading.
Pinterest is a free, virtual bulletin board that allows users to organize and share photos, images and videos. It was launched in 2010 as a social networking service.
Schaedler started using Pinterest for the business about eight months ago, he said. He and a customer could use the site to share photos and kick around ideas.
?It?s made it a lot easier to work with customers over the phone,? he said. ?Home projects have been the hottest trends on (Pinterest) for us.?
Schaedler also pins photos of Baldwin?s new products on the site, he said.
?Social media has been great overall,? he said. ?But Pinterest has been amazing.?
The Greater Reading Convention and Visitors Bureau uses Pinterest to promote local attractions, said Lisa Haggerty, marketing manager for the organization.
The site works well in that capacity because of the way it displays photos, said Carson Kober-Mazurkiewicz, creative development manager with the bureau.
?Some of the best things about Berks County are visual,? she said.
Pinterest also includes the ability to link photos to websites.
?We use it to promote our members,? Kober-Mazurkiewicz said. ?Businesses love it because it?s really free advertising for them.?
Rob Rhoads, director of business development at LaunchDM in Wyomissing, said they recommend clients use Pinterest to leverage their digital marketing efforts.
Some of LaunchDM?s local clients, including Trisha?s Salon and Sweet Street Desserts, are active Pinterest users, he said.
The site allows business pages to showcase and share content, ideas and inspiration with customers online, he said.
As with other forms of social media, businesses should plan how to use Pinterest to reach the maximum amount of customers, he said.
?It should be well thought out,? Rhoads said.
Amy Duggan, who handles social media and communications for the company, said Pinterest?s photo-sharing functionality allows another way for businesses to build an online presence by organizing and displaying a variety of pins and storyboards related to their business products or services.
Businesses also can use the site?s secret storyboard function to communicate internally, she said.
For any business, Pinterest is one of the best ways to establish new relationships, build brand awareness and drive website traffic, Duggan said.
Jennifer Matten, assistant vice president of sales and marketing and national fundraising coordinator for Sweet Street Desserts, said the company started creating Pinterest boards about six months ago as part of its broader social media strategy.
One peek at its Pinterest page shows why: picture after picture of decadent treats, many lovingly photographed and elegantly presented.
?We view our desserts as an art form that arouses all of the senses, and the experience of enjoying dessert most often starts with the visual appeal,? Matten wrote in an email. ?So it provides us with a great platform to share our award-winning photography, introduce our brand to a relevant audience and further enhance the experience that surrounds food.?
Any platform that provides a company the opportunity to engage in ongoing conversation with consumers makes a difference, Matten added.
?Business is social,? she said.
Others said they plan to follow the lead of Baldwin, the visitors bureau and Sweet Street.
?We will be using it,? said Woody Weist, owner of Leesport Farmers Market in Ontelaunee Township.
The business has a Facebook page and website.
Weist said his daughter, Jennifer Wise, uses Pinterest at home and soon will create a page on the site for the market.
?That will be out next social media adventure,? Weist said.
Contact Teresa McMinn: 610-371-5080 or businessweekly@readingeagle.com.
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