Are you in Pinterest?  You should be.  Our guest poster,  GSMMA member and Pinterest expert shows you the ropes…

If you haven’t heard of Pinterest, it’s the hottest addition to social media!  Even though it’s still in the beta stage and the only way to use it is to be invited, it is hot, Hot, HOT!  If the statistics below don’t make you get off here and sign up then we need to have a serious talk!

Here are some of the recent stats on Pinterest:
*The fastest site in history to break through the 10 million unique visitor mark
*Average user time is 83 minutes!
*11.9 million unique visitors
*80% women
*Household income of 25k-75k

If this describes your target market, don’t finish reading this article until you have sent me an email  titled “Please Invite Me to Pinterest”. Once you have done that, come back and let me share more.

Pinterest’s mission:
“connect everyone in the world through the ‘things’ they find interesting.”

Pinterest is an online pinboard that allows users the ability to create boards and pin images to each board.  The amazing part is that everything you pin can be linked back to a website. So, whether you are pinning a recipe to your “Yummy Desserts” board or a book to your “Books Worth Reading” board it is probably linked to a website where you can read the whole recipe or purchase the book.

This creates so much opportunity for businesses.  Are you brainstorming yet?  Get a notebook and pen and put it on your nightstand because if you are like me, I brainstorm in my dreams!

To get started you must setup your account through an invitation as described above. It is simple but, if you need help, email me and I’ll send you a video tutorial that I’ve sent my clients.

Once setup is complete, I recommend looking around at some of your friends’ boards and pins to start. Keep in mind you can always change the names of your boards so, don’t get overwhelmed that you have to get it perfect the first time.  If you see a pin that you like, you can “Repin”, “Like”, or “Comment”.  Repinning will allow you to pin the image to one of your boards.  Still don’t be alarmed if you don’t have your boards setup, Pinterest allows you to create a new board anytime during a repin. “Liking” a pin will add it to your likes, but will not pin to a board. When you “comment” it allows you to link to facebook friends by using the “@” symbol just like you do in Facebook.

A few of my more popular boards are “Encouragement for WAHM” and “Social Media Tips & Training”.  My new favorite board is my “Dream Farmhouse”. Have fun with it at first and then start brainstorming for your business.

I’ve been studying Pinterest for a few months and have so much information to share.  Will you consider joining me for my last teleclass “Pinterest 201: Promoting Your Business”? It’s this Wednesday, Feb. 22nd at 10:00am EST and you can sign up at www.TrishaPhilbrook.com.  I will be teaching you how to link your website, inserting prices on products, finding friends, and strategically creating and placing boards on your page.  And as always, I leave plenty of time for questions.

Maybe you feel like you need personal one-on-one coaching with Pinterest.  If so, I’m offering a 30 day private coaching session for the first 5 clients that sign up. This session begins on March 1st.  The cost is only $297. Go over to my website and find out what I’m including in these 30 days. Remember, because of the time I pour into these private coaching sessions I’m only able to accept 5 clients in March.  For more information or to sign up for one-on-one private coaching for 30 days go to www.TrishaPhilbrook.com.
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Trisha is a successful work at home mom that has a passion for helping women in business succeed!  With three young daughters at home, she has learned how to balance work and family time although it is a weekly challenge.

You’ll want to check out her newest blog “Devotions for WAHM” where she offers daily encouragement. To find out more about her business and read her blog you can visit www.TrishaPhilbrook.com.