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Pinterest “Etiquette”

November 20, 2013

Did you ever notice companies displaying posters and tarpaulins of the products they sell? They do this to inform viewers of these products and how it can benefit them. However, the impact they create is limited to the areas where they are displayed.

Pinterest provides a solution to this “limited space” problem. It allows businesses to pin photographs of their products and share it to the world. As simple as it sounds, Pinterest can actually be used as a serious tool to get your brand known to the world. However, to be able to do so, there are Pinterest “etiquettes” you need to follow:

1. Be respectful of other people’s pins. Keep your comments positive. As the old cliche goes, “if you have nothing good to say, then don’t say anything at all”.Simply refrain from liking or repinning a post if you don’t like what you see.
2. Share quality pins. Remember that everything you pin reflects your business. Make sure that your pins are aligned with your business. Keep things positive at all times and consider whether your target audience will find your posts useful and attractive.
3. Give proper attribution. In simpler words, give credit to where it is due. If a Pinterest site has a “Pin it” button, it means that they allow people to use their images. However, you still need to add credit information. On the other hand, if a site has decided to block users from pinning their images, then respect that decision even if know that you can obtain the image in another way. Unless you are given permission, do not pin images that aren’t yours. Never download images from the web and pin them as if you own them.
4. Never misdirect users for your own purposes. Do not pin links to sites that are not related to your post. If you misdirect users often, people will try to avoid your pins. This is surely the last thing you want to happen.
5. Be responsible for your pins and report inappropriate pins. Do so for the sake of the whole Pinterest community. Also, make sure that the images you pin are not offensive and do not contain nudity, hateful quotes, violence, suicide-related content.

Pinterest is considered to be one of social media’s “newest darling”. As social media’s newest darling, Pinterest is still growing and evolving. Therefore, it’s not easy to understand the network’s unstated rules of etiquette. Like other social media platforms, be a positive force by sharing interesting and useful images and engaging with others without infringing on copyright or intellectual property rights.