According to Compete, Pinterest traffic has experienced meteoric growth since we last wrote about it in August. At the end of August, they had 1,241, 295 unique visitors. As of January 2012, they had 11,140,641. And most of this growth is recent, so who knows how big the site will become.

It would be safe to say that, as a business marketer, if you haven’t paid any attention to the site, now would be the time. Here are the basics: The site is a “virtual pinboard” that allows users to “Pin” photos to their “Boards” that are organized by categories the user creates. The photos are directly linked to the sites where they originate, so it is, at its most basic, a photo bookmarking site. Users can then browse other people’s boards, “RePin” things they like, and make comments.

So how can you leverage this site for your business?

The site discourages use for “self-promotion”, but this doesn’t mean brands have been unsuccessful using it. It just means the site needs to be used creatively and interactively—in the same way it is used by consumers. Mashable recently asked Pinterest who they believed to be the top brands using their site. Answers ranged from magazines like Real Simple and Better Homes and Gardens to furniture retailer West Elm to Whole Foods.

But what we were most interested in was how they defined their top brands. Their criteria are included in our top 3 tips below. The other 2 tips are just our recommendations for how you might get started with your business on Pinterest.

1. Pin from various sources rather than one specific site. If you get involved on Pinterest, users will be more likely to follow you and repin if you use the site for its purpose—to pin the things you are passionate about. We recommend focusing on your brand rather than your products only. So if you are a hospital, create boards that deal with healthy lifestyles and pin from sources all over the internet—healthy recipes, motivational quotes for exercise or dieting—this establishes your brand as a health thought leader and as something a user would want to follow.

2. Repin from within the site to engage with others. Just like with Facebook or Twitter, you are going to get the most mileage from the site if you use the social media in a social way. Repin theirs, and they may take interest and repin yours.

3. Create at least a few boards and cover a broad range of interests. If you simply go on the site and create a board named after your company, you have wasted your time. Consider all of the things your brand stands for and what categories or words users may be searching. If you are a nonprofit organization, create boards for volunteers in action, inspirational photos, and events you have hosted.

4. Name boards and tag carefully. Don’t just use the main Board names that Pinterest recommends when you sign up. Think of keywords that you target in your other marketing, and name the boards using those same words. Search on Pinterest to see what other boards you will be “competing” with if you name a board a certain way. This will help you find topics you can dominate, as well as other boards you may want to follow and repin from. Tag photos following the same rules.

5. Add the Follow and Pin It Button to your website and blog. Pinterest offers code for a Follow button. This can be used on your website, and wherever else you recommend people follow your social media. You can also add a “Pin It” button on your product pages or on your blog posts, where appropriate. This will allow and encourage Pinterest users to pin your images directly from within your post.

As you can see, it will take some time to learn to use the site properly and to get a feel for what works for your business. But if you can manage to be creative, consider your brand, and put some effort in, it will likely pay off to be an “early adopter.” Don’t have time? Consider Sparking—we can help. If you’re ready, go ahead and get pinning!

What are some of your favorite brands on Pinterest?

Seigle’s Cabinet Center is a quality cabinet retailer in the Chicago area. Established in 1881 as a lumber company, Seigles grew to be one of the top 50 building materials dealers in the country. In 2005, Seigle’s was acquired by Stock Building Supply. Stock exited the market in 2009, and Mark Seigle reacquired the cabinetry operation, the largest distributer of kitchen and bath products in the Chicago market.

A few years ago, we were hired on to manage social media for the company. Since Seigles had been out of the public spotlight for a few years, and the public had recently started migrating online, the move made sense.

“This program reaches our targeted markets in a very expedient and efficient manner. Since selling my business in 2005 and buying it back in 2009 there has been a total paradigm change from traditional forms of media to web marketing. As of this year we have ceased all forms of marketing except for web marketing based on its potency.”
-Mark Seigle

We established a Twitter handle, Facebook page, blog, and a monthly eblast. We have helped to grow their list of eblast contacts to be sure we could communicate with interested people. And we have built and helped to foster valuable relationships using Linked In. The relationships we build through these networks continue to help Seigles obtain new customers, including directly traceable connections that have allowed Seigles to bid on large projects.

We also have helped to create and promote quarterly incentives for customers. During 4th quarter 2011, new customers who spent $7,500 or past customers who increased their prior purchase amount by $7,500 would earn a free iPad2. Seigles ended up giving away 74 iPads—well above the hoped for 40—and during the promotion had their best sales month on record.

We’re sure this has happened to you—you are browsing a retail site and considering making a purchase. For example’s sake, let’s say you are looking for a new hat. You have found one you think you like at Hats R Us, but you want to wait until tomorrow to make your final decision so you leave the site. Then, you move on to check the news on your favorite news site. And behold—a Hats R Us ad shows up on the front page. The same thing happens later in the day when you visit a completely different site to check the weather. Is this a sign that you and the hat are meant to be? Or is this just smart marketing?

And this can even work more specifically. Let’s say in the above example, you were looking for a cowboy hat for that square dance you were planning to attend. You spent a lot of time on Hats R Us in the Western section—and so all the ads that show up are specifically cowboy themed. The Hats R Us truly has your number, and after seeing the ads multiple times, you are more likely to remember and revisit their site when it comes time to make your purchase.

We call this an orchestrated fate for you and the hat. And whether you are a retail vendor, looking to increase appointments or registrations, building an eList, or simply branding, this gentle nudging of people who have visited your site is something we can help you accomplish.

Let’s say you are a hospital, and you have a lot of visitors to the cardiology section of your website. Visitors come, browse for information, but don’t always fill out eList sign up forms, make appointments, or take an action. You don’t have to end your visibility with them when they leave your site. We can help you program your site pages so that if a visitor has been to those pages, when they are browsing other sites your ads recognize that this person has been to your site, and are more likely to display. When it comes time to make an appointment, you are more likely to come to mind—or it’s possible that seeing your ad will push them to revisit and take a next step.

If you want to get into the nitty gritty of how we accomplish this, here are the basics: within your website, we tag pages with a special code. Then we program your ads to recognize that code even after you leave the site. We can tag your entire site, or specific pages within your site to make the ads more targeted (like in the cowboy hat and cardiology examples above).

This benefits you, since your relationship with the consumer doesn’t have to end when they leave your site. And your consumers are happy, since they know you know what they want. And when their cowboy hat arrives, they can be pleased that fate brought them together.

We are proud to be a part of Downtown Elgin, especially when the city offers great community events. This year, we are showing our holiday cheer by participating in Downtown Elgin’s Rockin’ in a Window Wonderland.

We had so much fun creating our holiday-licious window that we decided to share the experience. We painted the windows over the course of one week and then condensed it to 2 minutes thanks to the miracle of time-lapse photography. Also, as part of the window contest, you get extra points for “bringing your display to life” during the event. We decided, since social media is our thing, to bring them to life virtually. So we will have a QR code within the window display so passers by at Window Wonderland (Saturday, December 3, 12-5) can enjoy seeing the window art go up from within.

Be sure to stick around for the last 30 seconds—it will be worth your time!

Happy holidays from Demi & Cooper Advertising!

Is your hard-to-shop-for family member iPhone obsessed? If so, skip the gift cards and wow them with some of these interesting iPhone accessories.

1. The gadget: The Dot from Kogeto
What does it do?: Attach it to the iPhone 4, lay your phone on a flat surface, and take video that gives a 360 degree view of the room. Upload your video online.
Practical uses: Place it on your holiday dinner table to share your experience with relatives who are away. Give long distance tours of your home. Take it to the Grand Canyon and finally capture what the views are truly like.
Cost: $79 on Amazon

2. The gadget: Griffin Helo TC RC Helicopter for iPad/iPod touch/iPhone
What does it do?: It’s a helicopter that uses your iPhone (or iPad or iPod Touch) as the remote control.
Practical uses: Spend an afternoon flying the helicopter around your living room. Chase your dog with it. Buy two, and race them.
Cost: $49.99 from Target

3. The gadget: iPhone Photo Cube Printer
What does it do?: Dock your phone on the 7″ x 4″ x 6″ cube and it prints a 4 x 6 of your selected photo, while simultaneously charging your phone.
Practical uses: Is your computer and printer all the way down the hall, but you need a picture print right now, without the hastle of hooking your phone up to the computer to transfer it or emailing it to yourself? Enter the cube printer. Let’s face it—iPhone users are used to getting what they want when they want it.
Cost: $159.99 from the Sharper Image or (currently out of stock) $99.95 from Adorama

4. The gadget: Smartak Audio Wireless Waterproof Shower Speaker
What does it do?: Dock your phone on the transmitter, and dangle the speaker on the shower head. Works from 150 feet away, so your phone is safe from steam.
Practical uses: Turn up the sound and rock along with your favorite singers to save family members from your off key a cappella.
Cost: $69.99 on Amazon

5. The gadget: The iPhone Seat Buddy
What does it do?: Allows you to hang your iphone safely from the back of a front car seat.
Practical uses: I am including this mainly because of the hilarious description on Sharper Image that makes it sound like watching a movie on your iPhone is the most trying, taxing experience your body has ever had. But for a practical use, this allows your toddler to watch a movie from their carseat without the expense of a DVD player.
Cost: $19.99 on Sharper Image

6. The gadget: Fisher Price Laugh & Learn Apptivity Case
What does it do?: Turns your iphone into a teether. Slide your iPhone in the teething toy, and your baby or toddler can no longer dribble and drool on the phone when playing with his or her favorite baby apps.
Practical uses: You know your baby can’t get enough of your iPhone, but you are tired of your little drool monster leaving smudges and smears. You will appreciate the time your baby can spend entertained by the apps, and your iPhone will thank you!
Cost: $14.99 on Amazon

7. The gadget: Memorex SingStand Home Karaoke System
What does it do?: Set your phone in the mic stand and amplify your voice as you sing along to music on your iPhone.
Practical uses: Host a Karaoke party. Get serious about training for your X Factor audition. Entertain your date when you invite them in after dinner. (Maybe wait a until after a month of dating before you try that one.)
Cost: $64.99 on Amazon

And you thought they couldn’t love their iPhone any more than they already do. Happy shopping!

An interesting report was released by Experion Simmons regarding the use of Social Media in the US. The report defined “social media” as: “visiting social or professional networking sites, visiting photo or video sharing sites, visiting online forums or message boards or using social tagging or bookmarking at least once in the last 30 days.” Even with this comprehensive definition of social media, the widespread use of social media found in the study is impressive:

• 91% of online adults (129 million people) access social media per month. Broken down by age:
• 98% of online 18-24 year olds
• 82% of online 55-64 year olds
• 73% of those 65+

Of online adults, 58% visit Facebook monthly, which is significant, although it also shows that all of the above social media use isn’t solely from Facebook. (Although Facebook is clearly the dominant social media site.) The largest age group visiting Facebook once per month is 18-34 year olds at 73%. And those 50+ stands at 41%, up from only 33% in 2010.

Regarding time spent, Facebook users spend 20 minutes and 46 seconds average each time they visit. (I know I’ve been pulled into that time suck—once or twice today already!) Twitter users spend 0:12:41 average, and Google+ spend 0:5:45 average.

The study also found interesting results regarding Hispanic consumers: they are more likely to interact with brands, write reviews, and make recommendations than their non-Hispanic counterparts.

• 30% follow favorite brands, compared to 18% of non-Hispanic users
• 33% use social sharing sites to recommend companies or products, compared to 23% of others.

And finally, if you want an effective marketing campaign, you’ve got to have eblasts. To make your eblasts more powerful, mention Facebook. According to the study, “60% of brands that sent out an email with the word “Facebook” in the subject line averaged a 27% increase in traffic to their website the week following the email deployment.”

The study also covers access to Google+ weekly visits, the growing use of social media to communicate between parents and children on social media, where users visit after social sites, mobile and more. Download the full Experian Social Media Study.

I think this cartoon being reposted by like-minded people on Facebook says it all. This morning, the only inconvenience I found when I checked out the new redesign was that half of my friend’s usually interesting posts were complaining—again—that Facebook updated the way it works—again.

But those same people probably also complained through the past revolutions, and I’m sure if given the choice after a few days of getting used to the new way, they would never revert back to the old. To prove the point, I checked for past screenshots of how “TheFacebook” used to work.

In 2005, we have TheFacebook, where your profile was your home screen and you were forced to lurk around the site to snoop in on what was going on with your friends.

In 2007, we have more of a news feed on the profile page. Complainy Complainersons statuses probably said, “What? Nooo! Where is the big ugly banner ad?” or “What? How will I know what I am interested in or my hobbies if it isn’t on my home screen?”

In 2008, we have the introduction of Tabs. Complainies said, “Where are my friends in the sidebar?” and “Each post takes up so much space because of that stupid profile pic next to it. I have to scroll down. Too much scrolling!”

In 2009 we have the reintroduction of friends in the sidebar, as well as recent posts and some little ads. “What? Ads? You mean you want to make money off of the free service you are offering me?”

Later in 2009, the big change to news feeds away from the profile page. And you can hear the chorus now, “Where are my tabs? Where is my flair?”

And of course, you remember the Facebook of yesterday. Or do you? Have you already forgotten the “Most Recent” and “Top News”? Too distracted by the new flagged top stories and interesting live sidebar news feed?

In two weeks, if Facebook changes back (which they won’t, as they keep on trucking forward like the improving monster they are), I know those Complainy Complainersons would be saying, “Where are my lists? Where is my ability to subscribe to all posts, most posts, or only important posts from friends?”

Because after the minor inconvenience of learning it, Facebook change is good. So buck up and stop complaining!

My interest was piqued last week when at least 4 separate friends on Facebook posted that Pinterest was sucking their life away—because they loved it so much. After exploring this trendy new website a bit, I can see why it has certainly captured hours of time from people across the country. The site allows people to create “virtual pinboards”, “collecting” things from around the web that inspire them. (The images in this post are ones I would pin or repin to my Kid Inspired board.)

You can just lurk around the site without getting involved, as there is plenty to see. Just checking out the homepage, you’ll certainly find a picture that interests you. If you click the category or the pinboard title, you’ll be brought to even more interesting and inspiring related pictures. About 15 minutes of my time was sucked away when an image of a kid’s Halloween costume caused me to type in the search looking for ideas for my son, which brought up thousands of creative ideas to use, adapt, or build on.

If you decide to join the community, you can create your own pinboards of things you find as you are casually browsing the web. You can add a “Pin It” button that lets you pin items directly from the source where you find them. And you can follow people, or people’s specific boards that interest you. Apparently the community is exclusive—I’m still waiting for my invitation, which makes me want to start pinning that much more.

The site may just be a passing trend, like Facebook’s Flare and others that have lost their glory after a while. Or it may have staying power. It seems like a useful, clean tool for anyone planning an event, like a wedding, kid’s birthday party, or anything else you think about for a long time before implementing. It’s easier and less messy than ripping pages out of a magazine throughout the year that you will never get around to filing.

It also could be useful for anyone who is creative for a living—interior designers, web designers, print designers. I am probably going to get in trouble for posting this, since I know several of the creatives at the office, if they haven’t started pinning already, will be pulled into this time-suck and lose hours of their weekend pinning away.

It also may have interesting brand use, if done correctly. Nordstrom already seems to have the hang of it, with 2,688 followers. They have created boards based on fall fashion, dresses, colors, purses. If a brand can stick with the idea of the site—things that people are passionate about—they could find easy success.

This doesn’t even have to mean you pin only images of your products—a hospital could pin inspiring health pictures, and another board of newborn pictures with permission from the parents. A homebuilder could post artsy pictures of the design of their model homes along with other inspiring design ideas. A rule exists that you can’t be self-promotional, so most brands would have to mix their own pictures with other pictures that inspire, but that makes it easier and more fun, still positioning your brand as a thought leader.

So, when you have a few hours on your hands, go ahead and check it out. I apologize in advance for all the time I’ve just effectively eliminated from your Angry Birds playing time!

The University of Iowa Tippie MBA program has gotten bored with the 800 word essays. Last year they had 307 applicants to their program. Imagine being in charge of admissions—how boring to read 245,600 words from people using big words to sound smart! (As I learned in college, never use a big word when a diminutive one will do.)

So they’ve decided to have a scholarship contest, and they will award one full-tuition scholarship to the applicant who most cleverly and creatively answers the following in 140 characters or less: “What makes you an exceptional Tippie Full-time MBA candidate and future MBA hire? Creativity encouraged!“ Applicants can also include a link in their tweet to a video, blog, or whatever they’d like.

While they say they they are doing this because “This would give us a lot more depth and show us more about a candidate than an essay would show,” it’s clearly a gimmick for marketing attention, and a brilliant one at that. Applicants still have to apply and be admitted to the program in order to take advantage of the scholarship. All other applicants are still filling out the standard application, which includes a personal essay and additional essays, so the formal application and essays still stand. It’s said that “Twitter is the Snuggie of social marketing,” because every news magazine wants to talk about it, regardless of its irrelevance. And this is a story news sites will pick up on. (As they have, including USA Today, Huffington Post, and even overseas at The Telegraph.)

Last year the MBA program only had 307 applicants, according to one such buzz article in Bloomberg Businessweek. I’m sure this contest will draw a larger pool of people interested in seeing whether they can compose a $37,000 tweet. Plus, I didn’t know the University of Iowa had an MBA program. Now, because of this contest, it’s on my radar.

So this post is my buzz article. And here is my Tweet for the scholarship, complete with kisses and hugs. Here’s to hoping I win!:

Pick me. I won’t use it, I just want to win for the publicity. So you don’t have to pay, and we both get the social media buzz. xoxoxoxo

My husband and I recently took a trip to the Grand Canyon, Sedona, and Scottsdale which was incredible. A seven day break, seeing one of the seven wonders of the world, hiking in one of the most beautiful cities in the country, and then relaxing in a posh hotel in Scottsdale.

With all of the hiking involved in the trip, we wanted to be sure we had great hotels in which to relax and rest up in each evening. So I turned to Trip Advisor reviews to find comfortable, clean, affordable, and quality hotels in each location. If a hotel had a low overall rating, I skipped it. If the rating was above average, I’d check out the first page of reviews.

I noticed that there are several Complainy Complainersons out there, especially online, who will take their negative attitude and subject it on the world wide web from the soapbox that review sites provide. (People complained about the high desk in the lobby of one hotel, since it wasn’t friendly enough for them to look over a desk that was chest height. I don’t know about you, but that certainly wouldn’t make or break my stay. We ended up staying there, and yes, the desk was high. Offensive? No. But high.)

But I also could tell the legitimate complaints that might may be problems I’d worry about. Mostly, if I read a lot of rational complaints, I’d move on. But some hotels had a secret weapon—a response each time a reviewer complained. It always included a simple apology followed by the hotel’s explanation for the situation—the issue was resolved with a credit at checkout, security was dispatched and the fighting couple was sent away, someone came and chopped the high desk in half to bring it to a more reasonable level, etc.

And this followup worked for me. I was able to read both sides of the story and assess if I thought the hotel was reasonable, and if I was dealing with a Complainy Complainerson.

It’s even possible the followup was able to bring the miffed reviewers back to the hotel—according to The Retail Consumer Report, which surveyed people who shopped online during the 2010 holiday season. Of those who posted a complaint, 68% received a response from the retailer. Of those people:

• 18% turned into loyal customers and bought more
• 33% posted a positive review
• 34% deleted their original negative review

The rest, we’ll guess, were Complainy Complainersons. They probably went on to examine desk heights at other shops.

What’s more, 61% of consumers interviewed said they would be shocked if a retailer responded to their negative reviews. So what do you say, why not go check out your company’s negative reviews and jolt some people a bit?

We recently helped a client, American Guardian Warranty Services Inc., bring their online reputation to par with their BBB rating. They have an  A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau, but a lot of Complainy Complainersons were at work against them online. AGW didn’t have much online content and did not have the time to address the negative reviews they received on consumer forums. That’s where we came in.

We found negative reviews posted on forums. We then addressed complaints with AGW’s side of the story, and provided additional information about AGW to future viewers on the forum. We provided trackable links to direct readers to pages with more specific information such as the BBB report. Check out one such example below.

If you’d like us to help you take charge of your online reputation, contact us.