Pinterest For Dummies

Chapter 2

Creating Boards

In This Chapter

Determining your interests

Adding your first board

Reorganizing and editing your boards

Removing a board

When you sign up for Pinterest (see Chapter 1), you’re given the option to automatically add some boards based on suggestions from Pinterest. Creating your first board is easy, and now you have time to put some thought into it.

Boards are the main organization system for Pinterest and are designed to be a simulation of a pinboard hanging up on your wall. It might help to think of boards as buckets with labels on them. Boards organize your pins into a variety of topics, and you get to create those topics. For instance, Figure 2-1 shows my Geeky Goodness board, where I collect articles and pictures that appeal to my geek side.

Figure 2-1: An example Pinterest board.

Picking a Topic

Before you create a new board, consider what interests you have that others might have as well. By creating boards that cover interests that others share, you can encourages people to follow you or your boards and engage with those who share your interests. You can be general, or you can be specific, but it should be an interest that will have content worth pinning. Pinterest has become known for certain genres of content (such as food and crafts), but you need not limit yourself to traditionally pretty or artistic topics.

For example, Star Wars and Harry Potter are wildly popular topics. Some boards are general, such as business and travel. For example, I have a board that’s simply called “red.” Some boards are extremely specific, such as Mason jars and paint chip crafts.

A board with just a pin or two isn’t very appealing, so before you create a board be sure you’re interested enough in the topic to populate it with pins.

When creating boards, you need not limit yourself to personal interests. You can also get creative and use boards for business purposes. You can create a board of ideas for work projects, or you can use a board to creatively promote topics of interest to your readers or customers if you have a blog or a business. For example, if you have a gaming blog, you can create a board of your favorite games; if you sell jewelry, you can create a board of colors or images in nature that inspire your work.

Creating Your First Board

To create a new board on Pinterest, follow these steps:

1. Sign in to your Pinterest account and click the Add+ button in the top-right corner of the Pinterest home page.

The Add dialog box appears and presents you with three choices: Add a Pin, Upload a Pin, and Create a Board. (See Figure 2-2.)

2. Click the Create a Board option.

3. When prompted, enter the basic information about your board: the name, category, and who can pin on this board. (See Figure 2-3.)

Check out the following sections for more information on naming, categorizing, and deciding who can contribute to your board.

Figure 2-2: The Add dialog box lets you add pins or create a new board.

Figure 2-3: Choose a board name, category, and contributors for your new board.

As you’re creating a board, it doesn’t have a spot for a description. After you create your board, click the Edit Board button in the top-middle of your board and add a description. This isn’t necessary, but it does appear at the top of the page when someone visits your board. You can also find out more about editing your board later in this chapter.

Naming your board

Pinterest is a unique animal on the Internet. In most cases online, being straightforward and clear is ideal. Because creativity is so prevalent on Pinterest, consider mixing boards that have unique and clever names with others that have basic, plain names.

For example, I have a board of craft and DIY projects. I could have named it that, but instead I named it “Stuff I Will Never Get Around to Making.” My board related to children is “For the Short People.” Although you won’t always have inspiration to get clever, when you can it’s more engaging. The trick is to be both clever and clear so people understand what they can find on the board.

You can always go back and change it later. Keep in mind, however, that after you name a board, it sets the URL for the board. If you later change it, the URL will also change (and any links to the board directly will no longer work). Check out the “Editing Your Boards” section, later in this chapter, to find out how to rename your board.

You can have the same board name as other users because the final URL for your board will include your username (in a format of pinterest.com/USERNAME/BOARDNAME).

Board names have a 180-character limit, so you have to keep it brief. Also, the board name can get cut short in some instances, such as on your profile page. Avoid using any more than seven words.

Choosing a category

Pinterest allows people to browse by category, so be sure to choose a category that accurately describes your board.

In most instances, identifying a category for your board is pretty clear. Pinterest has several categories that cover a wide variety of topics. Click the down-pointing arrow on the right end of the Board Category field (refer to Figure 2-3) and use the drop-down menu to choose the one that best fits. Again, you can change this later. (See the “Editing Your Boards” section, later in this chapter, to find out how.)

You’re limited to the category options Pinterest makes available. Unfortunately, some boards don’t categorize well. If that’s the case for your board, find the best fit (or something general, such as My Life) and move on — don’t let it stop you from creating a board that’s a good idea.

Picking a category can be tricky at times, especially if you have a board that would fall nicely into two different categories. In some instances, it’s a judgment call on your part as to which is best. If you’re torn, you can also look at other pins in the categories you’re considering to help determine which is the better fit.

Deciding who can contribute to your board

You can create a board that only you can pin to, or you can create a board that allows other Pinterest users to contribute to it. In most situations, especially if you’re new to Pinterest, a solo board (where only you can add items) makes the most sense. To create a board that only you can pin to, select the Just Me option next to the Who Can Pin? question. (Refer to Figure 2-3.)

Searchability versus creativity

Being creative when naming your Pinterest boards is counter to search engine optimization best practices (and I’m seeing Pinterest boards appear frequently in Google search results). This is something for you to note and to consider. Still, I would argue that Pinterest is a place to showcase your creativity. I believe you’ll have more impact by being interesting in Pinterest than by ranking higher in Google search results. I recommend having a combination of boards with creative names and boards with straightforward names to gain the benefits of both creativity on Pinterest and search engine rankings.

On the other hand, a group board offers many interesting possibilities, such as the following:

Collaborating on work projects, such as sharing articles that offer tips on a specific industry or case studies that are relevant to the staff

Planning a home renovation with your family and contractors, sharing things such as color schemes, sample rooms, DIY project articles, and room layouts that you like

Promoting a joint cause or topic, sharing content that is relevant such as statistics on the issue, ways to donate or volunteer, and stories of people helped by the cause

Sharing seasonal or topical content, such as a holiday cookie board to collect and share recipes or a Mother’s Day board to share crafts for kids to make gifts

To create a group board, select the Me + Contributors option. (See Figure 2-4.) You can add members either by their Pinterest member name or their e-mail address. Figure 2-4 shows what happens if you start typing a member name in the text box: Pinterest automatically populates a list of possible matches, and you can select the right person from the list. Then just click the Add button next to the name.

To invite someone via e-mail, type or paste in e-mail addresses one at a time in the field that appears when you click Me + Contributors and then click Add.

Some people don’t like to be added to boards without being asked first, especially because the boards then appear on their own profiles. When in doubt, it’s best to check with people first before you add them to a group board.

Figure 2-4: You can add contributors to a board.

Rearranging Your Boards

After you create some boards, you may want to rearrange them to bring your favorite and most well-pinned boards to the top. To rearrange your boards, follow these instructions:

1. Go to your profile page by clicking your name in the top-right corner of the screen.

2. Click the Rearrange Boards icon (which looks like a computer screen with two arrows) under your name and bio in the center of the screen directly to the right of the words Edit...