3 ways event planners can use Pinterest

Pinterest is a social network that is driven by images and creative inspiration. In other words, it's an event planner's best friend.

Not only is Pinterest a fun social network, Pinterest is also a very powerful business platform that can be used to inform, inspire and promote the events that we host. With that, I present my top three tips for using Pinterest as an event planner.

Inspiration

Pinterest is a great place to find inspiration for event themes, menu ideas, decorations for special events, or any other visual aspect of your event. It is chock full of beautiful tablescapes, smart event themes, and food and beverage ideas.

I encourage event planners to have a regular presence on Pinterest - log in once every few days and take note of the latest things that have been pinned. Not only will you be able to grow your social presence on this network by being active, you can find great inspiration for events.

Perhaps you're working on a corporate conference. Does that mean you can't find inspiration for a breakout session from a child's party? Inspiration comes in all forms and sizes, and part of our responsibility as event planners is to constantly challenge our brains and expose our minds to new ideas. Pinterest is a great way to do that.

Research

Beyond inspiration, Pinterest is a great research tool. There are thousands of articles posted that go beyond visual creative inspiration. Maybe you want to learn about sustainable events or you need to know more about gay weddings. Pinterest is a great tool for finding practical planning ideas and hard data about various topics. All you need to do is put in a search for the topic you're looking to learn more about, and you will be surprised how much information there is beyond the visual creative inspiration.

Pinterest is also great for keeping you abreast of trends in our industry. If you are an active user, you will see trends in the pins that come up in your home feed. You might start seeing a lot more barn themed or DIY weddings. Or maybe you've noticed that sustainable corporate events are getting a lot of attention. Taking note of these things will help you be a more successful planner as you will be able to adapt to the trends catching them early, rather than always trying to play catch-up years later.

Promotion

While you can gain a huge amount of information from following Pinterest, you can also use it as a promotional tool for the work that you do. The quality of work that you do is important, but these days, getting attention to that work is just as important. You can be a great event planner, but if no one knows, then you will find yourself struggling to get business.

Sharing your work on a platform like Pinterest allows you to connect with colleagues who do similar work and potential clients who are looking for planners like you. By leveraging this social network, you can share your work and bring in new business at the same time!Like any good social network, it's important that you learn the culture of Pinterest and participate using the etiquette that makes the most sense for this platform. Links are great, but having very engaging pictures is critical to success on this platform.

Also, as I always say, stay engaged on a regular basis. The more you engage with a particular social network, the greater your return will be.That's all for today, but for more social media insights, check out my previous article on how event planners can use Instagram to boost creativity and increase event signups!

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‍Guest blogger Liz King is a NYC based event planner, passionate about technology. She works with entrepreneurs and brands to host strategic events to deepen the relationship with their target market. She is the brainchild behind TechsyTalk, a platform bridging the gap between event tech and the event planner and a contributor for guest list app zkipster's blog.