As of today, my Pinterest account and I are getting a divorce. I’ve officially deleted my Pinterest account and won’t be using it anymore.
The truth is, while I’ve used it to help me design my room and had tons of great memories, it’s just not working out on a business level for Ask Aaron Lee. I can’t even remember the last time I use it……..
Sure, I could use it on a personal level but I believe it’s not worth the time as I could use it on networks which are more relevant to my core business.
I guess you could say that I’ve gradually been cheating on Mrs Pinterest. I’ve spent so much time on other networks and seeing beter results from it. I personally feel that other networks have more potential for my business compared to Pinterest.
Recently, I’ve been spending more time elsewhere. I also believe Google+ will play a huge role for my core business this year and I want to focus on that. 2013 is the year of focus for most businesses.
We clearly don’t have the time to be on too many networks…. and VINE?? Come on! how many can we manage?
It’s all about choosing social networks which fit your core business.
Having said that, my girlfriend is still using Pinterest for her women’s apparel business and it fits very well with her products.
I’m not condemning Pinterest of course. They are an amazing network, an inspiring network. Some of my friends are getting more traffic on Pinterest compared to other networks. For them, Pinterest fits with their core business because their demographics are spending a huge amount of time on it.
I believe as a business, if you want to really grow your business quickly, you have to focus and not try to be everywhere at once. Unless you’re a huge brand….. then be my guest.
Focus on where your community is spending a lot of time at and grow your community there. The important thing is building a supportive community before branching out on to other networks.
What do you think?
Hi Aaron,
For my personal fashion blog it is excellent but for iStrat and tech stuff it is useless.
John
Hi John,
You’re spot on. Its great for visual business like food, fashion, and even health.
Doesn’t really work for tech though. I still get an alright traffic from Pinterest but it doesn’t justify my time using it.
Aaron
Hi Aaron, totally agree with you. I don’t feel the need to be in everything, it just becomes unmanageable and then your readers and followers lose out. Fish where the fish are!
But Aaron, I remember your opening line to a blog last year: ‘Hi I’m Aaron, and I like to pin’
How things can change in six months!
Hi Ross!
LoL! Yeah, that is why I started it off with me and pinterest are getting a divorce. I still love pinterest, but things aren’t working out between us anymore.
Its still a great platform, but not working out for me as a business. Personal YES!
I agree Jason! That is my next post actually lol! you’re one step ahead of me. 🙂
Great post, Aaron! I love Pinterest and think it is great for some, but not all of my clients. It’s crucial to decide what is best for each individual business and stick to the plan. When it comes to additional social networks, I’d prefer to not have an account than to have an account I barely touch.. That being said, I also need to get my tail in gear with G+… 😀 #youROCK
Oh my! I love my Pinterest boards and have worked it into my routine. That being said, we all need to pick what brings meaning and success to us. I’ve ignored Instagram (except for long ago when it was just an app on my phone) and Tumblr for that reason. I know that they are wildly popular but my plate is full at the moment. Do your thing, Aaron!
I find that if people are generally excited by new technology (*raising my hand*), it’s easy to see the overall value in the variety of social tools that are being developed. In time, however, we find our groove and determine the real value to our business.
Pinterest is so highly visual that unless it’s nicely staged food (with a recipe), interesting fashion, or well designed infographics people just aren’t going to click through.
It’s a great tool for my health and fitness focused site – but also has it’s pitfalls because there are a lot of images that I don’t feel promote the healthy body message I want to promote to my audience so I am very careful about what I pin.
Nice post, Aaron.
For any social network you need to decide whether it is a good fit for your business. And if not, then cut it lose.
Two important questions to ask yourself when choosing a social network for business:
1. Is your Ideal Customer there?
2. Do I have time to devote to another network?
If it is a no to both of these then move along. 🙂
Russ
I had a hard time with it for my technology and gaming blog, but my giveaways and sweepstakes get a few extra pins here and there. I rarely use the network however other than to keep a few select boards, I haven’t really found a way to leverage it properly for Dragon Blogger.
haha this made me laugh!! Well done for social media de-cluttering!
Good for you for taking the plunge and just deleting something you don’t use anymore. Not a lot of people do that, they just leave it stagnent.
You’re making me want to delete my account now. After reading this, I evaluated how I use Pinterest and to be honest, I do not use it even for personal use anymore. I barely even use it for business use. If I were a photographer or a fashion designer, it’d be of a lot more use to me, but it’s just not.
Your post hits the nail on the head, Aaron, but I think I would have retained the account just so that another business couldn’t use your address, and perhaps masquerade as your business….
Thats the key factor, you can like something all you want but if it doesnt impact sales in your business then you have to make the call whether its worth your time or not.
Very good points! I have a pInterest account, but, until recently, I never did anything with it for many of the same reasons. I recently put all my portfolio up there and figure on using it for that…
Bud
Owner – Manz Web Designs, LLC
I agree with you Aaron about Google +. I’m now going in there on daily basis and it’s going to get more and more important. Google + is the foundation for everything that google does from here on in so we need to build up our network there!
Like you, I’m overstretched. Depends on what your priorities are and where your tribe is. My people of interest are not on Pinterest so I’m not personally going to engage there.
I am so totally with your “quality not quantity” vibe. Each social channel doesn’t work wonders for everyone. It’s a matter of finding what works for your business given your market, resources, etc. Sounds like you’ve done that and come to a very rational conclusion. Bravo!
HI Aaron, I’ve Pinerest to be great for traffic and I stopped use Stumble Upon so I could use that time on Pinterest. Each network has their niche and we can’t be everywhere at the same time all the time. So good for you. I didn’t delete my SU account, maybe I should?
Hi Russel,
Just gave you a ^1! 😀
Two excellent questions covered! you’re one step ahead of me. I had similar questions that I’ve written down for my next post.
Other questions would be, do we have the “budget” to get someone to monitor for us.
“Do your thing” well said Peg!
I know you’re a huge fan of pinterest! I follow most of your boards and i love them lol! I’m a huge fan of instagram btw lol! i can’t remember a day I don’t log in!
You basically summed it up Jay! 😀 thank you for adding that.
Hi Lisa,
I agree! each network has their niche and some do better than others. Since I’m quite active on most networks except Pinterest, i opt to delete it since it didn’t do me any good.
Thank you Lisa! I believed I made the right choice too! *phew*
Cheers! We should all focus on networks that will help us and not slow us down 🙂
Couldn’t agree with you more Ian! Like you mentioned G+ is the foundation for everything that is on google. I’m seeing good results although I don’t spend the time that I should there. Makes you think what we can accomplish if we dedicate our time there.
thank you for stopping by. (see you on g+)
If you can find a reason for it, good on you Bud! 😀
That is a good reason to be there. I believe although you deleted your account , your username would still be yours and you could even activate it back. (according to pinterest)
Spot on Morgan, visual businesses works really well on Pinterest. My girlfriend spends her time there since she has a fashion store and it works wonders for her.
Not for me, I actually wanted to leave it stagnent but it had no benefits except for the vanity URL.
have you decided to delete your account?
too much! its confusing! lol
Same thing here, that is why I removed it. Wasn’t worth the time anymore. Motivates me to stay away from it too lol.
Hi Dana,
Health and fitness do really well on Pinterest. I’m seeing tons of share from friends who uses it. You definitely are on the right network.
and you’re right, we’re soooooo excited with the new technology, we kinda lose sight on our strategy and goals.
You’re right, each of us should stick to the best. Only problem for us is we hear all the “hoo haw” and we are afraid to be the one left out lol.
You better get your bu** on g+! Its definitely kicking off.
Do you rate any of the image based social networks for your business(es) Aaron?
Interesting perspective, Aaron. I must admit – although not every business has a ‘relevant’ tie in with Pinterest, I have seen some traffic to blog posts through Pinterest. Although I don’t put “as” much time in there, i tend to take one day a week and pin the previous week’s blog posts on there. It takes only 5 minutes and still helps my traffic.
Just another perspective.
I started to click on things, but I was like what I am going to use this for, so I went back to linked-In and started to tweet and was found by a Social Media Company. I do see the value if you want to sell something that is not abstract, but a real object. I am in agreement though, if it a IT related service, then it would be rather difficult, borderline impossible.
I started to click on things, but I was like what I am going to use this for? I went back to Linked-In and started to tweet and was found by a Social Media Company. I do see the value if you want to sell something that is not abstract, but a real object. I am in agreement though, if it is a IT related service, then it would be rather difficult, borderline impossible to get the ‘point across.’
I’m a writer and a designer and I’m in love with Pinterest. It’s a great place for a 10-minute inspiration break. (I use a timer with a buzzer!) Lately I’ve been using it to create “mood boards” to help clients “see” their visual identity and share in it’s creation. When I leave Pinterest I feel refreshed – I can’t say that about other platforms. It’s a keeper for me.
We use FB all the time, tweet, instagram, and pinterest. So far it just eats time although we have made a few worthwhile connections, and Feel the Hugs keeps getting known.
Hi Aaron,
I only use Pinterest at work for inspiration when helping clients. I rarely use Pinterest at home when blogging but I do maintain my profile on there for when I get sick of Twitter or Facebook since its a unique kind of network I suppose in a way.
Google+??? LOL! That will play “a huge role” for nobody. Except maybe Google.
I am thinking of dropping pinterest because I can’t retrieve my pins. They always say there was a technical difficulty at their end. What’s the point of being on pinterest if I can’t get my pins?
This is, once again, a proper example for an misleading title in online articles
I think that if you are removing Pinterest from your life, that you should take the ability to pin away from other users of this site, like myself….