Pin-mania, what’s your strategy for branding on Pinterest?

As the resident social media manager at R&R, my job requires that I am up to date on all things social, which essentially means I spend a great deal of time reading about Facebook, Twitter and any new or buzz-worthy social darling. The latest platform to flirt with the masses is Pinterest. In case your job description does not include reading copious amounts of social media related material, Pinterest is a virtual pinboard that allows you to “organize and share all the beautiful things you find on the web.”

Turns out, there is much to share. In fact, Pinterest was ranked in the top 10 social networks by Hitwise in December 2011 and comScore reported 11.7 million unique users in January 2012. Yet, it appears pinning is for women, with a whopping 80% of those unique users representing the fairer sex.  Now why is it that women love it and men shun it? Perhaps it has something to do with an overwhelming number of boards devoted to fairy-tale weddings and bouncing babies. However, there are just as many boards promoting fitness and travel, both gender-neutral topics.

As a woman-owned company you could say it was only natural that we’d take up pinning. However, the opportunities to socially engage on a local or global scale and create additional touch points for potential brand advocates are far more compelling then the ratio of xx to xy chromosomes currently pinning.

Using Pinterest for professional as opposed to personal purposes does remove a bit of the romantic and wistful qualities of the site, but it does allow us to create a visual story board for our fans, followers and clients to partake in the act of design. Currently, we are experimenting with the boards for two logo projects. The projects will remain unnamed until they are completed, but with color choices, font selections and inspirational elements we are offering a peek into the typically private world of creative concepting. Our hope is that through these boards, we will gain followers who check back frequently to see the evolution of a design from start to finish as well as individuals who are drawn to our aesthetic and share it with others.

Pinterest may be female-centric now, but as with any social media platform it can change tomorrow. So don’t turn your nose up because there are more dresses than suits scouring the site. Instead, focus on creating a sound strategy that can successfully meet the marketing objectives for your business.

Bringing Bedside Manner to your Keyboard

Hospitals, although conservative in nature and often slow to adopt new ways of communicating, are testing out the social media waters. In fact, as noted in his blog, University of Maryland Medical Center’s web operations manager Ed Bennett records that there are currently 548 hospital YouTube Channels, 1,018 hospital Facebook pages, 788 hospital Twitter accounts, 458 hospital LinkedIn accounts, 913 hospital participating on Four Square and 137 hospital blogs. With these statistics, it’s becoming apparent that even though there is still trepidation and fear of creating hospital-related social media platforms, many organizations are willing to take the plunge. One such hospital is the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute located in Tampa, Florida. The Cancer Center opened its doors to patients in 1986 and has since created an environment where research, education and patient care thrive. From 2009 to 2010 they saw admissions increase from 7,742 to 8,616 and outpatient visits grow from 289,502 to 320,558, proving that they are continuously striving to provide the best possible programs studies.

Although Moffitt Cancer Center is well known throughout the Tampa community and consistently garners attention within the healthcare industry, there is a push to promote the organization to a wider audience and connect with a variety of audience members from patients and caregivers to volunteers and referring physicians. Which leads me to the reason for this blog post, Rhyme & Reason Design, LLC has recently been awarded the opportunity to assist  H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute with their social media activities. As social media partners, we will be working closely with the onsite marketing team, as well as the website agency of record, Bridgeline Digital. Through combined efforts, we will help establish a strong social presence through customized design, a strategic plan and consistent, dynamic communication.

At this point in time we are merely scratching the surface of the social communications platform we will be developing for H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center, but we hope that you, our loyal readers, can celebrate with us as this exciting opportunity unfolds.