Are you a serious Pinterest addict?
Don’t deny it. There’s nothing wrong with a little Pinterest therapy. It can be a great way to drive traffic to your website.
Just like every other social media network, Pinterest can be a powerful tool. Authors should be on Pinterest. You just need to learn how to harness it before it sucks you in.
We’ve compiled seven free tools that will help you maximize your time on Pinterest. You know, so you can be writing.
Aren’t on the site? Here’s how to set up your Pinterest account.
1. Quozio
Not feeling very creative? Don’t want to open up Paint or Photoshop? Create your own pinnable quotes in seconds. Choose from 28 different backgrounds and then copy/paste your quote.
2. Pin Alert
This site lets you find out when someone pins content from your website. Instead of wishing for serendipity to happen on the internet, you are able to discover just what is being share, where, and why. Consider it another tool to use when you need to go into full blown analytic mode.
3. Pin Search
If you’ve ever used Pinterest, you know how frustrating it is when you find something you want to buy but the link is broken. Maybe it’s a dress, a gadget, or a bookmark. Finding the original source is like searching for a needle in a haystack – while in a tornado.
Pin Search is a Chrome extension that performs a Google image search of the pin. You can track down the original item with the power of Google. It’s a powerful little tool that can help you track sources and find similar items online. We first mentioned it in our Chrome extensions post but if you haven’t added it already, add it. Add it now.
Tweetables:
- Say goodbye to your @Pinterest slump! These tools will get you pinning like a pro. – Click to tweet.
- Supercharge your pinning with these 7 free tools. – Click to tweet.
- I’m in love with these @Pinterest tools. – Click to tweet.
- Authors can be on @Pinterest. I’m just going to be smart about it. – Click to tweet.
- It’s a pretty, pretty world on @Pinterest. Enter it wisely. – Click to tweet.
4. Pin Reach
Think of this as Klout for Pinterest. Just like Klout but without the fun prizes for being popular online. Instead, you get numbers to crunch and trends to analyze…which will help you more int the long run.
You can also discover what the top trending pins are and how you can replicate their virality.
5. PinGraphy
Say what? You can now schedule your pins in advance. You can also upload a massive amount of pins all at the same time. Consider your life changed.
6. Pinterest Chimplets
This may be one of the most useful tools we’ve found. Merge your author newsletter with some of your most recent pins via MailChimp. Starting to pin the places in your next book? Get readers excited before the book hits the shelves – or even the hands of your editors!
7. ShareAsImage
There are two versions of this popular app but we suggest starting with the free version. You can create quotes by highlighting the text and then clicking the ShareAsImage toolbar in your browser.
What Pinterest tools do you swear by? Which ones were new to you?
I truly love my Firefox add-on…I just right click on an image and choose Pin Image. It’s SUCH a time saver.
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-us/firefox/addon/pinterest-right-click/
That IS a great add-on! Thanks for sharing!
I have been using Pinterest, but haven’t been using the analysis. I know what I’ll be doing today!
Have fun!
Thanks for the great information. I am just getting started and have been “collecting” ideas from all over. You did a great job of gathering up this tool list. Most of these are new to me and I will be using them.
Can anyone recommend a good way to back-up my boards and pins?
Regarding scheduling pins — Pinterest says: “Right now, we don’t have a way to schedule the time at which a board or pin is published. It’s a feature we’re thinking about carefully and may add in the future.” And then asks you to vote for it if you want it.