If you’ve been on Facebook or Twitter within the last 24 hours, you’ve probably heard of a thing called Pinterest. If not, it’s definitely worth taking a look. Pinterest is yet another social networking site, except this version is completely based on visuals. Basically, after browsing around on Pinterest for about five minutes, you’ll see that your informational mini-feed is a series of images, quotes, and projects about anything and everything including… travel!
So, how does Pinterest work? Well, you have categories (called “boards”) and when you see something you like on the internet or Pinterest, you “pin” the image to your board. Then you can write a description, tag friends in posts, and create trending topics. Pretty simple, right?
If you want some practice, sunglasswarehouse dot com is hosting a Spring Break 2012 contest to help you learn as well as excite your Spring Break travel bug. Because as you know, we humans learn by doing, and after completing something like this you should be a pro. Plus, you might win the 2 pairs of sunglasses and $50 Target gift card! Learning and winning? Sounds like a win-win to me.
Now, a few quick user tips to help you make the most out of Pinterest along with some ways travelers can use it to their advantage.
A Few Quick Tips on How to Use Pinterest
Tip #1: To “pin” things from websites other than Pinterest, visit Pinterest’s Goodies page and apply the “pin it” button to your internet explorer’s toolbar. Then, whenever you see a gorgeous beach photo or even like your own picture from the Alps, all you need to do is click the “pin it” button in your toolbar and you’re good to go!
Tip #2: Okay, so let’s say you pinned a picture of your beloved beat-up travel backpack for #7 in the contest above, and you want people who click on it to visit your blog post about it. Simply pin your picture to a board, click “edit,” and paste the URL of your desired webpage destination into the link field. Finally, say hello to blog traffic!
Tip #3: You might be wondering, “Wait, what if my favorite afternoon activity (#5) is a picture of a hike I took on Spring Break ’07, and that picture is only on my computer’s hard drive?” If you have awesome pictures from pre-internet days, simply upload them from your computer to Pinterest using the “+Add” button in any page’s top right corner.
Tip #4: Is your photo’s moment great but doesn’t have the bold colors you need? Upload your photo to Pixlr.com for some cool vintage effects and maybe it will get repinned a few more times!
Tip #5: Use the search bar to find anything and everything imaginable. Just use the search toolbar or the subcategories under “everything” to find what you need!
As a traveler, what are 7 things I can do with Pinterest besides the contest’s 10 things? Glad you asked!
- Find cool travel products like a Lego travel speaker.
- Decide where to take your next exotic vacation
- Get inspired by searching “travel quote”
- Create your own DIY travel journal or other do-it-yourself projects
- Print out a nifty packing checklist by searching “packing checklist”
- Figure out what you’re going to wear for your Spring Break vacation
- Jot down a recipe for trail mix for your next outdoors adventure
Author bio: Nate Schrader, writer for SunglassWarehouse.com, typically writes on anything from what sunglasses you need for your next vacation to sun safety tips. However, he likes to think outside the box with Pinterest sometimes to dream up some big ideas. Happy travels!
