Hello, Hello my creative friends!
I haven’t been writing for a while, sorry about that, but I have been away on a wonderful holiday in Sicily, which for me it’s home.
At the beginning of the holiday I found it hard to stop working on my many projects and I kept doing all sort of things related to my business, but then I thought that if I kept going like that I would find myself at the end of the holiday not rested at all. So I switched off. Completely. So much so that I’m now finding hard to go back to my creative routine!
Anyway, enough about me! Today I’d like to talk to you about something that, although it’s been around since 2017, I discovered only recently: Pincodes!
What are Pincodes?
Now, you might know about these already, but from the FB groups I’m part of I discovered that many people had no idea these existed, thus I decided to find out a bit more about them and let you know what they are and how to use them.
Pinterest has relatively recently introduced a new way (the Pincodes) for its users to make the most of this great platform and this time even offline!
These Pincodes have great potential for boosting your brand visibility and it’s a really good idea to find out how they can work for your business.
The Pinterest Pincodes work in a similar way to the more known QR codes. You can simply scan the image using your camera app and, in the case of Pincodes, you will be directed to a specific profile or board on Pinterest which contains the item featured in the Pincode itself.
The way Pincodes differ from the traditional QR codes is that they actually display an image, that can be selected by its creator and viewed through a circular window. In this case the users can immediately see if they are interested in the pin or not. On the right is an example of the Pincode I created for my digital prints board, why not give it a try :-) further down the post I explain how to open a Pincode…
Instead of just black and white squiggles here you can see an image that can entice people to follow the link to find out more, so even offline you can still show off your favourite images. All that people need to do, is go to the Pinterest app on the phone, open the camera and, as if by magic, they’re there!
You don’t even need to add text to your Pincodes as the images will be very self-explanatory.
These Pincodes can be included anywhere you like: your website, blog, social media… And even better, you can put them on physical media, such as brochures and magazines!
In this way, customers browsing for example on a catalogue or magazine, can be taken directly to your Pinterest board by scanning the associated Pincode.
You can imagine how this could be beneficial to your potential customers whom will be able to see an image of your product even before getting to your shop.
Here is another suggestion for you: how about creating a Pincode on a specifically-made business card to hand out at trade shows and conferences? You could create a Pinterest board that showcases your best work and direct potential customers there!
How do I create a Pincode? I hear you ask.
Well that is incredibly simple. You just need to go to your board and click on the symbol with the little dots around a central larger dot just above the name of your board. At this point a pop up window will let you chose the picture you would like to feature in your Pincode. Then all you have to do is click on download your Pincode.
You can also generate a profile Pincode by tapping on your profile image.
Example of the popup window where you can chose to change the picture.
Remember to use an appealing and clear image to represent your board, something that will entice people to follow the link.
If you decide to print your Pincode in a physical publication, make sure that the image will be flat, and no more than 1.5 inches in diameter. This will help to ensure that the code can be scanned reliably.
What to do if you see a Pincode that you like and want to follow the link?
1. Open the Pinterest app on your iPhone or Android phone
2. Tap your Pinterest camera (up next to the Search bar).
3. Point your phone at the Pincode to instantly access Pins, boards etc. on Pinterest. (No need to take a picture!)
Tell me, did you already know about Pincodes? Have you used them? If so, let me know in the comments below. I’d love to hear what your experience is using them. If you’ve never used them before, do you think you will in the future?
Till next time, create and be happy!
xox Katia
