Simple Tech Series #1: Pinterest -

I get a lot of emails and messages asking for help on websites I frequent. In response, I thought like a teacher: if a few people have these questions, a lot of people might have the same questions! So, for your convenience, and mine too, I guess, I am writing a series of tutorials for popular websites. Over the course of this series, I will cure your ails with Pinterest, Twitter, Blogger, Google Reader and Picnik. I will give you the basics on the problems that are troubling you most, and if you have any other questions or sites you would like me to explain, please let me know in the BRAND NEW, EASY TO USE!!! comment section below.

Tutorial One: Pinterest

How do you create an account?

1. Visit www.pinterest.com

2. Request an Invite

3. You will receive an email guiding you through the sign up process; sometimes this takes a few days because the site is becoming so popular.

What are pins and boards?

On your page, you have boards. A board is a category or folder that you place pins. So, for example, you may have a board called Recipes. You would pin any cool recipes you find to this board. A pin is an image from a website that you think is pretty, cool, brilliant, noteworthy, etc. You can place that image on your boards so that you have all of your awesome internet ideas in one place! When you click on the pin, it takes you back to the website where you found that awesome idea, item, gift (you get the idea).

Where do you find pins?

You can find pins two different ways. You can browse the actual Pinterest site to see what other users are pinning. You can repin one of their pins by hovering over the picture and clicking “repin.” The site will then ask you to pick a board to place your pin. The second way is to pin something from another website. This method is shown in the video below (sorry about the quality, but I think it’s pretty helpful still):

What is an @Mention?

If you pin a pin that you think a friend on Pinterest would like, simply type @ and that person’s name. That person will see a notification in their @Mentions and be able to view the pin you want her to see.

What makes a good pin?

Describe your pin the best you can. Use as many key words as possible. When people search Pinterest, they will never see your awesome rainbow cake recipe if all you write in the description is “yum!” Instead, say something like “yummy rainbow cake recipe from (website)”. It’s always great to add the source to a pin as well. It’s just a nice thumbs up to the creator or originator.

How do you follow people?
You can search and follow people based on their Facebook name. You can also choose to follow all of their boards or just selected ones. See a board or member whose pins you admire? Go ahead and follow. It is not unusual to follow or be followed by people you don’t know.

Gee, Jenna, how do we follow you?
Well, I’m glad you asked. Go to the top of this page and click on the “P” in the upper right corner. Thanks for following me ;)

I hope this tutorial gives you the confidence to start your Pinterest addiction. How did this tutorial work for you? What else would you like to know? Are there any other sites you would like to learn to use? Tell me in the comment section below so I know what to improve on for you :) Happy Pinning!

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