My reasons for choosing Pinterest as the topic of discussion today comes from a couple different thoughts. 1, it is International Women's Day on Friday, March 8 and I wanted to touch on a topic that will relate to women. Which leads to my second reason. 2, Pinterest's users are primarily (97%) females that are young, well-educated and have a disposable income. So, I write this to celebrate women. Women who have embraced the world on a variety of levels. Women who have grown up and had the opportunity to educate themselves. Women who have found a career and worked hard to create a disposable income for themselves. Women who can now take the opportunity to sit on the couch, embrace technology/social media, and drink that glass of wine while getting inspiration for their lives. Congratulations women for working so hard and achieving such status in society! You deserve to spend that time on the computer reconstructing your home, wardrobe, cooking, baking, crafts, gardens, hairstyles and oh so much more! 

Now, a look at Pinterest. 

Pros:
- it is a great place to connect with other women
- it is a strong visual tool for redecorating your home, reworking your wardrobe, tons of hairstyle ideas, a wedding planner, a great tool for lesson plans for teachers and much much more
- you can window shop as long as you want without even having to leave the comforts of your home. If you aren't a big online shopper this can save you tons of money as you can look through the piles of ideas and pick your favourite one before going out and spending your money (and if your an online shopper...well, you won't be saving money, but Pinterest helps make it easier for you to do all your shopping by collecting all topics in one location)

Cons:
- for marketers it can be tough to ensure your links remain intact as things get "repinned" so often links can get lost or broken
- some copyright issues have arisen as it is so quick and easy to "pin" something to a board
- you lose track of time VERY quickly!

I am a big fan of Pinterest. It allows me to see what is current. We are redoing our kitchen right now and I have used Pinterest for some redecorating ideas. I am also the Maid-of-Honour in a wedding this summer and I have used Pinterest to keep track of different wedding ideas (cakes, invites, hairstyles, dresses, shoes, gifts, pictures, etc) for the bride. I go on Pinterest at least 3 times a week looking for new cooking or baking ideas. I especially love it as we get closer to Holidays (St. Patrick's Day, Easter) as it gives me ideas for special foods and home decorating ideas. Of course, I always love browsing through the clothing and hairstyle choices for myself too. It gives me great ideas for Date Night (both wardrobe and hair), or everyday attire. It is easy to get addicted...but also super handy to have around. 

So women, congratulations on achieving such status in society today! We have done a great job earning rights and freedom in our Country. Keep up the great work, and relax every once in a while to enjoy this ever-growing new social media site, Pinterest. 

People tend to get overwhelmed when thinking about online marketing. There are so many options for them and it's tough to know just where to begin. If you aren't careful you can very quickly become overwhelmed by all your options and attempts to do too much. So I am going to start breaking down a 12 month process to help you work through the best way to build your online presence. 

Month 1: LISTEN!
This month, focus on listening to your clients/customers/target audience. By listening to them you will figure out the best way to appeal to their needs. You can listen through:
- Google Alerts
- Twitter Lists
- Hootsuite/Tweetdeck (or a Google Reader)
- Rapoortive Browser/Outlook Social Connector
- Sprout Social/Mention Account

I do not suggest trying to use all of these resoucres at the same time, especially if you are a small business. Pick one or two of the above options and focus your efforts there. Listen to what people are saying about you, about other business and about themselves. By listening to them you will be able to figure out what they are looking for and then later on down the road the best way to appeal to them.