While the rest of the social media world was placing bets on Google+ and ranting about Klout last year, Pinterest was quietly gathering steam.

Its registered user base grew from just 40,000 in late 2010 to more than 4 million by the end of 2011—all while maintaining its private, by-invitation-only status.

Why? Well, because it’s something entirely new. As a self-described “virtual pinboard,” Pinterest allows users to pin images of things they find and like from anywhere on the Internet onto categorized “boards.”

It’s eye candy, plain and simple.

Now, of course, the site is catching the attention of marketers everywhere. Brands like Real Simple, Lands’ End and Whole Foods Market have already set up shop, using the site to boost traffic and drive conversions.

So what does a glossy, image-driven site full of pretty things have to do with healthcare marketing? More than you might think.

Making healthcare pinteresting

At its core, Pinterest is about inspiration. It’s designed to shine a spotlight on the things that move us. And few things are of greater interest to us than our health.

That makes it a pretty natural fit for healthcare marketers.

So do its demographics. While numbers are fuzzy, Pinterest’s user base seems to be overwhelmingly female. Even better, the women of Pinterest are early-adopting, social media-savvy technophiles used to making key decisions based on information gleaned from the Internet.

In other words, they’re most likely to be swayed by your online marketing messages—and take the desired action.

Here are just a couple of ways you could work Pinterest into a healthcare marketing strategy for a hospital or insurance company:

1. Create a “Healthy Eating” board linking back to recipes from your newsletters or patient programs.
2. Curate disease-specific boards (i.e., heart disease, diabetes, cancer) with resources and tips for patients coping with chronic conditions.

With a little brainstorming, you could find ways to work this social network into almost any healthcare marketing campaign targeting women under the age of 54.

Since this is a relatively new platform, gauging how many members of your specific target audience are currently using Pinterest is difficult. To protect your budget, test your Pinterest marketing efforts with a low- or no-cost campaign before jumping in with both feet.

Elements of Pinterest success

Pinterest is not like Twitter, or Facebook, or LinkedIn. It relies on visuals, not text. In other words, it’s all about the pictures.

Finding the right photographs and graphics to highlight is key.

However, it’s just as important to use proper SEO on Pinterest as it is on your other web properties. Make it easy for people to find your boards with the right titles and image tags.

Lastly, make sure the content you’re linking back to sings. You can hook someone with a pretty picture, but to get a like or repin, you’re going to have to make it worth their while.

Claim your spot on Pinterest

As of this writing, there are only a handful of healthcare organizations, like this cancer institute, on Pinterest. But that won’t be the case for long.

If you’re interested in maximizing your ROI, the time to move (and pin) is now, while interest is high and competition is low.

Need more proof that social media is a worthwhile investment? Check out some of our other posts on content marketing, social media and SEO.

If you’re interested in learning more about Pinterest and how getting involved with this new social network could benefit your organization, I’d love to help. Just leave a comment here or email me at apage (at) Finelight (dot) com.