Pinterest for guys

Here's a classic Windy Osborn photo of Brian Blyther blasting, at the 1987 2-Hip King of Vert finals, at Ron Wilkerson's Enchanted Ramp.  On the deck, From the right is Mat Hoffman, the guy standing left of him is me in a goofy cycling cap, then Todd Anderson, I think that's Mike Golden next, in the background, and maybe Steve Broderson (on a 20 inch?) on the left of the deck.  I was a judge that day, and this is about the only magazine photo printed back then where my face was visible.  I just added this photo to my "Classic BMX Freestyle" Pinterest board.  When the money is flowing a bit heavier, I'm going order this print from Windy's website.  Yeah, she sells prints of classic BMX photos.

So why is a guy writing a blog post about "a chick's social media site."  Simple, because Pinterest is not just a chick's social media site.  It's an image-oriented social media platform that is definitely dominated by women.  But there's plenty of reason for guys to get on Pinterest.

Why did I get on Pinterest?  For me, it started because I have been focusing on turning my Sharpie art (and ultimately writing) into a viable business.  I started with literally no money, and I'm all about free promotion.  One day, a few months ago, I Googled "Sharpie Art" to see what images came up.  None of my art was in sight, which bummed me out, because I have done dozens of pretty cool, and totally unique, Sharpie drawings in the last couple of years.  I took the next step, and looked at where the first 50 or so Sharpie art images came from.  At that time, about 80% of them were from Pinterest.  The algorithms have changed since, and DeviantArt and other sites come up more now, but Pinterest is still a great place to have my art (or yours, or your photos, or your product images) seen.

So I started my own Pinterest account, and I created a "board," a category of images on my page, showcasing my drawings.  Has it helped?  Google "#sharpiescribbleart" and hit "image search."  I just did, and I had to go down to the 7th row of pics to see something that isn't my drawing.  I OWN that hashtag.  I own it because of Pinterest.  That helps my art show up not only on Pinterest itself, but all over the web.

"So... big deal," you may say.  In the world of promoting art, it is a big deal.  And I haven't even really tried to actually promote my work on Pinterest.  I just wanted to get my work on the platform so it was more available to see and share and pop up in image searches.

Then something weird happened.  I totally got hooked on Pinterest.  Here's why.  First, when you sign up on Pinterest, like every platform, you are given your own little piece of virtual real estate, your page.  On Pinterest, you create categories, called "boards," like a cork board that you "pin" interesting photos on.  I added the little "Pin" icon to my browser, and then I can pin random photos from nearly anywhere on the web as I run across them(not Facebook, though) onto my Pinterest page.  I can also just sing in and browse the images Pinterest itself sends my way.  I soon realized, Pinterest is about collecting images.  I'm the son of a serious packrat (old term for hardcore "collector"/borderline hoarder), and I love collecting things.  My life has been crazy (and poor) for many years, so I haven't been able to collect old BMX magazines, or other physical items.  For me, spending a few minutes at the end of a day "collecting" images on my boards has become a way I de-stress nearly every afternoon or evening.  For me, it's just fun and relaxing.

I put all my 2017 and early 2018 drawing pics on a board.  Then I did one about taxi driving, and found a bunch of taxi images, an homage to my crazy life as a cabbie for 6 1/2 years.  Then I made a board of dozens of stills from videos I made BITD.  Then I did a pizza board, and there's no lame ass yuppie, broccoli, white sauce pizzas on it.  Only hardcore, artery choking, manly pizzas.  I started a "Classic BMX freestyle pics" board, which I add a pin or two to every few days.

As I see it, for a guy, Pinterest can serve several functions.  First is image collecting just for fun, which is most of what I use it for right now. You can do it any time, it's fun, and it relieves stress. Second is inspiration.  In my days as a taxi driver and as a homeless guy, I've become a huge fan of graffiti and street art.  So I have boards for each.  When I need some fresh ideas, I scroll through those boards, and just check out all the amazing art on walls around the world.  For many people, Pinterest is a huge source of inspiration and ideas for DIY projects and cooking.  That's probably the main use of Pinterest for most people.  Third is promotion of your business, my Sharpie art, in my case, but you can use it to promote any business.  See the video below for more thoughts on that.

Pinterest is a combination project idea/inspiration spot, a goal board, a wish list, an online collection, a way to promote what you do, AND like all good social media sights, a great place to waste time at work if you have a "real" job.  Here are some of my biggest boards:
Street art/urban murals- 976 pins
Weird Bikes- 716 pins
Action sports women- 507 pins
Ridiculous desserts- 465 pins
Bruce Lee- 443 pins
Classic BMX freestyle pics- 434 pins
Graffiti art- 301 pins
DIY ideas for old skateboards- 184 pins
DIY/recycled bike projects- 123 pins

You get the idea.  You can check out super cars, rat rods, custom motorcycles, exotic beaches, hovercrafts, insane ATV's, home workshop ideas, the ultimate backyard grill... whatever.  And that, my friends, is why Pinterest is a really cool place for guys.  Here's my page:

Steve Emig's Pinterest Page

Check it out.  Have fun.  Join up.  If you want some ideas on how you can promote your business with Pinterest, here's a good start.

I'm doing most of my new writing on Substack now, check it out:

Steve Emig The White Bear's Substack