Small businesses use fast-growing Pinterest to boost sales

— -- Fine art photographer Carl Christensen, 47, had to be nudged by his wife to use social media to increase his sales. He joined Facebook reluctantly. He blogged uneasily.

"I really approached it kicking and screaming,'' said Christensen, who operates his own gallery, Integrity Studio, in New Hope, Pa. "I found no intrinsic value in talking constantly and inanely about myself.''

But recently, Christensen found a social media site that not only suits his nature, but also boosts his revenue. He credits the fast-growing site Pinterest for amplifying his online sales to 50% of his current business. On the site, he can let his art speak for itself.

Pinterest invites visitors to set up their own "pinboards'' and tack up photos they like in categories they invent — from vintage motorcycles to meat loaf recipes.

The Palo Alto, Calif., firm makes it easy even for the computer-shy to capture photos from Web magazine layouts, retailers' websites, blogs, or their own computer files. Each image added to a pinboard is called a "pin." After Christensen started pinning his own photos last year, other users snapped them up for their own boards on Pinterest.

The website's meteoric growth has marketing experts buzzing and companies of all sizes leaping in. Pinterest received more than 103 million visits in February, according to Experian Hitwise. As of last week, according to Hitwise, it was the third most popular social networking site behind Facebook and Twitter in the U.S., with users spending an average 16 minutes per visit.

Marc Andreessen, a co-founder of early Web browser Netscape whose venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, has invested in Pinterest, told CNBC's Squawk Box, "It's on fire, it's doing phenomenonally well. It's one of these companies with about 20 people building a service that now tens of millions of people are using."

Pinterest allows members to comment on each other's picks and follow their friends' pinboards. Users might assemble ideas for home renovation on one board, and showcase their favorite books or charities on others. They can "re-pin'' pictures they like from other people's boards. The result is an electronic word-of-mouth network that can lead to snowballing attention for a workout regimen, barbecue techniques, or a manufacturer's product.

Chobani, the Greek yogurt maker based in Norwich N.Y., found that bloggers were using Pinterest to feature dishes using its product, said digital communications manager Emily Schildt. So Chobani jumped in, creating its own pinboards for "Chobaniacs'' to enhance its engagement with customers. "Pinterest is huge in terms of referral traffic,'' Schildt said.

Pinterest offers its own hints for brands that want some bounce from the site: Repinning the picks of other users is one of the best ways to build a network of followers, it suggests on its site. Also, Pinterest suggests that businesses spotlight "aspects of your brand that may not come to mind at first,'' such as work with charitable foundations. And make use of the interplay between Pinterest and other social media sites, the company advises.

Pinterest cites the Travel Channel's tactic: It asked its Facebook users what pinboards it should create. Bergdorf Goodman's strategy also earned a mention from Pinterest. The department store asked Facebook followers to complete the sentence "In the morning I never forget…" and then displayed the responses on a company pinboard.