Pinterest is an online pin board that allows you "to organize and share all the beautiful things you find on the Web," according to the company. So, how can folks best use this super-hot platform for its business? At MarketingProfs, we've put together our best tips for best using Pinterest for business and put them in a colorful slide show. (You also can download the entire guide at http://mprofs.com/pinterestsshare.) 1. Start with a goal. "Pinterest members use the site for everything from collecting and expressing their own styles to finding sources of good ideas. Business innovation works only when a defined goal is combined with facilitation toward that goal." (Chad McCloud, Jabian Consulting, "What Pinterest Teaches Us About Innovation") 2. Inspire innovation by building upon the known. "When presented with a tangible idea... many of us can build upon that idea and take it a few steps further... or in a new direction entirely." (McCloud) 3. Encourage collaboration on top of affirmation. "Though positive feedback encourages participation, encouraging collaboration among the innovators can iteratively lead to improvisational (yet critical) steps toward a breakthrough idea." (McCloud) 4. Make innovation a visual experience. "Traditional brainstorming sessions use whiteboard to capture ideas with words, but the use of images and videos brings something much more sensory." (McCloud) 5. Use Pinterest to humanize your brand. "Pinterest gives you the chance to humanize your brand through Boards that reflect your culture, your employees, and your values." (Corey O'Loughlin, "4 Reasons Marketers Should Pay Attention to Pinterest") 6. Pinterest can be good for your SEO. "You can (and should) create descriptions of your Boards and of the content you pin in alignment with your keyword strategy (don't name boards "Great Stuff" or "Things I like" or forget to add a description with SEO value." (O'Loughlin) 7. Attract people to your words by highlighting your images. "So where does our text-heavy marketing fit on Pinterest? It doesn't. But a picture's worth a thousand slogans. Our content is becoming more aesthetically driven as the competition for attention heats up." (Jesse Noyes, Eloqua, "Three Excuses B2B Marketers Should Stop Making for Why They Aren't on Pinterest")

9. http://mprofs.com/pinterestsshare