You’ve heard of Pinterest. It’s the social media tool that people use to “pin” interesting items to a virtual bulletin board, sharing them with friends and followers. It’s quickly gaining popularity and despite the fact that Pinterest is still invite-only, this month they surpassed Twitter as a generator of referral traffic.

With all that momentum behind it, marketers should be wondering how to harness those referrals and turn them into customer engagement. Here are some easy ways B2B marketers can get Pinterested.

–       By design, Pinterest exists to connect individuals with a shared interest. Fill your pin-board with details that are too specific for broader media.

–       Because posts take the form of images, Pinterest is especially appealing to visual thinkers. Catch the attention of busy executives who are knee-deep in email and written text with creative product shots, charts or graphics.

–       Connect a Pinterest Campaign to all of your existing social media outposts and use its strength as a referral source to drive traffic to your website.

–       Grab hold of your brand before somebody else does. In these early days of a new social medium, squatters are known to use brand names to represent themselves.

Looking for inspiration? Read this interview with Staples and learn how they are pulling together industry dialogue and building customer engagement on Pinterest.