By now, you’ve more than likely heard of Pinterest. You know– the social network with the virtual pinboards where you pin your interests (creative, huh?). From sports to weddings, gardening to pets, history to humor– there’s a category and a pin for just about everything. The best part is that it’s image-oriented; no sifting through large amounts of text to get to what you want. You see something you like, you click “repin” and voila!– thanks to that one pin, you’ll always be able to link to the site with the recipe for the perfect Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookie N’ Oreo Fudge Brownie Bar (and who wouldn’t want that?).

The site has taken off in recent months, hitting 10 million monthly unique visitors faster than any independent site in history and achieving a daily users increase of 145% since the start of 2012. Users are required to log in with either their Facebook or Twitter accounts which means that they can easily “invite” others to pin (hence the significant increase in signups over the past several months). As of right now, majority of users are women– a fact that has the potential to change as Pinterest continues to grow.

What makes Pinterest stand out, however, is the fact that it’s generating more referral traffic to websites than YouTube, Google+ and LinkedIn combined. Large companies such as Pillsbury, CBS, People and HGTV have jumped on board and understand the business benefits it provides:

1. A link back through each individual pin (and, in turn, an increase in website views)
2. An increase in brand/product exposure thanks to not only the site, but its connection to Facebook and Twitter. Users are able to tweet a pin or share it on their page
3. An online video platform (because pins aren’t just limited to images)
4. A place to showcase your work
5. A social media tool to keep up with what’s relevant to you (see what’s being repinned, what isn’t, etc.)

Assuming Pinterest continues at the rate it’s going, pinning could become as common as tweeting or sharing for businesses. So take some time to peruse the categories. Familiarize yourself with pinboards. See what others are doing. And while you’re at it– track down that Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookie N’ Oreo Fudge Brownie Bar pin (you won’t be sorry).

Sources:

• www.Pinterest.com/about
• www.blog.shareaholic.com/2012/01/pinterest-referral-traffic/
• www.TechCrunch.com/2012/2/11/Pinterest-Stats/
• www.SocialMediaToday.com/eModeration/439744/pinterest-part-v-100-brands-pinterest

Local press attention followed with coverage appearing in all our area’s major media, including the daily paper, local TV affiliates and across the Web.

Think of your Web presence as the hub of a wheel. Other PR tools lead into that hub and reach out from that hub. They include a solid press kit, newsworthy press releases targeted to the right media, features you write and provide to media, the leveraging of national trends, any events or awards you receive, relationships with media leading to emerging editorial opportunities, and connections to key bloggers.

The hub is the key part of the wheel, but it needs spokes like a blog, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn to be fully functional.

Integrate all these PR tools and you’ll get the most bang for your PR buck.

A big focus of this year’s Max was the challenges of multi-screen design and how developers and designers alike are embracing processes that allow for deploying creative ideas across the wide variety of screens. Today’s audience is more likely than ever to view your content on any number of devices, from tablets to mobile devices, and starting in the early planning stages to design, produce, and deploy your content in a more responsive way is key to a successful campaign in a world where multi-channel campaigns are increasingly the norm. Adobe’s newly introduced Creative Cloud services will be a tremendous boon to creative processes that are inherently more collaborative. In addition to the focus on creative process, there were plenty of sessions focusing on digitally strategic topics. A great session by the digital strategy team at R/GA gave insight into just how much thinking goes into perfecting a cross platform, multi-channel campaign. With three days of Design, Development, and Creative all under one (very large) roof, it’s hard to put together a schedule without feeling like you’ve missed something. Of course, it wouldn’t be a Max without the “Max Bash” and this year’s private party with a concert by Weezer didn’t disappoint. A great, albeit exhausting time, was had by all.

The conference was a four day affair, starting on Sunday of that first week in October. That Wednesday, the last day of Max, while usually a somber day filled with hugs, goodbyes, and promises of “see you next year” took on an even sadder note when attendees learned of the passing of Steve Jobs. I have to admit, being in California, a state whose economy Apple almost single-handedly launched while bringing the term, “Silicon Valley” into the homes of every American, and attending a conference put on by a company that probably wouldn’t be here today if it weren’t for Apple, the passing of Steve Jobs probably took on an additional gravity. It certainly was immediately felt by everyone I came into contact with over the next few hours as details trickled in through Twitter, Facebook, and the simultaneous ringing of cell phones as a stream of alerts kept everyone up to date. It’s fair to say everyone at the event was touched in some way by Apple, and it was a loss that reverberated though the conference.

The flight home was more reflective than usual, and the warm welcomes and hugs on arrival were a little more appreciated.

That’s where a new initiative known as Hope House of Myrtle Beach is literally extending a hand of hope and support for struggling students. Their mission is to provide a healthy environment for registered Myrtle Beach High students who are homeless and actively completing their academic requirements to receive a high school diploma. Hope House strives to ensure a community-based support system that will give homeless students the shelter and security they need to obtain a diploma and develop their career goals. The ultimate goal is to provide a permanent dormitory facility where students know they are welcome and safe.

When representatives of Hope House approached LHWH for help in designing a new logo and other assignments, Vern Hearl and Keith Borshak agreed to work after hours and lend a hand. Keith submitted a couple of great designs within days that delighted board members and made the selection process somewhat of a challenge. But in the end, one emerged as a unanimous favorite that drew praise for its warmth and simplicity.

Hope House Myrtle Beach

Waiting to put the new logo to good use right away was Stages Video Productions, who created a brief video as part of a submission package for this year’s Pepsi Refresh Project. Pepsi Refresh is an initiative by PepsiCo to award $20 million in grants to individuals, businesses and non-profits that promote a new idea that has a positive impact on their community, state, or the nation. Our fingers are crossed that Hope House can bring home some of that funding to help local students.

In his former lives as director of travel and tourism sales for The Golf Channel, events director at Myrtle Beach Golf Holiday, and his early days as a sports marketing project manager at Golf Digest, Steve successfully managed a number of travel and tourism accounts and cultivated new relationships throughout the southeastern and central U.S. And, we’re happy to report, solved a nagging backswing problem in the process.

Originally from the Northern Virginia/DC area, Steve is an alumnus of our very own Coastal Carolina University (where he also got his chops DJing at local clubs and private events) and a past member of the CCU Alumni Board. The opening of the Myrtle Beach Hard Rock Cafe facilitated his return to the Grand Strand after graduation where he oversaw marketing and group sales and in that capacity rubbed shoulders with PGA pro John Daly, chilled with Coolio and transported a well known band guitarist to the emergency room due to an untimely attack of kidney stones. As if there’s ever a good time…

When he’s not busy pitching great ideas or golf shots, Steve enjoys spending time with his wife, Chrissy – a former LHWH-er herself – and their two young boys.

As to which came first, it was the love of the water. A native of South Florida, Dick began diving locally and in the Bahamas in the early ’60s. Following a deepwater hiatus to attend college and ultimately relocate here, Dick resumed diving along the Grand Strand and Florida coasts.

Having logged nearly 750 hours now underwater, Dick spends his down time (sorry – you know we just couldn’t pass that up) breaching ship wrecks, deep diving to depths below 120 feet (requiring some serious focus and self control – or what we like to call mojo), honing his skills in rescue and emergency first responder diving, and lobster wrangling. Now as Divemaster, Dick is also certified to supervise dive activities and assist with the instruction of student divers.

As for what he’s learned from both his agency and aquatic experiences… “Don’t get crazy. Safety first.”

Everyone involved with the art museum would agree that the community could truly think about the art museum as “their museum” When you visit the site www.myrtlebeachartmuseum.org the first thing you’ll probably notice is a simple play on the word museum, a simple reminder to visitors that they can think of this place as their own. Producing work like this is indeed rewarding for us. We hope it’s rewarding for you too.