We’ve all heard the adage that "a picture is worth a thousand words", but considering the growing popularity of virtual pinboard Pinterest.com – it could be worth a thousand clicks too.

Pinterest initially became popular as a pin-board for food and fashion images, but has since exploded into a virtual scrapbooking platform for an increasingly wide range of personal and professional interests. Pinterest currently receives 12 million unique visitors per month and claims over 10 million registered users. It is also generating more referral traffic to websites than YouTube, Google+, and LinkedIn combined.

Pinterest’s growing community of users offers unique exposure to businesses with visually appealing products. Artists, fashion designers, and countless other product makers are already harnessing Pinterest to showcase their products and services. Individual users, in turn, are jumping at the chance to share inspirational images of the products they enjoy, desire, or identify with. In other words – FREE advertising! A recent study conducted by analyst Bizrate Insights reported that 32% of respondents stated that they made a purchase after seeing a product on Pinterest.

So, how do you achieve marketing success on Pinterest? Following are a few key tips to keep in mind:

• Be creative: Organize your pins thematically. Broad categories work best, as they invite users to sift through content and find something that appeals to them. Post images that express a sentiment, respond to a need, or make people laugh!
• Be subtle: Use a variety of images to suggest a lifestyle or ambiance surrounding your brand; the environment says a lot about the desirability of your ideas or products. If you are selling wine, for example, accompanying images could include a paired dinner menu or an attractive cocktail scene.
• Be strategic: Be sure to link images to your web property or a URL where your products can be purchased. Keep an eye on content that is receiving the most attention and try to replicate those kinds of images.
• Be engaging: Build an audience by engaging with the community. Follow active pinners and repin other’s content when appropriate.
• Be descriptive: Although Pinterest is an image-driven site, don’t neglect the caption. Not only does the caption help users find your pins via search, it’s an opportunity to say something that adds value to the image.

It might take some experimenting to get your Pinterest page looking the way you want it, but the potential business opportunities could be worth the time investment.