High Point Market's use of Pinterest praised

Market announces April Style Spotters

Alex Lemonde-Gray -- Home Accents Today, 2/15/2012 10:47:58 AM

HIGH POINT — The High Point Market has received recognition for its use of the social media website Pinterest, according to the High Point Market Authority.

Social media and branding experts including Hubspot, Social Media Today, Likable Media, eModeration, and FrontLine touted the Market's Style Spotters program as a unique way to take advantage of brand building on Pinterest.

Named alongside The Today Show, Whole Foods, Pillsbury, and Random House, the Market was listed as a brand that creatively used Pinterest as part of its overall marketing plan.

Style Spotters, launched during the October 2011 Market, recruits home fashion trendsetters to showcase their favorite products and top trends from Market exhibitors on Pinterest.

Pinterest is a social photo sharing website that allows users to organize and share photos on virtual pinboards. The website boasts more than 10.4 million registered users at time of publication. More than 97.9% of Pinterest's Facebook fans are women.

"At the High Point Market we have a clear strategy for social media," said Cheminne Taylor-Smith, vice president of marketing, High Point Market Authority. "We use it to increase brand awareness, to build a community within the home furnishings world, to provide customer service and respond to feedback, and to quickly circulate information about the Market."

"There is also a less tangible, but no less important, reason that we use social media tools, and that's to create excitement about the Market," she added. "We've done that at every recent event, from a flash mob in the fall of 2010, to viral behind-the-scenes videos in April 2011, to our Style Spotters event last October."

Style Spotters will return at April's High Point Market, with a new roster of trendsetters. The Spotters will present exhibitors with signs that highlight the Style Spotter's name with a QR code and URL for the Market Pinterest board. Market attendees can also participate by voting on the pinboards and products, generating "likes" or "re-pinning."

Style Spotters are also promoted on the Market's Facebook page and on Twitter, using the Market hashtag #hpmkt.

The April 2012 Style Spotters include:

• The winning Style Spotter from October, Tobi Fairley, Tobi Fairley blog, @tobifairley
• Crystal Gentilello, Rue Magazine, @CrystalG
• Shay Geyer, Designer Detective, @designershay
• Jamie Meares, I Suwannee, @jamiemeares
• Jennifer Mehditash, Dec-A-Porter, @decaporter
• Mat Sanders, Domino's Quick Fixes, @thematfinish
• Patricia Shackelford, Mrs Blandings, @mrsbdreamhouse
• Traci Zeller, Traci Zeller blog, @tracizeller