Social media provides numerous ways to reach a global audience of potential customers, and Pinterest in particular can prove useful for online retailers. The right approach to using this site has the potential to boost sales, build brand recognition and win new customers. You can also gain insight into your customer base by looking at the retail analytics Pinterest can provide.

A study conducted in fall 2013 by Piqora found that the average "pin" on the site directly correlated to about $0.78 in sales, along with two site visits and six page views. However, there is a right and wrong way to go about creating a presence on Pinterest. Take a look at these three tips that could help bolster your online sales.

1. Use "rich pins" to garner more interest
Pinterest is based mainly on images. Users can pin Web pages, choosing a photo to represent what the link contains, but they can also take the pin to the next level by including metadata, and retailers should take advantage of this option. Econsultancy reported that online merchants can include more than just a photo of a product when they create a rich pin. Product pins, in particular, allow users to list price and availability as well as a link to the site's point of sale. 

2. Pin more than your products
Pinterest allows users to create multiple boards, giving retailers the ability to create categories for their product offerings. They can also build up collections of pins that relate to the items they sell and their customers' interests. For instance, a beauty supply company could have boards dedicated to makeup and hair products, and can also create boards dedicated to providing beauty and style tips, giving other Pinterest users more incentive to follow them on the site.

3. Make your site Pinterest-friendly
Pinterest allows users to create their own pins by manually adding the URL of the page they want to save, but you could make this process easier for your customers. Practical Ecommerce recommended including "Pin it" buttons on every product page, an easy adjustment that won't require you to install new ecommerce software. There are myriad plug-ins that offer this feature and cost nothing to install. 

After you've established your store's Pinterest account, you can use the service to gage trends among your customers. You can see which of your pins are being shared most and least and determine how many people your pins are reaching on a daily basis. This knowledge can help you tailor your offerings to your customers, which could potentially improve sales.