This is a short, new series we’ll be running in which we’ll look at some powerful and cool Pinterest tools.

Today, we’ll look at a neat tool that will help us do WAY more with Pinterest easily and effectively – Pin Alerts.

We all know about Google Alerts and how to use them to track online mentions and to research what the competition is talking about.

Did you know that you can do the same with Pinterest?

That’s right. You can know exactly when someone ‘mentions’ you on Pinterest.

While you can do a manual search for pins that people have pinned from your site by using  http://www.Pinterest.com/source/{URL}, it is time-consuming and I personally, don’t remember to do this very often.

So, wouldn’t it be cool if you could be ‘alerted’ each time someone pins something from say, a client’s site or your own site?

Yes, it would and with PinAlerts, you can do just that.

PinAlerts is a free {yes, love that!} tool that you can use to set up alerts to be sent via email each time someone pins something from your website.

 What Makes PinAlerts a Power Tool for Online Marketing

Here’s why PinAlerts in on our list of power Pinterest tools:

1.  Social Media is All About Engagement and Interaction

Yes, social media and networking is all about engaging and interacting with your followers, fans and readers. Knowing what they’re pinning as they pin it will help you thank them for doing so, sharing their pins as well as strengthen the connection by following them back on Pinterest and inviting them to follow you on Pinterest.

2.  PinAlerts Can Help with Online Research

Do you want to guest post on a popular blog? Or do you want to know what products are a hit on your competitor’s site? Set up a PinAlert and you’ll be able to see exactly what’s a hit. Products or posts that are pinned repeatedly will give you an idea of what will work with a similar audience or help you pitch a post that’s targeted.

 3. Keep Track of Multiple Domain Pinning with Ease

For those of us who manage multiple Pinterest accounts for clients, this is great way to keep track of pins on different websites since PinAlerts allows you to add alerts for as many domains as you’d like. Fun, fuss-free and yes, free!

 So, how will setting up PinAlerts help YOU and your business? Share with us in the comments!