A collective sigh rings out through the meeting as I explain Pinterest’s power to a group of all male coworkers. Just something your wife, sister, female coworker, or daughter does, you say? Don’t be so fast to dismiss the social network. 

Currently on par with Twitter in regard to the number of users, according to a recent PEW study, the social network has more to offer than just the latest bridal dress fashions and jewelry trends. It is a site that men and brands alike should embrace to research the latest products, find helpful honey-do tips and even drive purchase decisions.

Launched three years ago, the relatively new virtual pinboard shares photos and links. While most men consider the site a time suck, I personally know a couple of guys who have built dog windows in their fences, started their own bee hives and discovered the latest and greatest gadgets in just a few clicks. Below are a few ways men are currently using Pinterest:

1. Pin Your Passion – This wine lover pins his wine reviews that then link to his blog posts.
2. Start a Sports Conversation – Show off your team colors, history and stats!
3. Improve Your Space – Undergoing a big renovation or sprucing up a space for spring? This is the place to organize your ideas.
4. Share Your Ideas – Community boards allow multiple people to pin news, infographics and other helpful information that all can see.
5. Be a Manly Man – Enough said.

So what does this mean for your brand? According to Go-Globe.com, Pinterest drove more referral traffic than Google+, LinkedIn and YouTube combined in 2012, making it a potentially huge revenue driver if your website has an e-commerce platform.  

Even though the majority of users are still women, there is still tremendous opportunity for a male-focused brand to become a Pinterest early adopter. Here are six ways for your brand to target the male Pinterest user and be included in the next “I found it on Pinterest” water cooler conversation:

1. Be Helpful – Pin or repin helpful tips for getting the rust off your tools or how to get that pesky oil stain off the garage floor once and for all.
2. Be conversational – Follow boards of your peers and competitors. Comment, like and share pins and boards to ensure you are building your following and genuinely connecting. They don’t call it a “social” network for nothing.
3. Be Unique – Create and pin content unique to your brand that will get people talking, whether it’s a funny meme or video. Inspire others with your ideas through images and links.
4. Be Funny – Pinterest is filled with funny and beautifully created one-liners, comics and jokes.  Find and create ones that speak to your brand’s personality.
5. Be Resourceful – Use it for a visual brainstorm or informal research tool to gain insights on what your audience wants from your brand or organization.
6. Integrate, Integrate, Integrate – Integrate your pins, tweets, YouTube account and website. This is a great way to repurpose content and continue to spread your message and ideas. Don’t forget to add the “Pin It” button to your website too.

Still looking for more reasons for your brand to join Pinterest? Additional research stated that 69 percent of online shoppers with a Pinterest account have discovered items they’ve purchased on the social site, compared to 40 percent of shoppers who visit Facebook. As a bonus, Pinterest recently announced the release of analytics for business pages so that you can track the benefits of the site in real time, and literally watch the dollar signs roll in.

Think of Old Spice and its viral video that turned into an entire social campaign as an inspiration to make your own headlines with Pinterest by signing your brand up now. The window of opportunity is open and waiting for a brand to jump through.