I recently came across a brilliant example of a brand successfully enlisting the help of its followers to share the brand’s content – “Teavana Summer Tea Party – Pin It to Win It!” competition on Pinterest.

Poking around the contest rules (and okay, I admit it, entering myself), I noticed some smart rules and regulations that other brands – large or small – should adopt in their own Pinterest campaigns to inspire greater pinning (and content sharing) among their followers.

Five Pinterest Moves by Teavana to Adopt in Your Next “Pin It to Win It” Contest:

1)    Drive followers to your e-commerce website for a fun, yet targeted purpose.
In the “Teavana Summer Tea Party: Pin It to Win It” contest, Teavana points contestants to their main website for a scavenger hunt. Contestants have to find items on the Teavana website, return to Pinterest to create their own “Teavana Summer Tea Party” board and pin Teavana products to it.

While they were poking around the main Teavana website, how many folks do you think found something they decided to buy – either then or in the near future?

2)    Enlist followers’ help in showcasing your products with their followers.
Teavana doesn’t want participants to pin six different tea blends. They want items in six different product categories (e.g., tea, tea sets, sweeteners, etc.) pinned. Why? So later, when other folks come across these boards, they’ll become aware or be reminded that Teavana sells more than just tea.

3)    Inject competitive spirit into the sharing process.
Contestants have to return to the main Teavana Summer Tea Party board on the Teavana Pinterest account to post the URL of their newly created board in the comments section. When they do, they easily can check out their competition (and more Teavana products) by clicking on the URLs of the competition’s boards. People who are pinning to win will most likely check out several other boards to get ideas for improving theirs … and at the same time, discover more Teavana products.

4)    Offer prizes that will motivate both brand lovers and avid Pinterest users to participate.
Prizes are $500 for the winning board and $25 Teavana gift cards for four runner-ups. This is a smart offer because it inspires avid Pinterest users (those with hundreds of followers who pin on a regular basis) to participate, whether or not they are tea drinkers. (Note: If you are building a presence on Pinterest, you want to be pinned by people who are out there often. Pinning new things. Attracting new followers.)

5)    Require your brand name in the contestants’ Pinterest board titles.
Long after the contest ends, my guess is that a majority of participants will leave their “Teavana Summer Tea Party” boards up on their profile. Even if they don’t win, the board is something they created and something they’ll want to keep, at least foor a while.

With all these Tevana-branded boards floating around, it would be interesting to see, even months from now, the amount of Pinterest-sourced traffic that teavana.com receives.

Question: Which of these fine Pinterest tips would be easiest to adopt in your next “Pin It to Win It” contest?