Pinterest … What’s All The Fuss?

Over the last few months, I’ve heard a lot of talk about Pinterest. Honestly … I ignored it.  Primary reason, a new Social Media tool is released practically every other day.  It’s a full-time job sifting through all the new Social Media websites and apps for smartphones and tablet devices.  However, I could not remain in denial for long.

On October 7th Pinterest revealed it had raised a $27 million round of funding from Andreessen Horowitz.  Even more compelling – Pinterest boasted 4,456,402 unique visitors in November, up from 1,680,852 in September and 702,700 visitors just six (6) months ago!

Here are some fast facts about Pinterest:

What is Pinterest?

Pinterest lets you organize and share all the beautiful things you find on the web. People use pinboards to plan their weddings, decorate their homes, and organize their favorite recipes.  Think of it Pinterest as a modern day, Internet driven, cork board.  Users create themed boards filled with photos and photo descriptions, including price!

What makes Pinterest Social?

Users can browse pinboards created by other people. Browsing pinboards is a fun way to discover new things and get inspiration from people who share your interests.  As with any other social networking site, Pinterest encourages content sharing between users.  You can follow other Pinterest Users with similar interests and see what new things they have pinned to their boards.  You can also join the conversation by leaving and responding to comments.  And the feature that is most exciting is the ability to collaborate with other followers when building a board.

What’s the Business Purpose?

Pinterest has the ability to be a great tool for companies whose work is visual – Photographers, Event Planners, Make-up Artists, Chefs and the list goes on.   Pinterest users can “pin” together photos from the web to create a singular themed board.  For example … are you a Wedding Planner?  Use the pinboard to post photos of wedding cakes, invitations, flowers, or banquet halls for the bride and groom’s consideration that you find on the web or upload from your own photo gallery.  Encourage your clients to create their own board to give you an idea of things they love.  Drive the creative process through a collaborative approach with both your clients and team.   Check out a few of our Boards on Pinterest …

Is That It or Is There More?

Pinterest is very user friendly.  Users can create an account in about the same amount of time it takes to create a Twitter account – two minutes or less.  Within five minutes, my profile was set-up, I invited a few friends, and was following a few of my Facebook friends.  Speaking of Facebook, Pinterest integrates seamlessly with both Facebook and Twitter allowing you to find friends and generate automatic posts.  And just in case you or your company uses a lot of video, Pinterest allows users to upload and create video boards.  Check out a few more of our boards …

Are you on Pinterest?

Right now, Pinterest is available to new users by invite ONLY.  So, if you are NOT on Pinterest, but want to be, leave us a comment here with your email address and the note, “Invite Me to Pinterest!”  Or send a message via the Project Socialize Contact Form with the note, ”Invite Me to Pinterest!”

On Pinterest? Follow Project Socialize to check out our tech news, favorite info graphics, and interests from our team members!