Pinterest hysteria is peaking. Yet plenty of folks are still scratching their heads wondering why we need yet another social platform.
Here's why:
Using Pinterest, I shared this colorblock clutch from Target with 195 followers by "pinning" an image from the site (with a price) on my Pinterest "a la mode" board. My fashionista friends were able to click on the image to deep link directly to Target.com and buy it. BOOM!
If I were to share the same clutch via Facebook or Twitter, I'd need to add 3 pieces of info before sharing. The photo, a description, and the link.
And because all of my Facebook friends and/or Twitter followers might not be interested in Spring fashion trends, I’d need to either create a list of recipients or choose a preselected list. That's a lot more work for me. And a lot more room for error.
Pinterest has one other thing going for it. Everyone who follows my "a la mode board" can repin the clutch so everyone who follows them can buy it.
1 pin. 195 followers. Exponential sales.
Who’s using Pinterest? Women. Lots of women. And some men.
BTW, it is beyond insulting that some bloggers & journalists phrase it this way: "Pinterest is just for women". My response: how does the fact that women are early adopters of Pinterest diminish the power of the platform or those using it? Women are not a niche. We have serious buying power in this country. That's why more and more brands are coming on board. Pun intended.
If Pinterest is driving sales in droves – and it is – why the kerfuffle over copyright infringement? I’m a writer, not a lawyer. So I won’t offer a legal opinion. I will say this: brands who let me share their products via other social platforms likely see the dollars and sense in letting me drive sales through Pinterest. Because every time I pin, it’s more than just free advertising. Every pin is a personal product endorsement -- improving the chances that every pin will result in a sale.
That’s the point of Pinterest.