Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Pinterest: Believe the Hype, It's THAT Good

Pinterest.com is a new social site that enables members to create, share and comment on online pinboards (organised by their own defined categories of interests) on which they can 'pin' images and videos. Members can upload photos from their computers or mobiles, gather images online using the "Pin It' bookmarklet or 'repin' other people's images to feature them on their own pinboard.

That probably sounds like a whole lot of gobbledegook and at this point you may be thinking, blah blah, another social site, blah blah - but trust me, seeing it is a whole lot better than reading about it. This site is uber cool.

Globally, interest in Pinterest is vast. Statistics I've heard today indicate that membership has grown to 12 million in a matter of months; as much as 97% of users are female; and if you're in business, take notice of this especially - it is said to be driving more traffic to retail sites than YouTube, Google+ and LinkedIn combined. It is rapidly becoming a very big deal and when you check it out you will immediately see why.

It's got lots of applications -virtual recipe book, personal inspiration board, Santa List, planner for special events, house renovations or your new season wardrobe, etc., etc.

For businesses looking to hook into Pinterest, commercial application isn't entirely straight forward. Pinterest is not for 'self promotion' (aka 'advertising') so businesses need to approach their involvement from a "brand" rather than "product" perspective and to be smart and imaginative about how they do it. If you want to find out more about commercial applications for Pinterest, Mashable.com have put together an excellent article. You can read it by following this link:

Pinterest for Brands: 5 Hot Tips

Pinterest is still relatively new and so is still evolving. Membership is currently by 'invitation only'. Go to the website www.pinterest.com to request an invitation or if you know someone that is a member already, ask them to invite you.

A few words of caution:

1. Pinterest is an open network. Privacy may be an issue. Make sure you understand Pinterest's privacy policy before you start uploading your intimate family photos (potentially for the whole world to see).

2. It is cool - very, very cool and potentially very addictive.


Share with us your thoughts and experiences on Pinterest.