Pinterest Interest

Pinterest is here. Well, at least it has found me. I now inhabit a virtual reality in which I ‘create’, by which I mean ruthlessly cut and paste and recycle the creative ideas of people I have never met and pin it as my own. Well, not entirely MINE but as figment of my overall personality, style, and well… ideas.
People use it to share recipes, dresses, gadgets, photographers, and even quotes they like, its a picture encyclopedia of pretty things from all over the world and its mesmerizing.It’s a perfect world in which the concept of boredom does not exist, and possibilities are endless. I have of course found a way to make it work for me, by creating a type of ‘gift registry’ for myself. A pinboard with things I especially feel the need to possess, in my case very expensive bags. I have requested that people who do feel the need to give me something, first peruse my ‘Bags I Aspire To’ board and to avoid a doubling up effect, they please comment on the pin if they have decided to purchase said bag as a gift (for me). Yes I know, at this point it is a ‘pie in the sky’ type request, but hey if even just one person falls for it, I’ll have met my target. Now I just have to get everyone I know to start pinning.

The Pinterest story and its success up unto this point is mindboggling and even just a little daunting. But first, let me explain the concept for those out of the loop, basically it is a vision board styled social photo sharing website. To become a ‘Pinner’ you need to enter your e-mail address and will then receive an invitation, which will allow you to start creating your themed pin-boards.
You then install a ‘Pin it’ button on your web browser toolbar and when you happen upon something that you like, want, or want to be associated with, you Pin it, to one of your themed boards. The thing that personally gives me the biggest kick is trying to make a pin ‘go viral’. See every pinner has the ability to either ‘like’, ‘repin’ or ‘comment’ on your pin. While ‘liking’ is enjoyable, it is the ‘repinning’ that makes me competitive and being ‘followed’ by a complete stranger is the grand prize. In a sense you’re getting virtual positive reinforcement that makes you feel appreciated and also a bit…well… cool.

Yes, Pinterest is fabulously self-indulgent, but in reality its been billed as one of the top 50 New Websites by TIME magazine. Though Pinterest does not release its traffic data, it has been estimated by ComScore that the site grew to 3.3 million users in October 2011 from just 418, 000 in May 2011. One of the investors, Ron Conway says that Pinterest’s user growth rate is what Facebook’s was 5 years ago. In October of 2011 the 9-person startup received funding of$27 million from the company Andreessen Horrowitz, which effectively values the company at $200 million today.
The thing about Pinterest is that its not actually making any money right now, however the possibilities are endless when considering that any kind of brand or company with a visual product or concept will be able to utilise the site as a really interesting marketing tool. There are already major brands such as Whole Foods (WFMI) creating boards like “The Fabulousness of Fall” to suggest recipe ideas for shoppers. In fact there is a whole list of major brands already using Pinterest under the radar, brands like: Real Simple, Nordstrom, Etsy, Williams-Sonoma, Bergdorf Goodman, Bon Appetit, and other American brands. As one of the three founders, Ben Silbermann says: “ If Pinterest can (1) get its users to take pictures of things in the real world with its mobile app and post them online with data and (2) leverage image-tagging tools such as Stipple and help bypass intent-based search on just a small fraction of online transactions, it could be a huge cultural and financial success.” Because all pins are presented irrespective of category, it is offering options you had not even considered yet and widening your frame of reference.

Brands with visually-appealing content have something to offer the Pinterest community. In fact, in the future I wouldn’t be surprised to be presented with a Pinterest link next to the Facebook and Twitter sharing functionalities. Fashion designers can pin their latest collections and have boards that show things that inspired them, other designers they like, it could act as a complete brand identity marketing tool and instead of just offering the end product, it could interpret a lifestyle surrounding the product. Even brand agencies, like us, could pin logos, websites, and corporate rollouts we have done, maybe a board on other agencies whose work we like. It can allow clients to understand us on another level, and a way to showcase our work on a revolutionary platform.
What I like about it is the absolute simplicity, I don’t have to read through a whole manual to understand the concept, its instant gratification, and though it might be perceived as a dumbing down of us as the users, it works. It’s thought provoking, and a positive experience, its Stumbleupon, without the stumbling. Like one of the early investors, Kevin Hartz, says: “It’s hard to call it a business – it’s more a phenomenon.”

I, for one, look forward to the evolution of Pinterest, and will be recommending a visit to my ‘Bags I aspire to’ board to any unsuspecting bystander.