A Student's View: Pinterest

By Erica Wenham, Friday 23 November 2012.

Pinterest is a virtual pin board incorporated within one of the internet’s most recent and successful social network, which can be referred to as a format of “digital scrapbooking”. Individuals are able to "pin" or "like" images of items that they have interest in. Think of Pinterest as the social platform that allows consumers to promote products and services for free. They can categories their pins into categories that are of interest to them; this in turn can allow users to find what they are looking for much quicker and easier.

Just recently Pinterest reported having over 10 million unique visitors. In the past six months alone Pinterest has growing over 4000% resulting in major marketing potential for public organisations. About.com says:

“Small businesses have started to see the value in Pinterest. Take for example graphic artists, photographers, interior designers and fashion designers; they are able to create storyboards showcasing their work. They have the freedom to display their work using their creativity, personal style and personality creating fantastic portfolios that can be seen and shared by other Pinterest users. This allows consumers to check out their work, prior to contacting them. You can also use it as a tool for your own market research, what colours people are drawn too and what products are being re-pinned. This information can create inspiration for additional product development. While there are no hardcore metrics within Pinterest, a small business owner can keep track of interests by seeing how many of their "pins" are ‘re-pinned’ by other users. This can help in determining interests, marketability and popularity.”

Benefits: