Can I Pin You?

Have you been pinned?  Apparently well over 100 million have been pinned in the past year or so.

I am talking about Pinterest, the newest hot social media platform.  Pinterest is now the third biggest social media platform behind Facebook and Twitter.  It blew past Linkedin this past month.

Pinterest, like LinkedIn, has its own niche.   It is the most visual of all of the social media platforms.  Yes, Facebook has pictures, but the main focus of Facebook are those posts and pokes from your friends.  Pinterest is focused on pictures of all of the things you love.   If you like food, a beautiful tourist destination, or that great pair of boots, Pinterest is for you.  It is no wonder that the user base is almost 80% women.

So why is Pinterest so hot and what does pinning mean anyway.  Think of that bulletin board you go by at the local coffee shop.   It is a way to display a place, a product you sell, or that great new blouse you just bought.  Pinterest is a way to advertise your products free of charge and be accessible to millions of "pinners".  The site is organized like an online shopping site where you can look at pins according to a "department" such as fitness, where you can get access to exercise routines and videos on getting in shape.  This a department on kids where you have access to information that can help you raise your child.

So here is a site that originally was for pinning some nice pictures that you can share that has now become the social media platform that is organized like an online shopping store.   Pinterest distinguishes itself from Facebook and LinkedIN, unlike Google+.  That probably explains why Pinterest is blowing past Google+ in popularity.   Google+ is trying to be like Facebook, Pinterest is not.

So if you haven't started pinning yet, I invite you to check out my page and follow my pins.  The site is addicting and maybe someday you may spend more time on Pinterest than Facebook, if you can believe that.

Happy Pinning!