Social media phenomenon Pinterest isn't just a place to bookmark cookie recipes and craft ideas. This virtual pinboard site has landed its creators a $27-million investment from venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz.
After little more than a year online, an investment like that suggests the site is here to stay.
Co-founder Ben Silbermann explains the site as a tool users can use to plan important events in their offline lives, such as planning a wedding or booking a trip.
In fact, Silbermann used his own site to help plan his wedding this year.
"It's different from other online services that are kind of a distraction," he said in a phone interview from Palo Alto, Calif.
It's a social bookmarking site that catalogues photos on a bulletin board-like interface, allowing users to scroll through posts about everything from fashion and design to food and technology.
What sets it apart from other sites is the visual appeal: ops of colour against simple straight lines and a plain white background.
Social bookmarking is not a new concept, says social media expert and "Social Media for Business" co-author Randall Craig. "But their execution is innovative," he told CTVNews.ca. "It's lighting a fire under a certain category of users."
Unlike sites that catalogue information chronologically, pins are sorted by category and activity.
The platform is simple: Users, or "pinners," post photos of the pretty things they collect on or offline. It allows pinners to virtually store and organize ideas on boards they name themselves.
Instead of posting links to favourite things, users post the photos themselves: That sticky pile of sauced-stained recipe cards and those dog-eared home decor magazines – it's a place to rack creative friends' brains and re-pin your own favourites.
The site is not yet open to the public, so users must request an invitation to join – though a whole day could be spent on the homepage alone. And once past that, thousands of women will attest; it's addicting.
Business-wise, it was cutting-edge enough to land Silbermann and his co-founders Paul Sciarra and Evan Sharpe a $27-million investment from a leading venture capital firm.
They are working on an iPad app, and their months-old free iPhone app already has a 4+ approval rating on iTunes – rated by almost 30,000 users.
The majority of users are currently women, but Silbermann said they are beginning to notice more male-dominated categories (such as sports) emerge.
Silbermann admitted they weren't exactly sure how people would use the site when they launched it. Though he would not reveal any growth or user numbers, he said "we've been really happy with the growth of the site; we've also been happy withthe people who have used it. They've been really enthusiastic and sharing it."
So how does it work?
Like Twitter or Facebook, users post their own material and follow pinners and categories. Re-pinning something you like takes one simple click. To get started, Pinterest posts a list of favourite pinning trends in fashion, baking, media and interior design.
Here's a list of pinners to start with – with some suggestions from Silbermann himself:
- Design: Los Angeles-based designer, foodie and blogger Joy Cho pins about all things beautiful – she even has a board dedicated to balloons. Another highlights pretty product packaging – Parisian chocolates, bon bon soaps, and glass-bottled bath salts. Find her here:
- Fashion, decor: Oakland, Calif.'s Christine Martinez has "a penchant for pretty" – her page is all dolled up with delicate tea cups, cotton candy and pink dresses. One of her notable boards is "Words to Live by" with beautiful typographical posters of her favourite inspirational quotes. The dog-lover also has plenty of canine-friendly boards. Find her here:
- Architecture, technology: San Francisco's Sha Hwang pins interesting photography and nature scenes, as well as interesting maps and "Books worth Reading." Find him here:
- Travel, photography: Elena Delgado Maqueda's boards are a beautiful visual travel guide – with photography from Madrid, Barcelona and other cities she's lived in across Europe. In the interior design category, she has entire boards dedicated to stairs, doors and windows. Find her here:
- Men's style, design: Jeroen Bours from NYC adds some testosterone to the pinning world, posting motorcycle photos and trendy menswear. He also posts local finds, highlighting boutiques and coffee shops in his Manhattan neighbourhood. Find him here:
- Media: We'd be remiss not to tip you off to the behind-the-scenes newsroom photos and coverage of the day's top stories on Â鶹´«Ã½'s boards:
- Media: CTV's Canada AM also posts behind-the-scenes photos, favourite recipes, events and interview highlights with past guests. Check out their boards here:
