Pinterest CEO Ben Silbermann recently spoke at Fortune’s Brainstorm Tech 2015 Conference about the company and explained why it’s completely different from Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
“We believe that there’s a global opportunity to help people discover ideas that they can do in their everyday lives.”
Pin for Your Ideal Audience
That quote there is really what sets it apart from other platforms and why it’s not a “social network”. Ben mentions in the interview that with a social network, you upload photos that you think other people will like. With Pinterest, it’s self serving, you pin content that you will like, and if you are using it for business then content that you know your ideal customer will like.
This is one of the reasons I really love Pinterest, it’s being used in a different mental state. People broadcast their lives on Facebook and can get “hooked ” to getting Likes and Comments in order to receive attention. Besides, if everyone see’s what your up to on Facebook – what will you have to talk about when you see that person face to face?
Use it to Motivate and Inspire
Pinterest can inspire you, all of the Pins/Repins are there to motivate you and have a positive impact on your life, and engaging ways to reach your audience with messages about your brand. One of the biggest types of Pin on Pinterest are motivational quotes! And of course, the key difference between other platforms and Pinterest is that you’re saving these images on Pinterest to refer back to. With Facebook or Twitter, they’re lost in your constantly updating News Feed.
“The things that people do on Pinterest, I think they’re some of the most important, personal decisions people can make.”
In the interview, Ben mentioned “The things that people do on Pinterest, I think they’re some of the most important, personal decisions people can make.” It’s so true, Pinterest is used for planning big life events and that means important decisions that will be seen and remembered for the rest of your life. Equally how you use it for your business should be messages that resonate with your audience long term. He goes on to say:
“They’re decisions like “What am I going to eat?”, “What is my home going to look like?”, “Where am I going to travel?, What are the gifts I am going to buy?” I think people struggle to have good tools that can help them make those decisions.”
Well said Ben (what do you expect from the CEO? Watch the full interview here.)
Pinterest is ultimately for the greater good and if your business isn’t already on Pinterest then it’s time to get cracking! We can help you set up an account and get you off to a great start. Or if you already have a Pinterest Account, check out our FREE checklist “5 Fatal Mistakes Killing Your Pinterest Account”.