Since its beginning in 2010, Pinterest has become a hub for collecting and sharing fashion, style, products, and countless other ideas and images. With an estimated 40 million monthly active users, it is the perfect venue to grow affinity for brands and products in a timeless, cyclical setting.
The newly added ‘Buy It’ button on Pinterest utilizes Apple Pay as well as credit card payments, and has begun to smooth the transition between research and purchase. This is sure to capture the audience who uses Pinterest as a pre-shopping resource to effectively shorten the purchase funnel. We have yet to see how it is impacting revenue of early adopters but for all the “pinners” out there, the dream of a real world Pinterest board closet is starting to become a one-click reality.
What brands should know about this button:
- The ‘Buy It’ Button might not be for everyone. Excellent inventory management and syncing capabilities are necessary to be a successful merchant on Pinterest. If these are out of reach, consider sticking with brand awareness KPIs, and using Pinterest for driving traffic to the brand’s website.
- It’s all about mobile. As of right now, the ‘Buy It’ button is only live on iPhone and iPad apps. When planning inventory, product feeds, and overall Pinterest purchase strategy, consider a mobile user. Pinterest is planning to roll this out on Android and desktop soon but as of now, have not announced a release date.
- Keep analytics and tracking in mind. Pinterest provides an analytics platform to track performance within itself. Be sure to set up tracking for purchases directly on Pinterest in addition to referral traffic and revenue.
- Pay attention to re-pins. The cyclical nature of pinning and re-pinning is one of the biggest benefits for brand awareness and driving traffic to a brand’s website. However, this also means that recycled images from products that may no longer be available for sale will show up in the feeds of potential Pinterest shoppers. Merchants must be thorough and detailed in keeping Pinterest synced with real-time inventory so consumers are not misled when trying to “buy it.”
- An image can only sell one product. Lifestyle photos are typically more engaging, but only one item per photo is shoppable unfortunately. Check to see that the image clearly reflects the product, and that the user won’t end up confused with multiple products displayed in the shoppable image.
- Pinterest is the venue, but the process still belongs to the brand. The merchant will handle shipping, customer service, and inventory management. This means that the control over much of the purchase process remains with the brand despite the conversion taking place on Pinterest.
With holiday planning quickly approaching, Pinterest is something to keep on the docket as it could incrementally increase your revenue. However, double-check that it is the right choice for your brand, company infrastructure, and most importantly, the consumer.
