Pinterest – ali birston's blog

Pinterest’s New Rival

After just discovering The Fancy this morning I feel both shocked, delighted, and annoyed. Shocked that I have been missing out on what seems to be the future of online shopping, delighted that a site so perfectly thought out and designed now exists, and annoyed that this may just be my new favorite addiction (adios Pinterest).

So what is this new site that has me so worked up? The Fancy is a platform very similar to Pinterest but with the unique feature that allows users to “fancy” items that they wish to buy and then directly purchase them. This site can be described as part wish list, part online magazine, part e-store and complete visual indulgence.

From a business and brand perspective, this click-to-purchase business model seems genius. Not only can users save the items they fancy to their catalogue and follow friends (similar to Pinterest) but they can also then purchase those unique items in a matter of minutes. Other unique features include a referral program that gives users credit when friends sign-up and make purchases, subscription boxes that for $30 send users $60 worth of products found on The Fancy site, and a partnership with American Express that gives users statement credits for purchases using their card followed by a tweet using the #AmexTheFancyOffer hashtag.

While The Fancy’s 2 million users mainly consist of younger women (between 18-24), I see huge growth potential both through adoption by other demographics and for brands who see this model as much more attractive in terms of direct ROI than platforms such as Pinterest and Tumblr.

Watch out Pinterest you may just have a new rival.

Reference: Viral Blog – The Fancy: The Future of Social Media?

Putting Pinterest into Perspective

“Pinterest: where women go to plan imaginary weddings, dress children that don’t exist, and decorate homes they can’t afford.”

Ironically enough, this quote was found from a pin on a board titled “Define Pinterest – ADDICTED”. It made me laugh and at the same time caused me to reflect a little deeper on the underlying reasons people are so addicted to Pinterest and how brands can effectively capitalize on that.

While many large companies such as Whole Foods, Sephora, and Honda and have found creative ways to capitalize on its addictive qualities and garner a following on Pinterest, one campaign in particular caught me by surprise. UNICEF, well-known as the leading charitable organization for children, recently created a Pinterest board that puts our first world materialistic desires to shame.

The page highlights a young 13-year old girl from Sierra Leone named Ami and only has one board “Really want these”. The only six pins on her board include fresh water, soap, and rice – certainly a stark contrast to the lavish outfits, recipes, and wedding rings most commonly drooled over by young women in North America. Users can repin her posts to spread awareness and can also donate by clicking on any one of them.

Not only does this put our wants and needs into perspective but shows that there are certainly interesting new ways for untraditional companies, in this case NGOs, to leverage the wide user base of Pinterest addicts and create strong word-of-mouth.

Reference: The (Intentionally) Saddest Pinterest Page in the World