Pinterest - In the less than two years since it launched, Pinterest has gone from being a little-known start-up site to one of the 10 most popular social networks in the world, even surpassing ..

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POSTED BY EIZ ON THURSDAY, 19 JANUARY, 2012, 7:14 AM
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By Seth Fiegerman 01/31/12 - 09:00 AM EST NEW YORK (MainStreet) -- In the less than two years
since it launched, Pinterest has gone from being a little-known start-up site to one of the 10 most
popular social networks in the world, even surpassing ...
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PINTEREST
POSTED BY EIZ ON THURSDAY, 19 JANUARY, 2012, 7:14 AM
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With Big ImpactNEW YORK (MainStreet) --
In the less than two years since it
launched, Pinterest has gone from being
a little-known start-up site to one of the 10
most popular social networks in the world,
even surpassing Google+ for total visits in
December. Yet even as Pinterest's
popularity skyrockets, it continues to have
trouble appealing to one rather large
demographic: men. A recent report from
Ignite Social Media finds that just 20% of Pinterest's users are men, confirming the assumptions
that many have had about the site for months. Blogs such as Material Instinct have referred to the
site as "catnip for women," while the tech site Gizmodo recently dubbed it "Tumblr for Ladiez." On
the surface, it's not hard to see why.
For those who haven't used Pinterest, it basically functions like Twitter or Tumblr but with an even
greater emphasis on visual elements. Rather than simply linking to a particular Web site,
members are prompted to "pin" their favorite photo from that page to a particular board (or
category) along with a short description, which will then show up for users who follow them. In
effect, each user acts as a curator assembling catalogs of their favorite online content, and more
often than not, that content appears to focus on fashion, design, weddings, pets and food. You
know, not "guy stuff." To be sure, there's nothing wrong with a Web site focusing primarily on
women, except that Pinterest strives to be gender neutral. In fact, the social network was founded
by two men who frequently use the site to post about clever T-shirts, fighting robots and DIY
projects they'd like to take on. What's more, there have already been multiple sites such as
WhereIsTheCool and GentleMint that take Pinterest's format and specifically target men, showing
there is nothing inherently feminine about Pinterest's model -- what matters is how the community
uses it. As someone who has been on Pinterest now for several months, I am here to say that
there are at least four key reasons why anyone -- including men -- should give Pinterest a try.
Virtually all social networks can be used as product discovery tools for shoppers, but none hold a
candle to Pinterest. The entire purpose of the site is to serve as a catalog for each user's interests,
and more often than not those catalogs focus on items one wants to buy, use or make. If you're
looking for suggestions on dress shoes to buy, movies to watch or food to serve at your Super
Bowl party, chances are that plenty of boards are devoted entirely to each. All you have to do to find
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