Tag: pinterest

Pinterest sets strong example in social commerce

| June 3, 2013

Social commerce growing more popular in the digital world

Mobile commerce has become a well documented trend around the world. Many people know and understand what mobile commerce is about, even if many people have yet to participate in this emerging field. A relatively unknown facet of this sector, however, is beginning to attract more attention, largely due to its connection to social networking. So called social commerce is quickly becoming a powerful trend in the digital world, heavily supported by the strong growth that social networks like Pinterest have seen in recent years.

Report suggests that Pinterest is a powerful social commerce platform

Pinterest is one of the fastest growing social networks in the world today. The social network has successfully attracted millions of users from around the world, most of whom use the platform regularly. Pinterest is not only growing as a social network, of course, as it is also quickly establishing itself as the leading platform for social commerce. A recent report from Monetate suggests that Pinterest is responsible for directing a massive amount of online traffic to e-commerce sites throughout the first quarter of this year and during the holiday season of 2012.

Pinterest Social CommerceSocial network directs consumers to e-commerce sites

The report shows that Pinterest holds the highest average order value among other social networks concerning social media referrers. This translates into revenue generated for the social network for all the traffic it directs to e-commerce sites. While Pinterest has shown itself to be a powerful social commerce platform, the report notes that the social network can improve its approach to the matter in order to generate more revenue from this space. A stronger focus on mobile commerce may serve well in this endeavor.

Social networks could aid growth of mobile commerce

Social networking sites have been a strong boon for the mobile commerce field. These sites are already heavily trafficked by consumers that use their mobile devices for just about everything. Sites that can successfully direct this traffic to e-commerce sites are helping spread the reach of mobile commerce services and making consumers more comfortable with the concept of mobile payments.

Mobile commerce continues to show signs of evolution

| April 30, 2013

Mobile Commerce EvolutionMobile commerce is becoming more social

Commerce continues to evolve as more consumers become tethered to their mobile devices and place more importance on social media. This evolution first began in the 80’s with the advent of the Internet and e-commerce. The proliferation of mobile technology brought about mobile commerce, which has only emerged within the past few years and is still considered to be in a state of infancy. Now, however, commerce is showing signs of a new evolutionary step, one called “participatory commerce” or “Pinterest commerce.”

Participatory commerce continues to gain some traction

Participatory commerce, as a term, was first coined by Mark Pincus, CEO of Zynga, in 2005. The term became somewhat popular in 2010 to describe the business model of FashionStake, a retail startup that was acquired by Fab.com in 2012. The term itself refers to a sales model that allows consumers to participate in the design, selection, and funding of certain products they are interested in purchasing. In some ways, this model is similar to popular crowdfunding platforms like Kickstarter, where individuals funding a project have some control over how that project will take form.

Retailers find value in social networking

Participatory commerce began being called Pinterest commerce in 2011 during the social network’s unexpected rise to fame. The retail industry was quick to see the possible benefits that Pinterest represented and moved to leverage the social network to their advantage. While Pinterest does not allow for online sales, it has proved to be a valuable platform through which retailers can expose consumers to new products and encourage online shopping.

New forms of commerce becoming increasingly social

The term is not widely used and is often considered to be an unnecessary subcategory of mobile commerce itself. It does, however, draw attention to the growing role of social media in the mobile commerce sector. Sites like Pinterest already hold a great deal of influence over consumers and retailers are becoming more adept at using these platforms to connect with mobile consumers in various demographics.