Pinterest Testing ‘Promoted Pins’ — Its Version of Ads

Ads are not ads on Pinterest — they are promoted pins, and they are making their first appearance on the virtual pin up board today.

“We wanted to let you know that we are starting our first test with promoting pins today, so you may spot a few in your search results or category feeds on the web or in mobile apps,” reads a blog post from Pinterest CEO Ben Silbermann.

Via eMarketer

“They work just like regular pins, only they have a special “promoted” label, along with a link to learn more about what that means. Remember we’re still just testing things out right now, so we’d really like to hear what you think. We’ll be listening closely to what you have to say, and will continue to keep you posted about how things go.”

Promoted pins are no surprise to Pinterest users. Silbermann announced last month that ads would be making their debut on the social network in a bid to ensure Pinterest is around for many years to come.

“Pinterest is where you keep your wishlists, vacation plans, dream home ideas, and other things you want to do soon and in the future,” Silbermann said.

“That’s why for us, it’s so important that Pinterest is a service that will be here to stay. To help make sure it does, we’re going to start experimenting with promoting certain pins from a select group of businesses.”

All promoted pins will be in good taste as well as pertinent to Pinterest users, he said. That means there will be no banner ads or pop-up ads.

Instead, all ads will look like regular pins but with a special ‘promoted pins’ designator.

The advertising initiative may be coming at the perfect time for Pinterest.

A new study by STRATA, a media software company, showed that 25 percent of marketers would spend their Social Media Advertising dollars on Pinterest. The social network tied for fifth with Google+. Facebook was the top choice at 90 percent, followed by YouTube at 55 percent and Twitter at 53 percent. LinkedIn followed in fourth with 35 percent.

resource: http://www.sitepronews.com/2013/10/09/pinterest-testing-promoted-pins-version-ads/