Given Pinterest has made it's way into the subject of a Harvard Business Review post, it's safe to say that it's now ubiquitous. And while the platform clearly has its benefits, as with everything, there are some massive drawbacks too. As much as I continue to be enamored with Pinterest, there are a few pitfalls I've had to come to terms with over the past few months.
Take Everything With a Grain of Salt
Just like all things in life, use a discerning lens when you're being bombarded by messages. I don't know how many pins the average person on Pinterest sees in a day, but it's got to be hundreds. Make sure you know what you're getting if you're going to re-pin something. It amazes me how many recipes or fitness pins I see swirling around with comments of praise that are just reposted over and over again. "Best chicken casserole EVER. Made it yesterday!" is suddenly pinned and repined by a couple dozen people in my feed. Really? Did you all make this yesterday and decide it's that good? Or "Lose 10lbs in a week. It really works!" I just don't want Pinterest to become a late night infomercial, so I am trying to hold myself to not repinning superlatives and empty promises when I can't confirm them.
Pin the Original Sources
I'll admit, this one is often a bit challenging, but when pinning something that requires further information or a tutorial (i.e, recipe, craft, etc), please try to pin it from the original source. A lot of times I'll come across something that I am interested in replicating, and I'll find myself needing to "click thru" a half dozen blogger's re-posts before I actually get to the original post that provides the background of the pin and explains how to do it.
There is no Originality only Authenticity
Most likely this is just a result of the ever connected world we live in, but now, more than I've ever seen before, Pinterest is proving there is absolutely no originality left in the world. The same ideas now swirl over and over and over. It will be important to customize an idea and put your own special "stamp" on it. Whether this is crafts, home decor, party themes, etc., there is an even bigger hurdle to now think of something unique and unseen before. The first few weeks I spent on Pinterest I thought how awesome it would have been had it been around when planning my wedding. A few weeks passed and with it I saw the same cute ideas begin to lose their sparkle because they'd been passed around so much. When hosting a party I'd much prefer to surprise and delight my guests with ideas they hadn't seen a couple dozen times on the internet.
Personally, I think where this platform is evolving and will continue to grow is in "following" keenly curated people or brand's boards. Of course individuals will continue to organically post as well as re-post Pins, but the real sweet spot will be finding those leaders who truly excel in one area and are the "go-to" Pinners on their specialty. Not unlike the "race" to be a leading food website (i.e, AllRecipes, Pillsbury, Epicurious, etc), all these brands are now in a race to define who they are on Pinterest and how to interact in a new way with their consumers. Actually, it sounds like a really fun challenge that I'd like to have at the office right now...but am sure hoping it's already figured out once I return in April or we'll really be behind the times.
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