Pinterest has now made it easy for users to find pins they might like so they can cut down on the time spent on discovery. The new feature is called ‘related pins’ and as the name implies, recommends a selection of pins to users’ home feed. This appears to be a handy feature as it not only saves time but also introduces you to pins related to your interest/liking that you may otherwise miss.
To understand the pins related to your interests, Pinterest looks at the pins you have saved, liked or pinned a lot of. In other words, your pinning history is analyzed to recommend fresh pins. The pins will be similar or linked to posts you have liked or saved on the pinboard-style photo-sharing website. They will appear with a thumbs up and thumbs down feature to allow you to give feedback and improve the pins’ relevance over time. If some of the recommendations are not to your liking, you can use the info icon to rate the pin. This pin will then be removed from your feed and pins with similar content will not be recommended going forward.
The new feature is aimed at enhancing user experience, but can help marketers as well. Social media campaigns have yet another way to reach qualified prospects if Pinterest delivers relevant content to those who have already expressed their interest in similar products.
There is however a flipside, one that users have pointed out to Pinterest. While acknowledging the usefulness of related pins, there is also the possibility that the pins may be spammy and obstruct organic content marketing and social media outreach efforts. Users have submitted comments to Pinterest asking if they will be able to opt-out of the new feature. Watch this space for more information on the latest from Pinterest.