As we continue to see Pinterest gather momentum and attention, one question that will inevitably need to be answered is “How do we track Pinterest usage and sharing?” With users flocking to the site, pinners have fueled large-scale growth in the past six months. This has caused major brands and companies to sit up and take notice of the social pinboard site. As marketers test the waters of the social sharing site, wide scale adoption will hinge on not only the ability to track both the number of pins and shares but to understand who is sharing – not just what they are sharing.
One critical first step in this process is a new Pinterest-focused dashboard called Pinerly. The Toronto-based startup is still in the invite-only stage, but according to BetaKit, Pinerly provides both tracking metrics for pins as well as business management solutions, such as pre-scheduled pins and follow/unfollow capability.
The article includes an interview from Pinerly CEO Rick Kats, who explained he came up with the idea based on his own experiences with Pinterest, and not knowing who clicks on his pins. “I never know who actually clicks on my pins, and which pins are doing better from a traffic perspective,” Kats said. “So it’s hard to tell if your approach is working. That’s one of the things we built into Pinerly, to help brands actually know which pins are doing better than others.”
As the Pinterest site continues to evolve, expect to see other startups and existing dashboard offerings target their offerings to include Pinterest tracking capability, especially given the large interest in Pinerly. According to the company, there are more than 30,000 people on Pinerly’s waiting list, ranging from major brands to everyday users.
