292 Pinterest Posts Actually Worth Reading

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The Pinterest Encyclopedia

There’s no denying it: Pinterest is hot. With its 10.4 million registered users, 11.7 million unique monthly U.S. visitors and popularity ratings higher than Twitter, LinkedIn and Google+ combined, there's no wonder Pinterest is the website everyone's talking about.

Below, here’s our list of the top 292 Pinterest posts worth reading, taken from all around the Web!

PINTEREST 101: A basic primer on the who, what, why and how of Pinterest

What Is Pinterest?

If you’re new to Pinterest, think of it like this: your own personal online inspiration board. With Pinterest, users can build customized visual collages of bookmarked spaces on the Web, be they recipes, craft projects, interesting articles or favorite living rooms, and then share them with connections.

  1. Pinterest: A Beginner's Guide (Rob Lammle, Mashable)
  2. The Marketer's Guide to Pinterest (Neil Patel, QuickSprout)
  3. Pinterest Combines Flickr and Delicious to Create the Tidy-Web (Andy Robertson, Wired UK)
  4. Pinterest: The Ultimate Guide (The Blog Stylist)
  5. Pinterest: the new hit social network explained (Shane Richmond, The Telegraph)
  6. A Non-Geek's Guide to Pinterest, The Biggest Internet Hit Since Facebook (Alyson Shontell, Business Insider)
  7. Know Your Internet: What Is Pinterest and Why Should I Care? (Alexis Madrigal, The Atlantic)
  8. Pinterest: Everything You Wanted to Know about 2012's Hottest Startup (Todd Wasserman, Mashable)
  9. Pinterest: Why What It's Not Says So Much (Courtney Lowery Cowgill, PBS)
  10. Pinterest: Everything You Need to Know and the Five Best Pinboards to Follow (Gary Evans, Sabotage Times)
  11. Opinion: Should You Care about Pinterest? (Alexandra Chang, Macworld.com)
  12. What Is Pinterest? A Users' Guide for Pinning Neophytes (Holly Allen, Slate Magazine)
  13. Pinterest: Just what exactly is on it? (Lauren Everitt, BBC News)
  14. Everything You Need to Know about Pinterest [Invites] (Nancy Messieh, The Next Web)
  15. Some Perspectives on Pinterest (Scott Monty, The Social Media Marketing Blog)

Pinterest Popularity

Just how popular is Pinterest?  Take a look at these articles that describe the network as “red-hot” and the scrapbook that “catches fire."

  1. A Scrapbook on the Web Catches Fire (David Pogue, New York Times)
  2. Businesses Pin Hopes on Digital Scrapbook Pinterest (Laura Petrecca, USA Today)
  3. The Popularity of Pinterest (Tiffany Tift, My Fox Orlando)
  4. Red-Hot Pinterest Draws Passionate Fans (KMBC.com)
  5. Pinterest: The rise of the social photo sharing site (Brianne Carter, WJLA.com)
  6. Pinboard Sharing Site Pinterest Flourishing (Jonathan Bloom, ABC7News.com)
  7. Pinterest Experience Required for Marketing and Sales Jobs (Damian Ghigliotty, FINS)
  8. Pinterest Usage and Growth US vs UK [infographic] (Polly Becker, The Wall)
  9. Pinterest's Rapid Rise Boosts Small Business Sales (Bernadette Tansey, CNBC.com)
  10. Pinterest - The Hottest New Social Site (Dana Lynn Smith, The Savvy Book Marketer)
  11. Pinterest: The Web's Hottest New Social Network (Cory Pederson, Post Bulletin)
  12. Everyone Is Talking about Pinterest (Local 10)
  13. Pinterest, the Cork Board of the Internet, Gains Popularity (Jennifer Calhoun, FayObserver.com)
  14. Interest in Pinterest Keeps Rising (Sheldon Levine, Sysomos Blog)

Background and Behind the Scenes at Pinterest

Curious about the background and founding of Pinterest? Check out these posts, including one with a tour of the social network’s Palo Alto offices.

  1. The Incredible Anti-Aging Startup! Started in 2008, Pinterest Is Now Just Six Months Old (Ben Popper, VentureBeat)
  2. Pinterest Stands Out in Crowded Social Media Field (Adam Belz, USA Today)
  3. Have an Interest in Pinterest? Thank Iowan (Tad Davis, KCCI.com)
  4. Peek into Pinterest's Palo Alto Pad [PICS] (Katie Freeman, Mashable)
  5. A Pencil Inspired This 19-Year-Old to Quit Pinterest and Start His Own Company (Boonsri Dickinson, Business Insider)
  6. Meet the People behind Pinterest (Esra Ogucu, In the Life of Esra)

Pinterest Vs. Other Social Networks

To put things in context, look at how Pinterest compares to sites like Facebook, Twitter and Google+, according to researchers.

  1. Why One Website Kills Facebook's Future (Dan Newman, Motley Fool)
  2. Users Spend Less Time on Google+ Than MySpace, Pinterest (Angela Moscaritolo, PCMag.com)
  3. Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest--How Much Time Do We Spend on Social Media Sites? (Shea Bennett, Media Bistro)
  4. Silicon Valley's Hottest Social Network Isn't Facebook: It's Pinterest (Peter Delevett, San Jose Mercury News)
  5. Time Spent on Google+ Dwindles while Pinterest Draws Growing User Interest (Charles Arthur, The Guardian)
  6. Pinterest: Facebook for Women? (Clayton Morris, Fox News)
  7. How Pinterest Combines the Best Parts of Facebook, Tumblr, and Etsy (Megan Riesz, The Christian Science Monitor)
  8. What Pinterest Can Do That Facebook Can't (Becky Worley, Yahoo News)
  9. Pinterest Keeps and Engages Members Better Than Twitter, Data Shows (Jennifer Van Grove, Venture Beat)
  10. Pinterest Drives More Traffic Than Google+, YouTube and LinkedIn Combined [STUDY] (Zoe Fox, Mashable)
  11. Pinterest Is Tumblr for Ladiez (Matt Buchanan, Gizmodo)
  12. Online Pinboard Site Pinterest Provides Direct Connection (Naomi Simson, The Australian)
  13. Pinterest Users' Time on Site Nearly Matches YouTube (Lani Rosales, AGBeat)
  14. Pinterest and Facebook: A Foreseeable Rivalry for Retailers? (Neal Schaffer, Business 2 Community)
  15. Adding a Pinterest-Twist to Fix Facebook Commerce (Michael Koploy, Software Advice)

Why Pinterest Works

With more and more users joining Pinterest each day, everyone wants to understand the draw. Is it the simplicity of design? The personalization? The community? What keeps drawing people in?

  1. What's with All the Interest in Pinterest? (Kara Ohngren, Entrepreneur)
  2. The Secret to Pinterest's Success: We're Sick of Each Other (Bianca Bosker, The Huffington Post)
  3. Pinterest Online Bulletin Board Soars as a Social Media Darling (Sandra M. Jones, Chicago Tribune)
  4. The Power of Pinterest: Simplicity (Jacqui MacKenzie, BlogHer)
  5. What's Behind the Pinterest Craze? 15 Super-Users Share Their Thoughts (Arik Hanson, Communications Conversations)
  6. Why Pinterest Is So Addictive (Lydia Dishman, Fast Company)
  7. Why Do Mormons, including Mitt Romney's Wife, Love Pinterest? (Adrian Chen, Gawker)
  8. Why Every Website Wants to Be Pinterest (John C. Dvorak, PCMag.com)
  9. What Happened When I Tried to Pin My Life (Hannah Wolt, Forbes)
  10. What's Driving Pinterest's Amazing Growth (MarketingProfs)
  11. Why We're All Suddenly Obsessed with Pinterest (Nathaniel Perez, Fast Company)
  12. 10 Reasons Pinterest Booked 10 Million Visitors a Month So Far (Anthony Wing Kosner, Forbes)
  13. Pinterest Pins Down Followers (Benny Evangelista, Houston Chronicle)
  14. The Secret of Pinterest's Success (Rebecca Greenfield, The Atlantic)
  15. Nailing Down the Appeal of Pinterest (Teresa Tomassoni, NPR)
  16. Why Pinterest Is 2012's Hottest Website (Pete Cashmore, CNN)
  17. 10 Reasons We Love Pinterest (Esteban Contreras, SlideShare)
  18. What 'Pinned' My Interest in Pinterest (Kiran Chhabria, Gulf News)
  19. Pinterest: My Favorite Free Traffic Source in 2012 (Lisa Irby, 2 Create a Website)
  20. Why Pinterest Works for Tourism (Troy Thompson, Travel 2.0 Consulting Group)

Who Is on Pinterest?

Who are all these millions of Pinterest users? Do they fit a certain demographic? Research shows the majority of pinners are female, with dominating pins revolving around fashion, decorating and recipes.

  1. Pinterest Demographic Data (Erin Ledbetter, Ignite Social Media Blog)
  2. So Pinterest Is a Woman's World. Does That Matter? (April Fehling, NPR)
  3. Pinterest: How Do U.S. and UK Users Compare? (Matt Silverman, Mashable)
  4. It's Possible That over 95% of Pinterest Users Are Female (Ellis Hamburger, The San Francisco Chronicle)
  5. Pinterest Users Are 97 Percent Female (Leslie Horn, PCMag.com)
  6. Is Pinterest the Facebook for Women? Fast-Growing Social Site Could Be 97% Female (Rob Waugh, Mail Online)
  7. Addicted to a Web site called Pinterest: Digital crack for women (Petula Dvorak, The Washington Post)
  8. Men Are from Google+, Women Are from Pinterest (Keith Wagstaff, Time)
  9. Pinterest Becomes Top Traffic Driver for Women's Magazines (Lauren Indvik, Mashable)
  10. Pinterest and Men: The Less Fair Sex Is Alive and (Starting to) Pin (Emma Gray, Huffington Post)
  11. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg Joins Pinterest (Emil Protalinksi, ZDNet)
  12. Tuscaloosa, UA students Keep Pinterest Popular in Alabama (The Crimson White)
  13. Meet Your Pinterest Customer (Alexandra Samuel, Harvard Business Review)
  14. 13 Fun Facts about Pinterest Users (INFOGRAPHIC) (Courteney Palls, The Huffington Post)

How to Use Pinterest

So you’re ready to join Pinterest. How do you begin? Here is some helpful advice for getting started, as well as ideas for ways to use the network.

  1. How to Use Pinterest's Pinboard for the Web (Mark W. Smith, USA Today)
  2. How to Use Pinterest: A step-by-step guide (Sherri L. Smith, Digital Life on MSNBC.com)
  3. How Do People Use Pinterest? (Jill Duffy, PCMag.com)
  4. Getting Started on Pinterest (Sandra M. Jones, Chicago Tribune)
  5. Miss Manners: Pinterest-Style (CrafterMinds)
  6. Social Networking for Business: Pinterest Etiquette (Jenny Sussin, Gartner)
  7. Potential Pinterest Dangers and Proper Pinning Etiquette (Jacqui MacKenzie, Social Media Today)
  8. Pinterest: 5 Ways to Use the New Social Pinning Site (Joanna Stern, ABCNews)
  9. Five Pinterest Best Practices for Nonprofits (Nonprofit Tech 2.0)
  10. Your Pinterest Cheat Sheet (Jude Stewart, Salon)
  11. Pinterest--Get Stuck In (Bronwen Morgan, Research)
  12. 13 Ways to Get More Pinterest Followers (Sujan Patel, Search Engine Journal)
  13. 20 Awesome Tools Which Will Have You 'Pinteresting' Like a Pro (Nancy Messieh, The Next Web)
  14. Pinterest: What's In It for You? (Ali Yares, edSocialMedia)

Who’s Hot: The Top Pinterest Users & Pinboards

Wondering what Pinterest users and pinboards have the most fans or followers? Interested in seeing who's hot on Pinterest? Take a look at these curated lists of popular pinners.

  1. 10 Most-Followed Users on Pinterest (Lauren Indvik, Mashable)
  2. The 10 Most Important People on Pinterest in 2011 (Lauren Rae Orsini, The Daily Dot)
  3. Top 10 Most-Followed Pinterest Users (Jane Wang, WJLA.com)
  4. Ten Pinterest Accounts You Need to Follow (Katie Koschalk, Divine Caroline)
  5.  Hot on Pinterest: 5 Pinners to Follow Now (Brie Dyas, Stylelist Home)
  6. 10 Cool Pinterest Accounts You Should Be Following (Nancy Messieh, The Next Web)
  7. 10 Pinterest 'Pinboards' You Absolutely Need to Follow (Ellis Hamburger, Business Insider)
  8. The 10 Most-Followed Brands on Pinterest (Todd Wasserman, Mashable)
  9. Pinterest: You'll Never Be Bored with a Board (Hannah Waldram, The Observer)

What the Future Holds for Pinterest

Is Pinterest just another social network that will fade away in time? What will the future hold for the world of pins and pinning?

  1. Is Pinterest Just Another Passing Social Media Fad? (Andy Johnson, CTVNews.ca)
  2. Pinterest Obsession: The Future of Social Media? (Paula Ebben, CBS Boston)
  3. Is Photo-Sharing Website Pinterest the Next Facebook or Twitter? (Ross McGuinness, Metro.co.uk)
  4. When Will the iPad See Some Pinterest Love? (Lory Gil, AppAdvice)
  5. Why Entity Search Will Be Controlled by Social Media (Aaron Friedman, Search Engine Land)
  6. Pinterest - Hot New Network or Another Quora? (Rory Cellan-Jones, BBC News)
  7. Pinterest: 10 Reasons Why It Will Be Bigger Than Twitter (Adrian Johnson, UMPF Blog)
  8. How Pinterest Is Changing Website Design Forever (Sarah Kessler, Mashable)
  9. Pinterest Demanded for Android Phones and Tablets (Daniel Chubb, ProductReviews)
  10. What Influence Is the Pinterest Model Likely to Have on Other Social Media Platforms? (Matt Bailey, The Drum)

PINTEREST FOR BUSINESS: How this growing network interacts with business strategy and growth

Why Businesses Should Use Pinterest

  1. Is Pinterest the Secret to Your Web Domination? (Jabez LeBret, Inc.Well)
  2. Retailers Should Be Getting Pinterested (Rosie Baker, Marketing Week)
  3. How and Why to Use Pinterest for Business (John Jantsch, Duct Tape Marketing)
  4. Should a Small Business Be Pinning on Pinterest? (Deborah Sweeney, Forbes)
  5. How Pinterest Is Becoming the Next Big Thing in Social Media for Business (Jason Falls, Entrepreneur)
  6. What Pinterest Means for eCommerce (Dodlet Sutardjo, Blue Acorn)
  7. Why Business Should Take an Interest in Pinterest (Phil Rampulla, Business 2 Community)
  8. Need More YouTube Views? Try Pinterest (Stephanie Buck, Mashable)
  9. The Key Ingredient to Massive Hits Like Pinterest and Facebook That You Should Copy (Nicholas Carlson, Business Insider)
  10. David Bohan: Pinterest Joins Marketers' World of Social Media (David Bohan, The Tenessean)
  11. Pinterest: Why Your Company Should Take an Interest (Debra Donston-Miller, The Brainy Yard)
  12. Pinterest: Good for Small Businesses? (Yellowstone Capital)
  13. How Brands Are Using Pinterest - And What They Can Do Better (Richard MacManus, Read Write Web)
  14. 18 Compelling Stats to Help Sell Your Boss on Pinterest (Arik Hanson, Communications Conversations)

Tips on Using Pinterest for Business

As Pinterest continues to grow in popularity, so does the interest of businesses that want to use the network to boost brand awareness.  How can businesses harness the power of Pinterest? Here are some tips:

  1. 56 Ways to Market Your Business on Pinterest (Beth Hayden, Copyblogger)
  2. 4 Things to Consider for a Content Strategy for Pinterest (Ian Smith, Intelegia)
  3. Pinterest Tips for Your Business (Jacqui MacKenzie, StayonSearch)
  4. 9 Tips: Boost Your Business with Pinterest (John Brandon, Inc.)
  5. Pinterest Marketing Tips & Tricks to Drive Targeted Traffic (Miranda Miller, Search Engine Watch)
  6. Top Tips for Brands on Pinterest (simplyZesty)
  7. Pinterest: 13 Tips and Tricks for Cutting Edge Users (Stephanie Buck, Mashable)
  8. 5 Ways Brands Can Leverage Pinterest Now (Reggie Bradford, TechCrunch)
  9. 7 Creative Ways Your Brand Can Use Pinterest (Kaila Strong, Search Engine Watch)
  10. Turn Your Pinterest Addiction into a Valuable Company Investment (Erin C Nelson, Business 2 Community)
  11. Leveraging Pinterest to Benefit Email Marketing Campaigns (Wikus Engelbrecht, BizCommunity.com)
  12. 6 Tips for Tapping Pinterest's Surging Popularity (Sarah E. Needleman, The Wall Street Journal)
  13. Pinterest for Brands: 5 Hot Tips (Lauren Drell, American Express Open Forum Blog)
  14. 8 Strategies for Launching a Brand Presence on Pinterest (Charles Nicholls, Mashable)
  15. 9 Secrets for Entrepreneurs Using Pinterest (Young Entrepreneur Council, Tech.li)
  16. How to Master Pinterest for B2B Marketing (Rebecca Corliss, HubSpot Blog)
  17. How to Use Pinterest for Advertising Research (William Stephens, AccountPlanningBlog)
  18. 10 Tips to Get the Most out of Pinterest for Your Business (Nancy Messieh, The Next Web)
  19. Using Pinterest Yet? 13 Tips for Gaining Business Exposure for Your Clients (Hilary JM Topper, PR News)
  20. 26 Tips for Using Pinterest (Debbie Hemley, Social Media Examiner)
  21. Marketers: 7 Ways NOT to Ruin Pinterest (Barrett Condy, Forbes)
  22. 5 Tips for an Effective Pinterest Strategy (Stephen Bulger, Multichannel Merchant)

Pinterest and SEO

Pinterest recently made headlines by changing all of its links to nofollow—what does this mean for SEO? Are there still search engine optimization benefits available through this pinning network? Here is what people are saying:

  1. 7 Ways Pinterest Can Boost Your SEO (Rahul Banker, Ragan.com)
  2. Pinterest: 5 Ways to Harvest Pinterest's Awesome SEO and Social Power (Dana Flannery, ISEdb.com)
  3. Why I'm Happy That Pinterest Links Are Now Nofollow (Gisele Navarro Mendez, In Social We Trust)
  4. The Mayans Were Right: The famous Pinterest dofollow links have already become nofollow! (twago magazine)
  5. Pinterest Marketing Tips for SEO, Traffic and Online Reputation Management (KISSmetrics)
  6. How to Leverage Pinterest in Your SEM Strategy (Suzanne Sanchez, SEO Blog)

Examples and Case Studies of Businesses and Pinterest

Take a look at the ways businesses are using Pinterest to boost their brand—as well as the ways they’re not.

  1. How 11 Brands Are Reaching Customers on Pinterest (Sakita Holley, Ragan.com)
  2. 7 Examples of Brands That Pop on Pinterest (Lauren Sorenson, Hubspot)
  3. 14 Brands on Pinterest (Sig Ueland, Practical eCommerce)
  4. 5 Brands Using Pinterest Brilliantly (Susan Gunelius, Sprout Insights)
  5. The Top 20 Sites Being Shared on Pinterest (Alyson Shontell, The San Francisco Chronicle)
  6. What Marketers Can Learn from Whole Foods' Organic Approach to Pinterest (Lauren Drell, Mashable)
  7. The U.S. Army Uses Pinterest? Sir, Yes Sir! (Alex Fitzpatrick, Mashable)
  8. Chobani Yogurt Tickles the Tastes of Pinterest Addicts, and So Can Your Brand (Lydia Dishman, Fast Company)
  9. How Boston Companies Are Using Pinterest (Walter Frick, BostInno)
  10. Time Inc.'s Health Pinterest Presence Ramps Up (Stefanie Botelho, Consumer @FolioMag.com)
  11. Pinterest Pins up Business for Etsy and Kate Spade (Paul Demery, Internet Retailer)
  12. 20 B2B Marketers Losing Their Brand on Pinterest (Eric Wittlake, B2B Digital Marketing)

PINTEREST CONTROVERSIES: Questions and concerns raised over the visual network

Is Pinterest Copyright Infringement?

It's the Pinterest question everyone's asking: is this stealing? When users sign up with Pinterest and agree to its terms of service, what exactly are they agreeing to? Is this fair to websites?

  1. Why Does Pinterest Let You Change URLs for the Image Source? (Brad Shorr, CrowdShifter)
  2. Why I Tearfully Deleted My Pinterest Inspiration Boards (Kirsten Kowalski, DDK Portraits)
  3. My Date with Ben Silbermann--Following Up and Drying My Tears (Kirsten Kowalski, DDK Portraits)
  4. Pinterest: Delightful, Addictive, Theft (Choire Sicha, The Awl)
  5. Pinterest: Is It a Facebook or a Grokster? (Jeff Roberts, PaidContent.org)
  6. How Your Business Could Get Sued for Using Pinterest (Galen Moore, Boston Business Journal)
  7. Pinterest Is Blowing Up - with Cries of Copyright Infringement (Molly McHugh, Digital Trends)
  8. Pinterest Terms of Use Raise Copyright Concerns (Dianna Dilworth,  GalleyCat)
  9. Is Pinterest the New Napster? (Josh Davis, LLSocial)
  10. Pinterest Might Be Enabling Massive Copyright Theft (Kevin Lincoln, Business Insider)
  11. Pinterest's Uneasy Relationship with Copyright Law: What Happens Next (Nilay Patel, The Verge)
  12. How Pinterest Uses Your Content without Violating Copyright Laws (Dave Copeland, ReadWriteWeb)
  13. What You Should Know about Pinterest and Copyright (Angela West, PCWorld)
  14. What Pinterest Means for the Arts (Matthew Caines, The Guardian)
  15. The Genius of Pinterest's Copyright Dodge (Christopher Mims, Technology Review)
  16. Pinterest May Lead to Tears (or Even a Lawsuit) (Alyshah Hasham, TheSpec.com)
  17. Attorney Says Pinterest Needs to Change Its Digital Copyright Policy (Dave Copeland, ReadWriteWeb)
  18. Pinterest's Copyright Strategy Puts the Burden on Users (Rebecca Greenfield, The Atlantic)
  19. Flickr Blocks Pinterest 'Pinning' (Shane Richmond, The Telegraph)
  20. How Brands Can Use Pinterest without Breaking the Law (Brian Heidelberger, DigitalNext)
  21. Fingerprint Photos to Save Pinterest from Napster Fate (Paul Marks, New Scientist)
  22. How Tumblr and Pinterest Are Fueling the Image Intelligence Problem (Matthew Carroll, Forbes)
  23. Pinterest and the Intellectual Property Conundrum (Virginia DeBolt, BlogHer)
  24. Pinterest and Your Rights [VIDEO] (Tech Tonic, Reuters)
  25. Pinning Copyright Complaints on Pinterest (Deborah Sweeney, Social Media Today)
  26. On "sharing" and Pinterest musings... (Girlfriday)
  27. How Pinterest Removed All my Pinned Images in Minutes  (Katherine Tyrrell, Making a Mark)
  28. Takedown: How Pinterest Moved Fast to Remove my Pinned Images (katherine Tyrrell, Making a Mark
  29. Pinterest's Quiet Copyright Coup (Ben Cook, Direct Match Media)
  30. Could Your Pinterest Addiction Actually Be Illegal? (Liz Klimas, The Blaze)
  31. Credit Crusading (Jenna Butler, Little Bit Heart)
  32. Pinterest Copyright Policy vs Pinterest Terms (Mike Tuttle, WebProNews)
  33. Pinterest: We Did Not Intend to be Deceptive (Ashley Cloninger, Wall St. Cheat Sheet)

Pinterest Offers Websites Opt-Out Tool

In response to copyright concerns, Pinterest recently released a code that lets Web publishers insert a code on their websites to prevent images from being pinned. Will this solve the problem and satisfy critics? Should you opt out or not?

  1. New Code Lets Websites Opt-Out of Pinterest (Josh Davis, LLSocial)
  2. Pinterest Moves to Address Copyright Fears with Opt-Out (BBC News)
  3. Pinterest Helps Some People Not to Pin (Pui-Wing Tam, The Wall Street Journal)
  4. The Pinterest 'Opt Out of Theft' System (Choire Sicha)
  5. The Great Pinterest Divide: To Opt Out or Not (Jonathan Bailey, PlagiarismToday)
  6. Pinterest Introduces 'NOPIN' to Counter Copyright Concerns (Lim Yung-Hui, Forbes)
  7. Guardian Jobs Asks: Will the New Pinterest Publisher Code also Protect the Individual Freelancer? (MarketWatch)
  8. Flickr vs. Pinterest: Flickr Users Can Now Implement Pinterest Opt-Out (Joann Pan, Mashable)
  9. Sorry, Pinterest Users: Websites Can Now Block Pinning [VIDEO} (Joann Pan, Mashable)
  10. Opt-Out of Pinterest: Problems Solved or Created? (Andrew Torba, Tech.li)

Pinterest Doesn’t Reveal Affiliate Links

Pinterest took heat in early February for having put tracking codes into the links users pinned without their knowledge, using these affiliate links to generate revenue.

  1. Stick It to Pinterest: Move Fast to Cash in on Your Own Pins (Meghan Casserly, Forbes)
  2. What Affiliates and Merchants Should Know about Pinterest Links (Joel Garcia, GTO Management)
  3. Why I Don't Mind Pinterest Hijacking my Links (Allison Boyer, BlogWorld)
  4. How Pinterest Is Making Money (Alicia Eler, Read Write Web)
  5. Is Pinterest Pocketing Revenue by Tracking User-Generated Pins? (Samantha Murphy, Mashable)
  6. What Was Learned from the Pinterest Link Modification Story (Josh Davis, LLSocial)
  7. Both Path and Pinterest Just Made Big Boo-Boos, but One Is Much Worse Than the Other (Hillel Fuld, Appboy)
  8. Pinterest Partner: Yes, They're Making Money from Pins (Samantha Murphy, Mashable)
  9. Here's the Secret, Clever Way Pinterest Is Making Money (Matt Lynley, Business Insider)
  10. How Pinterest Really Makes Money: Should You Care? (Tara Hunt, Inc.)
  11. Interview: Skimlinks CEO on Pinterest Relationship and Affiliate Marketing (Abby Johnson, WebProNews)

Does Pinterest Make Revenue?

If not through affiliate links, how could Pinterest make money? Does it? Will it?

  1. Why Pinterest Is Playing Dumb about Making Money (Alexis Madrigal, The Atlantic)
  2. Pinterest Is Not 'Playing Dumb' about Making Money (Alexia Tsotsis and Ingrid Lunden, TechCrunch)
  3. Pinterest's Rite of Web Passage--Huge Traffic, No Revenue (Sarah E. Needleman and Pui-Wing Tam, Wall Street Journal)
  4. Pinterest's Money Making Plans (Rebecca Greenfield, The Atlantic Wire)
  5. Pinterest Isn't Ready to Focus on Making Money (Alicia Eler, ReadWriteWeb) 
  6. Pinterest: Ultra Hot Social Network, No Money Plan Yet (Cromwell Schubarth, Silicon Valley / San Jose Business Journal)
  7. Is Pinterest Already Making Money, Quietly? (Jenna Wortham, NYTimes.com)

Pinterest Spams Facebook Users’ Connections

Reports recently surfaced that Pinterest was spamming users' existing connections in order to inflate its user base--sending friend requests on behalf of the user without his or her permission.

  1. Pinterest Is Spamming Your Facebook Friends' Email with Fake Connection Requests (Brad McCarty, The Next Web)
  2. Please God, Kill Me Now before Pinterest Spams Me Again (Dan Tynan, ITworld)
  3. How Is Pinterest Growing so Fast? It's Using Your Facebook Contacts (Justin Gianninoto, The Tech Upload) 
  4. Is Pinterest 'Spamming' Facebook? (Mike Tuttle, WebProNews)
  5. Online Privacy and Why Pinterest Should 'Binterested' (Elizabeth Lupfer, The Social Workplace)

Scams Target Pinterest Users

Now with the rising popularity of Pinterest, spammers have begun targeting Pinterest users, luring them with legitimate brand names and bringing them to scam surveys and other sites.

  1. Survey Scams Now on Pinterest Too (GMA Network)
  2. Pinterest Users Targeted with Scams (Zelijka Zorz, Help Net Security)
  3. Scammers Hop on Social Media Darling Pinterest (Paul Roberts, threatpost)
  4. Pinterest Phishing Scheme Tries to Pull Fans in (Suzanne Choney, Technolog on msnbc.com)
  5. Scammers Arrive to Pinterest (Lauren Fisher, Simply Zesty)
  6. Click with Care: Pinterest Falls Prey to Phishing Scams (Meghan Kelly, VentureBeat)
  7. Pinterest Phishing Expedition: Scammers Target Unsuspecting Pinterest Users (David Angotti, Search Engine Journal)
  8. Phishing Scammers Finally Discover Pinterest (Lani Rosales, AGBeat)

‘Thinspiration’ Trend Hurts Pinterest Image

Alternately called porn, ‘thinspiration’ or ‘thinspo’ and recently blocked from sharing website Tumblr, a certain type of pinned images are causing problems for Pinterest.

  1. Porn on Pinterest Masquerades as 'Thinspiration' (Helen A.S. Popkin, Digital Life on Today, MSN)
  2. Pinterest Has a Porn Problem (Jim Edwards, Business Insider)
  3.  Pinterest or Porn-terest? What the Social Network Is Doing to Keep It Clean (Stephanie Buck, Mashable)
  4. Self-Harm Content Ousted by Tumbler Moves to Pinterest (Kathryn Hough, Tech.li)

Other Issues with Pinterest / Anti-Pinterest Sentiments

The anti-Pinterest perspectives are fewer and far between, but they're out there. Whether because it wastes time, sets up unreal expectations or threatens intellectual property, some Internet users say they're not so enamored.

  1. Pinterest: 5 Things You'll Hate (Rob Wilmot, RealBusiness)
  2. Why I Don't Care about Pinterest (Melissa Foley, Social Media Today)
  3. Why Pinterest Won't Be Replacing my Inspiration Wall (Anthony Nguyen, Apartment Therapy)
  4. Pinterest Makes Me Feel Like I'm Bad at Being a Woman (Ali Trachta, LA Weekly blog)
  5. The Gospel According to Pinterest: Fear, Loathing, and Heart-Shaped Cupcakes (Rosalynde Welch, Patheos.com)
  6. Pinterest - three reasons for not using it (Bill of Rights for All Creative People) 
  7. Pinterest 'Addiction' Grows, Decreases Productivity (Jaclyn Allen, KMGH Denver)
  8. Pinterest Isn't for Every Small Business (Jason Keith, Boston.com)
  9. Path, Google, LinkedIn, Pinterest and Convenient Features That Freak Us Out (Kashmir Hill, Forbes)
  10. Why I'm Not Using Pinterest for My Business (Ali Goldfield, ADR Social Media)
  11. Why Pinterest Is Not the Next Big Thing for Your Business (John Jantsch, Duct Tape Marketing)
  12. Brown: Pinterest Needs to Join the 21st Century (McKenna Brown, Oregon Daily Emerald)
  13. Perspective: Pinterest Is All Pictures But Maybe Too Much Product (Jessica Helfand, Los Angeles Times)
  14. 4 Things Pinterest Isn't Saying (Hollis Thomases, Inc.com)
  15. 10 Reasons I'm Not Hopping on the Pinterest Bandwagon (Jill Smokler, The Stir)

PINTEREST COUSINS: Other networks spinning off or redesigning to mimic the Pinterest concept

Storify: Another Way to Cultivate the Web

Gathering materials from around the Web like Pinterest does, Storify allows users to pull social media materials like Tweets, photos, videos, etc., into one place, building stories they can share with readers.

  1. How Storify and Pinterest Are Cultivating the Wild Web, and Why Social Media Will Civilize the Internet (E.D. Kain, Forbes)
  2. Pinterest Is to Facebook as Storify's New iPad App Is to Twitter (Robert Scoble, Business Insider)
  3. Content Strategy: Pinterest & Storify Turn Content into Commodity (Ahava Leibtag, CMS Wire)

The Fancy: Like Pinterest but Monetized

Built on the same premise of Pinterest, wherein users pin items they like, The Fancy is a new network focused on products to purchase. Users create catalogs of items they like and share them with connections.

  1. The Fancy--Kind of Like Pinterest but All about the Money (Steve Huff, Betabeat)
  2. User Curator Site The Fancy Beats Pinterest to Monetization (Katy Finneran, Fox Business News)
  3. The Fancy, A Jack Dorsey-Backed Pinterest Competitor, Finds a Way to Make Money Sharing Photos (Alyson Shontell, Business Insider)
  4. Hey Pinterest, This Fancy Startup Actually Lets Us Buy Stuff (Sarah Kessler, Mashable)
  5. The Fancy: Curate your own personal shopping catalog (Laurie Segall, CNNMoney)
  6. Don't Just Pin It, Buy It: Pinterest Rival Fancy Figures Out Social Commerce (Sarah Perez, TechCrunch)
  7. High-End Pinterest Competitor Fancy Launches Commerce Platform with Help from Jack Dorsey (Austin Carr, Fast Company)

Flickr: Redesigned to Look Like Pinterest

Flickr’s expected February redesign is said to give the popular photo-sharing site a much-needed makeover—one that makes it look a little more like Pinterest.

  1. Flickr Gets a Makeover, Looks Like Pinterest (Zoe Fox, Mashable)
  2. Flickr Gets an App-Inspired Redesign (Natt Garun, Digital Trends)

Other Sites and Networks Compared to Pinterest

As Pinterest continues to grow in popularity, so do its spinoffs. Already, there's a Pinterest for travel, a Pinterest for men, a Pinterest for videos.

  1. Gogobot Is Like Pinterest for Your Travels (Kate Freeman, Mashable)
  2. Shopcastr Aims to Be Pinterest for Toronto Fashion Retail (Bianca Venerayan, blogto)
  3. Chill: Pinterest for Video Collection (Mike Tuttle, WebProNews)
  4. Gentlemint Is Pinterest for Manly Things (Alex Knapp, Forbes)
  5. Start-Ups Follow Pinterest's Lead (Sarah E. Needleman, Wall Street Journal)
  6. A 20-Year-Old Launches Pinpuff, a 'Klout for Pinterest' (Courtyney Boyd Myers, The Next Web)
  7. Pinterest: No Boys Allowed? New Pinning Sites for Men (Maura Judkis, The Washington Post, The Style Blog)
  8. What Will Be the Next Pinterest Like Blowup? My Vote's on Pinwheel (Anthony Wing Kosner, Forbes)
  9. 7 Pinterest Clones: Can You Tell the Difference? (Sarah Kessler, Mashable)
  10. 6 Pinterest-Inspired Website Designs (Lauren Granger, MemeBurn)
  11. What's Your PinClout? Site Measures Pinterest Influence (Steve Woods, Technorati)
  12. Log On, Coordinate, Pose (Stephanie Rosenbloom, The New York Times)
  13. StyleCaster to Launch Redesign with Influence from Pinterest and Tumblr (Sean Ludwig, VentureBeat)
  14. Meet Your New Addiction: Pingram, a Mashup of Pinterest & Instagram (Sean Ludwig, VentureBeat)
  15. The Site Is Pinterest Meets Instagram. Literally. (Nancy Messieh, The Next Web)

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