You have 10 seconds to grab our attention – Go!
If that estimate is true – Pinterest lost me in record time.
- I’m actually embarrassed how little time I spent on the site
- Oh no, have I joined the ranks of I want it now or I’m gone crowd?
My reaction had me thinking how little time we have to grab our readers’ attention.
It’s a good reminder for your business communication.
Are You Interested?
My blogger buddy, Sherrie Koretke wrote a post about Pinterest.
- It piqued my interest
- I asked Sherrie for an invitation to the site (it’s invitation only)
- I trekked on over to the site
Kudos to Sherrie for creating an effective post.
I have nothing against Pinterest.
It certainly is not Sherrie’s – or Pinterest’s – fault that it simply wasn’t my cup of tea.
Here’s a little background on Pinterest.
- The name is a combination of Pin and Interest
- It promotes itself as an online pinboad
- You can organize and share things you love
You can plan your wedding, decorate your home or build a wardrobe just by pinning pictures to your pinboard.
You can also browse pinboards created by other people.
- I thought since I am a visual person, I’d enjoy it
- Maybe I would – if I got beyond those 10 seconds
Interest-Free
How did I lose interest so quickly?
Here’s what did it for me.
#1 – The site was not very intuitive.
- It started out with instructions for adding a Pinterest button on Google Chrome – wait, what’s the button for? What do you do with it?
- Next, it had a screen with various interests with pictures. It asked you to select your interests – wait, what if I have different interests? What if I want to better define a category? Can I add my own pictures?
- I clicked on some interests and ended up with a pinboard (I think) – now what?
#2 – I could not find help.
I don’t know if it was just me (always a distinct possibility), but when I clicked on the link from the invitation, it threw me in the deep-end.
- I could not find an About heading
- I did not see a link to Help or FAQs
- And the Home page was nowhere to be found
Since exiting my pinboard, I find all of the above at www.pinterest.com. Where was it when I first logged on?
#3 – I thought the pinboards looked cluttered.
The sample (or actual?) pinboards looked cluttered to me. Not my idea of visual simplicity.
But, beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
#4 – I didn’t get the attraction.
- Granted, I hardly stayed around long enough to figure things out
- And different strokes for different folks
- But, I really don’t get why someone would follow another pinboard
Time Expired
Yes, I should have looked at the tutorial that Sherrie so graciously included in her post.
I learned a few things about myself and communication.
- I am just as guilty as the next person at making snap judgments.
- Do not assume your reader knows what you are all about.
- Make navigation simple and clear.
- Always offer help.
- And what’s up with the invitation only?
This isn’t about the pros and cons of Pinterest. What it’s really about is effective communication.
The clock is ticking for your readers.
Are you a Pinterest fan? Go ahead – let me have it.
=====================
Helping you Keep it simple, clear & uniquely yours – contact me for help with your business writing needs.
=====================
I also have an invite to Pinterest, but I’ve yet to go to the site. There’s only so much time we can spend on social media/sharing sites, and it’s important to pick the ones that have the highest ROI and that we’ll actually use.
Hi John: I think that’s exactly why I have so little patience for a new site. I found the same lack of intuitiveness on Quora. Maybe it’s just me, but it is too easy to get sucked into time-consuming platforms.
Thanks for sharing your view.
I’ve requested an invite because I’d heard of it from some people I trust. Haven’t received it yet, but your description doesn’t excite me. And as it stands if I adopt another social media site I’m going to have to drop one… no time to simple add another one. So it will have to be very good… at least now I know what it’s trying to do. Thanks Cathy
Hi Anne: I’d suggest reading Sherrie’s post and if interested, actually looking at the tutorial. 😀
For me, I only see it as a time-suck and like I said, really not my cup of tea. Thanks for stopping by, Anne.
But what does it DO? Right there with you, Cathy. Neat that they have someplace to pin their stuff, but it’s just…well, stuff.
It’s beyond my comprehension, Lori. But, then I have a very simple mind. 🙂
Some of my knitting chums were into Pinterest a long time ago. I checked it out, but the site wasn’t compatible with my ancient OS, so I gave up. Then over Thanksgiving and Christmas some cousins gave me a Pinterest tutorial and it started making sense. Both of our family’s holidays included lots of recipes and decorations relatives had “discovered” on Pinterest. In that respect, it’s a one-stop source of creative inspiration.
Thanks to a new computer, I’ve been able to explore the site a bit this week, and it still feels clunky. I can’t spend hours viewing boards and pinning things like my cousins do, but when I see a great creative thing or idea online I can pin it. Last week I pinned two things. Maybe one day someone will pin some of my patterns or creations… in that respect, Pinterest is a good networking tool since “pins” often include links to the website where the idea originated – it’s already driving traffic to a lot of blogs.
Hi Paula: Thanks for offering that much better explanation of Pinterest. 🙂 For me, I think my time is better spent on other sites, but I am a big believer in everyone deciding for themselves what’s the best site for their needs-business or personal.
I appreciate you dropping by, Paula.
I looked at Pinterest a few months back, and really was not too impressed. However, after reading what Paula says about it, I may take another look— might be handy for “pinning” things I find online and want to read later.
Hi Denise: I’m not sure of your reference to Paula, but I’m a firm believer in everyone charting their own path. I appreciate you stopping by and sharing your view.
I joined this week, too, Cathy, pinned a couple of things and haven’t been back. I couldn’t find where to change my interests or the people it had suggested I follow based on those interests, which kind of annoyed me. It’s not top of my priority list at the moment.
Hi Sharon: I simply did not get it and found it sure didn’t grab my interest. 🙂 I already deleted the account. I figured I didn’t need one more platform out there with my information.
Thanks for sharing your view, Sharon.
OK, I have to fess up to having returned to Pinterest, largely due to my sister who created some great boards and invited me. I am beginning to see why it can be compelling because I’ve discovered interesting sayings, new books and great pictures of libraries that interest me. Could I have lived without these things? Certainly, but they add a bit of fun.
They hooked you, huh, Sharon? 🙂 I’m sure I could find value, too, if I took more than the nanosecond I took when I 1st visited, but I already allow myself too many distractions. So I think I’ll just stay away from this one. 🙂
Thanks for sharing your update, Sharon,