Today, Pinterest announced they have officially begun a small rollout of the ad units they will be using to monetize their steadily growing social network.
Promoted Pins were first introduced last fall when Pinterest ran tests with the new ad units to gain user feedback. Now, they have stated they have begun rolling out a paid test while working with a small group of brands in the U.S. The test will be conducted in Pinterest’s search and category fields.
The full list of brands taking part in this test are ABC Family, Banana Republic, Expedia.com, GAP, General Mills, Kraft, lululemon athletica, Nestle (including Purina, Dreyer’s/Edy’s Ice Cream, Nespresso), Old Navy, Target, Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, and Ziploc.
These brands will help us test Promoted Pins to make sure they’re tasteful, transparent, relevant and improved based on your feedback— so that Pinterest continues to be a great experience for everyone.
Tens of millions of people have added more than 30 billion Pins to Pinterest and brands are a big part of this. We hope Promoted Pins help you find inspiration and discover things you care about, whether it’s ideas for dinner, places to go or gifts to buy.
By looking at the list of brands Pinterest is working with to test Promoted Pins, you may get the impression that these ad units are not for the average small to medium sized business, and you would be absolutely right. According to AdAge, Pinterest is seeking a sizeable commitment from advertisers, in the ballpark of $1 million and $2 million per campaign.
Up to this point, Pinterest has been focused on building its user base in lieu of earning revenue. Throughout the time they have spent engaging users they have raised $564 million in venture capital, but not a single dollar has been earned from revenue. With Promoted Pins, Pinterest is poised to put themselves on the revenue map alongside advertising giants like Facebook and Twitter.
If you come across these Promoted Pins while browsing the social network, Pinterest wants to know what you think of them. They have set up a feedback form here where you can give your thoughts.
