It’s no secret that Pinterest has grown to become one of the web’s most influential social websites this year, largely by virtue of added features, and with the promise of more to come. As we approach the holiday season and the end of the year 2012, many Pinterest users are hoping to share season’s greetings and more holiday cheer via news features for the social website that they’ve grown to love.
Below are a few Pinterest features which many people have been wishing for.
Granted Pinterest Features
Open Registration
You’re are truly a Pinterest pioneer if you still remember the site having an invite-only registration policy. It was only until August 2012 that Pinterest dropped its policy enabling everyone to register their own accounts and explore the site. This simple move obviously contributed to Pinterest’s booming expansion.
Mobile Apps for Pinterest
Mobile apps then became available for both Android and iOS on August 14, 2012, 6 days after dropping the invite-only policy. Users are now able to experience mobile pinning using these apps.
Blocking and Reporting Abusive Users!
Pinterest users have long been asking for a feature that would enable them to block other users on the site. Responsive to user feedback, Pinterest made a good move and listened, reacting to its members’ requests. Security features like blocking and reporting abusive users then became available on October in response to the growing user base.
Private Boards
Ever wanted to pin something, but didn’t want to share it to the world? Alas!, the long wait is over! Secret boards became available on November 8, allowing users to create private boards that can be seen only by the board owner and whomever else they choose.
Pinterest for Business
Six days after the previous enhancement, businesses gained their own corner of Pinterest. This enhancement has made Pinterest attractive to users of different backgrounds and occupations, even to the point of being a viable addition to online marketing strategies. Pinterest for business enables companies to verify their website, add new buttons and widgets to their business sites, and get access to upcoming features.
Other Missing Pinterest Features
Still, even after gaining all these features, the fast-growing Pinterest has a few more features to be implemented in its current list of awaiting improvements. Some of these missing features are as follows:
Subcategories or a More Structured Cataloging
Most user would be very happy to see subcategories for large categories of particular interest on the social site. For example, under the Food category, there could be subcategories like Desserts, Beverages/Drinks, etc. This way, organizing and searching for pins would be far easier and faster. On the other hand, big categories such as Illustrations and Posters might just go under the Art category.
Pinterest Analytics
While the business implications of analytics seem fairly clear and big time desireable, not many realize how many private users actually like to track down Pinterest user stats and insights.
RSS for boards
Third party apps like RSS for boards would be ideal, especially for those who can’t be regularly active on the network.
Improved search functions
If only Pinterest would allow users to search by category, then that would be perfect! If we could just narrow down search results by category, the fairly time intensive nature of “loving” Pinterest would be streamlined for most users.
Private Messaging
As of this writing, Pinterest doesn’t have direct/private messaging tool yet. If ever Pinterest makes this happen, I hope they acknowledge security and protection measures that other micro-blogging sites lack.
Duplicate Pinning Warning
Wouldn’t it be nice if Pinterest warned users if something they’re about to pin has already been pinned?
Mass Editing Options for Boards
One of the most essential features for photo-blogging is mass editing. A Pinterest feature such as this would enable users to select and edit multiple posts at a time, for very smart and time saving enhancement.
Pinterest is still young yet, with a lot of room for growth and improvements. Most of the features that users seem to be asking for involve being able to customize their user experience. However, with the speed with which the site is growing right now, Pinterest will surely implement these additions once they are tested and prioritized for sequencing. What are some of your most “needed” Pinterest features?
