The COVID-19 pandemic paved way for the rise of eCommerce. As such, social media platforms are rolling out tools to make the buying experience easier. Pinterest, for one, rolled out shopping spotlights and tabs. They have also introduced Story Pins to provide shopping inspiration among pinners. Today, Pinterest is testing the Stories panel on top of the home screen.
Pinterest Stories or Story Pins are just like Facebook and Instagram Stories. Pinners can add photos, videos, and text descriptions in a single pin. The allowed video length is from 1 second to 1 minute. The only difference is that all story pins stayed on the pinner’s account once published. Pinners who followed another Pinterest account will see the stories of their followed account under the “For You” feed. Today, pinners will see a new panel on top of their home screens – the Stories Panel.
Pinterest Stories hasn’t been fully rolled out and available only to selected users. But the platform is continuously testing different story pin formats like the dynamic flair and multi-participant style. Pinterest is testing the Stories panel on top of the home screen on 20 January 2021.
Implications for Marketers:
Stories have been a popular content format on Facebook and Instagram. They have always been an effective ad format. LinkedIn even joined the bandwagon by launching LinkedIn Stories in September 2020. Putting Pinterest Stories on top of a home screen panel can boost the discovery of such content on the platform. For marketers, Pinterest Stories can be another way to generate engagement and interest among pinners. With 322 million monthly active users, who knows? Pinterest can be a bigger part of your marketing strategies.
