Pinterest beats out Facebook as a destination for shopping inspiration, tracking and product discovery, according to a new study by Bizrate Insights. And within these categories, the gap between the two social networks is quite large. Nearly 7 in 10 online consumers who visit Pinterest have found an item they’ve purchased or wanted to purchase, compared to only 40% of online consumers who visit Facebook.
Three of the reasons listed for using Pinterest/Facebook showed a marked gap between the two platforms, with Pinterest clearly on top:
- Over three-quarters (70%) of Pinterest users visit the site “to get inspiration on what to buy,” while only 17% of Facebook users visit Facebook for buying inspiration
- 67% use Pinterest “to help keep track of or collect the things that I like” vs. 21% using Facebook for the same reason
- 67% of of Pinterest users visit the site to keep up with the latest trends; only 22% of Facebook users visit the social networking giant to do the same
Pinterest is also “a stronger vehicle for brand association:” 43% of users say they “associate with retailers or brands with which I identify” on Pinterest, vs. less than one-quarter (24%) of Facebook users. A similar gap exists between those visiting the social networking platforms looking for special offers from retailers or brands: 39% of Pinterest users do so vs. 26% of Facebook users.
Which site has a greater percentage of users engaging with brands? The majority (55%) of Pinterest have engaged with brands and retailers via Pinterest, while just under half (48%) of Facebook users have engaged retailers or brands on Facebook.
Of course, Facebook is still way ahead of Pinterest in terms of reach. Bizrate stats that 63% of online consumers have a Facebook account, while only 15% have a Pinterest account. However, awareness of Pinterest is growing rapidly – as of August 2012, 46% of online consumers surveyed had heard of Pinterest.
The data comes from a set of surveys conducted via Bizrate Insights, offered to online buyers immediately after purchasing from the Bizrate Insights Network of ecommerce retailers in the US and Canada: in this case, from 7,431 online buyers between August 9-August 17, 2012.
