Pinterest can't figure out how to explain success to marketers. Its case studies often avoid quantifying results. When the company does present data, it spotlights digital metrics more often than business metrics.
My latest report tracks how Pinterest describes marketing success. Often the company discusses success only vaguely: At the time of research I found 61 case studies on the Pinterest for Business site but only 32 of them featured hard data. Another 12 presented results without offering numbers (e.g., "exponential growth and traffic"). The rest simply explained marketer strategies without citing outcomes.
I examined the 44 Pinterest case studies that discuss results, whether quantitative or not. I then classified the data highlighted in these case studies into three categories: social metrics like engagement and followers, digital metrics like reach and site traffic, and business metrics like awareness and sales.
How does Pinterest measure marketing success? My research found the company:
- Prioritizes digital metrics over other data. Seven out of 10 Pinterest case studies emphasize digital data. About.com and Ziploc, like 55% of Pinterest cases, feature site traffic data. Topshop is one of the 16% to highlight reach or impressions.
- Spotlight business metrics less than half the time. Nearly 50% of Pinterest's case studies emphasize business data. Fashion brand Reiss is one of the 36% that highlight sales.
- Highlights social metrics nearly as often as business outcomes. More than 40% of Pinterest's case studies feature social data: 16% emphasize engagement and 14% spotlight "saves."
Want to learn more about how Pinterest (and Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Snapchat) measure marketing success? Simply Measured is offering free copies of my report "Measure Like The Social Networks Do."