​Pinterest is a visual discovery platform, primarily used for searching and categorizing online images, with 100 million active users worldwide as of November 2015, according to Statista

More than a photo sharing website, this social platform works well for visually-driven businesses, since customers need to decide if the item looks appealing enough before deciding to buy it. Industries that capitalize on this feature include food and beverage brands, fashion, design, and travel businesses.

This medium offers two advantages for brands:

It showcases their offers through visually-appealing images. It strengthens their message with minimal yet eye-catching captions for each photograph.

Women make up Pinterest's main demographic: its primary 25-44 age group is 80% female and 20% male. According to findings in 2013 by Marketing Land, Pinterest has 44% of e-commerce shares over Facebook (37%), and Twitter (12%). This makes it more effective for women, helping them to share what product has caught their interest and to shop online.

And while Pinterest may not be as vast as Facebook and Twitter in terms of usability, its capacity to drive more traffic with its creative visuals makes it more distinct from others. When it comes to visuals, Pinterest allows you to make the most out of your pins and gives you the opportunity for constant sharing.



This infographic from SlideGenius shows you how to make your pins stand out on Pinterest in order to attract new and loyal customers.

This post originally appeared on Irfan Ahmad's blog.