Pinterest defines itself as "a virtual pinboard to organize and share the things you love." It could easily be seen as personalized online gallery or archive, but it also fits into Kristina DeVoe's definition of microblogging as an internet environment that "lets users share brief blasts of information...to friends and followers from multiple sources" (212). As the fastest stand-alone site to reach 10 million unique visitors a month, Pinterest is receiving a lot of media attention (Delo). Magazines, clothing brands, booksellers, bloggers, nonprofits, universities, fast food chains, hotels, restaurants, and even newspapers are using the site for marketing. Each pin is a link back to the site from which it was pinned, so it is an excellent way to generate traffic for any website.

The creators of Pinterest have combined the immediate, community-based aspects of tumblr and twitter with the image-sharing abilities of flickr and facebook, capitalizing on concepts that are familiar while creating an environment that affords unique abilities. As well as opening up marketing opportunities for companies, it gives consumers the ability to participate in our increasingly materialistic culture, sharing their identity through the products and images they like and identify with. When a user pins an image, they are showing their ownership of it and linking it to their online identity for all other users to see, conveniently creating yet another channel through which company websites can receive attention.

What (and Who) is on Pinterest Home A Collection of the Visual