Pinterest Digs Deeper Into Ecommerce, Adds Ad Features To Drive Shopping

Pinterest wants to expand shopping on the site to compete with Facebook, and TikTok parent company Bytedance, which partnered with companies such as Shopify and Walmart to launch an international shopping platform.

Pinterest already supports shopping features, but it is now launching more features so brands can promote products and help consumers search and discover items they didn’t know existed or don't have the words to describe.

On Wednesday the company announced its slideshow for collections feature, which pulls products from the brand’s catalog into an automatically generated collection of ads.

The feature helps to produce video content that is dynamically created and tailored to each shopper based on searches and other triggers.

Pinterest developed slideshow for collections based on two key insights about Pinterest shoppers, who love video. They actively consider and browse for more than one product at a time, leading to bigger online basket sizes. 

Then there are merchant details, which allow companies to showcase values on their Pinterest profile.

Companies can display brand values including “responsibly sourced,” “invested in good” and “inclusive.” Companies also can highlight communities in which they belong, such as “Black-owned,” “Latinx-owned,” “Woman-owned,” “LGBTQ+ owned,” “Disability-owned,” and more.   

The Verified Merchant Program has been expanded to help shoppers find vetted brands. Aside from the U.S., it is now available in Austria, Brazil, Italy, Mexico, the Netherlands, Spain and Switzerland.

Verified Merchants get enhanced distribution on Pinterest, as well as a special “verified” badge that helps build trust.

Pinterest also introduced an ad format that makes it easier for businesses and content creators to work together in paid partnerships. The creator makes an Idea Pin, and tags a brand partner. The advertiser then promotes Idea Pin as an Idea Ad.

Idea Ads are currently being tested with a select group of creators and brands in 15 countries, and will soon expand to more areas.

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