You didn’t read that wrong. Even Pinterest, today’s go-to image sharing site for those looking to get inspired, has now launched its equivalent of Stories. Which it calls Story Pins.
Pinterest Releases Its Own Version of Stories
In September 2020, Pinterest launched a beta test of Story Pins with selected creators. Following the feedback it has received since, the platform is now also highlighting Stories from Pinterest users you follow at the top of the For You feed. As first spotted by Social Media Today.
Interestingly enough, Story Pins don’t work the same way Stories do in other social media apps. As its prone to do, Pinterest has put its own little spin on the feature. So, Story Pins are accessed through normal Pins, and they don’t disappear after 24 hours.
But those differences aside, the format is as you see all over the internet. It’s all vertically aligned, personable, easily accessible content that you can use to add more context to your usual Pins on Pinterest.
Pinterest now has a section at the top for Pin Stories. @MattNavarra @socialmedia2day @wongmjane pic.twitter.com/YNEI57z5B9
— Kendall 🏳️🌈 (@KenSchillinger) January 20, 2021
People haven’t been buzzing too much online about Story Pins because the feature has yet to be rolled out for everybody. The new panel has been appearing for some users since early January 2021, with the interface being adjusted every so often as Pinterest goes through the testing process.
Story Pins come only a month after its last update, which saw Pinterest add new organizational tools.
Stories on Other Apps
If a lot of your time is spent online, then you’ve probably noticed that since Snapchat’s release in 2011, just about every social media app is integrating some form of Story feature.
The comparisons begin in 2016, when Instagram added Stories to compete with Snapchat. Facebook followed suit a year after that.
WhatsApp updated its Status feature in 2018, when it used to just be customizable text next to your contact name. Most recently, Twitter introduced Fleets in November 2020.
The Dark Horse of Social Media
When you think of social media, Pinterest typically isn’t the first name you think of. Instead, it’s probably Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. Despite that, Pinterest is doing some incredible numbers right now.
According to Hootsuite, Pinterest’s active user base grew 26 percent to 335 million in 2019, overtaking Snapchat as the third-biggest social network in the United States.
End-to-end encrypted messaging apps like Signal and content pools like TikTok are quick on the rise these days though, and perhaps that’s why Pinterest has moved to hop on the latest trend.
Still, Pinterest was not on our list of apps that we predicted would add Stories to its features.
