Revealing the demographics behind Pinterest's users

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Posted 25 January 2012 11:54am by Vikki Chowney with 1 comment

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Social media agency Ignite has taken a closer look at Pinterest's demographic data and compiled a profile of 'those who pin'.

comScore says that the blossoming social curation site has over 4m registered users and is growing rapidly, while Google Ad Planner shows that nearly 1.5m people visit Pinterest every day – spending 14 minutes on the site on average. 

But rather than suggest ways for brands to use Pinterest tactically, it's a far smarter approach to look at the types of people these users are – and whether Pinterest is an appropriate community in which to mingle.

Google Ad planner shows that users are:

• Largely women (a 80% to 20% ratio). So there's some truth to Matt Buchanan's post on Gizmodo yesterday that proclaims Pinterest as "a Tumblr for ladies".
• Aged mainly between 25 and 44 (accounting for 55% of the group, 30% are 25-34, 25% are 35 – 44)
• Just 25% of users have a bachelors degree or higher
• The majority live off a household income of $25-75k

Experian Hitwise stats from December 2011 show that in the US at least, alongside the demographics, Pinterest users fall into three of its Mosaic lifestyle segments.

• Boomers and Boomerangs – the baby boomer adults and the teenagers/young adults who live with them. This accounts for more than 10% of Pinterest visits, in which they might pin travel plans and imagery related to their online habits. They also live in older houses so might be tempted by DIY and home improvement content.
• Babies and Bliss – the parents of large families (with five or more in their houses), and in their 30s and 40s. Mothers in this group tend to work full time and pride themselves on being computer literate. This group are 'power shoppers with upscale tastes' and value deals on high-quality products. They tend to pin things related to convenience, and so relate to brands that provide good online experiences, discounts and make lives easier.
• Families Matter Most – this group includes young middle-class families with active lifestyles who are interested in things that allow them to juggle work and parenting effectively. This group is not interested in window-shopping however, like the Babies & Bliss group, it's more likely to pin useful, practical things like easy recipes, child friendly activities and healthy living. 

Though stats such as these are not absolute, there's a definite pattern that shows users tend to be drawn towards family life, home, food and activities – from three different viewpoints.

It's not entirely surprising, as Pinterest's curation tools are based on the concept of planning and organising your thoughts into different boards and categories, and those 'nesting' in the real world are likely to mirror this online.