The S.W.O.T. Analysis
Strengths
• Simple and user-friendly intuitive U.I.; Pinterest’s design, from the name itself to the functionality of the service, are all logically aligned to support branding and user experience simultaneously
• Domination of target market; Pinterest’s creators cited a dedicated focus on young, socially and technologically mobile women as a target market. Branding and content has been specifically targeted at this segment, successfully
• Low overhead outside of marketing and user experience upgrades, as well as a rapidly expanding user base, lead to a potentially astronomical market cap
Weaknesses
• With Pinterest’s dedicated focus on such a specific target demographic, they risk permanently excluding other demographics (i.e. young men) who may find the service exclusionary (i.e. “too girly”)
• As with most start-ups, monetizing the idea remains the crux of investor’s questions. While the focus on sharing products and services remains enticing to bringing in advertisers and retailers, the company still needs to prove profitability
• Niche social media sites continue to arise on a regular basis, presenting constant danger from unexpected challengers or market saturation of this type of service
Opportunities
• Surprisingly, despite the heavy focus on sharing products and brands, the company has been very limited in contests or partner promotions, which seem to be a potentially lucrative avenue for advertising and sales partners
• Because of its unique user experience, Pinterest remains comfortably secure in its user base, especially as the first site of its kind to market. The niche service protects Pinterest’s growing market share
Threats
• As was mentioned earlier, constant arrival of potential competitors in the exploding social media scene keep market cap and profit projections in flux
• A new service that effectively targets the same market demographic could steal the one thing Pinterest has safely going for it; a dedicated target market following