TikTok’s reign as the social media platform of choice has sent rippling effects across the entire industry.
For Pinterest, who is one of the pioneers of social commerce, the company’s first quarterly earnings reveals that it is struggling to compete with the likes of TikTok.
Although Pinterest exceeded revenue and earnings expectations during the first quarter, the threat of TikTok’s success could spell trouble for the platform’s future.
Pinterest clocked in $575 million in revenue compared to the $573 million expected, while also bringing in 10 cents per share in earnings compared to the 4 cents anticipated.
However, the company also reported a 9% dip in usership, falling to 433 million during the quarter compared to expectations of 437.9 million.
Before TikTok’s popularity, the common phrase was “I found it on Pinterest.” However, this has since been replaced with “TikTok made me buy it.”
On the following earnings call, investors inquired about how Pinterest planned to compete against TikTok. The firm revealed that it has been investing into video features, such as Idea Pins, which replicate TikTok’s short videos and Instagram’s Stories.
By doing so, Pinterest hopes to attract content creators to their website and highlight products through voiceover recordings, background music, step-by-step instructions for DIY projects, and more.
“This is also strategically important because we think video as a format is just fundamental to the way people get inspired and take action in the future,” said Ben Silbermann, CEO of Pinterest.
