the fancy is so much cooler than pinterest
this year is shaping up to be the year of social bookmarking sites and marketers are already scrambling trying to figure out how to properly leverage them to promote their brands and products. sites like pinterest and the fancy have garnered the most attention, but one of them is head and shoulders better than the other and should emerge as the dominant player in the social bookmarking space.
pinterest seems to have captured a pretty large female audience with it’s etsy-like look-and-feel and navigation. the site allows users to pin and share images on the site which is usually populated with products that skew heavily towards females. i personally don’t have an interest in martha stewart products, adult sized sesame street pajamas, or red velvet cupcake recipes. as a result, pinterest seems to be missing out on an opportunity for a huge segment of potential male users to register and share products with others in their social networks.
the fancy on the other hand is a visually stunning collection of beautiful images and products like tumblr. however, instead of pinning images and adding them to your board, users can “fancy” them and add them to categories for others to “fancy” and view. the fancy has more of a unisex feel to it like fab or gilt groupe. the emphasis is on simplicity, beautiful images, and an elegant user interface that feels premium, modern, urban, and cool in comparison to pinterest.
the differences between each site’s content are glaringly apparent as well. some of the brands currently on pinterest include lands end, laura ashley, cabot cheese, and martha stewart. some of the brands currently featured on the fancy include gucci, yves st. laurent, balenciaga, alexander mcqueen, and several others. if you represent a premium home decor or luxury fashion brand, adding products to the fancy is a great strategy.
unlike pinterest, the fancy is also trying to drive sales through their site. users on pinterest must click on a pinned image twice to reach the original site to make a purchase. the fancy has a more intuitive user interface and makes it easier for consumers to purchase items they like by clicking on a “buy it” button on the right side of the page once an object has been “fancy’d.” the focus of the fancy is on discovering cool new products that you will never find in a retail store, which adds an element of surprise and discovery for the user.
the fancy also has an easter egg hunt feel to it that unlocks new products and deals from retailers. users are rewarded for clicking “fancy it” on product photos with discount codes that can be redeemed at checkout on the retailer’s site. deals are also clearly marked in a special “deals” tab at the top of the page that makes it simple for users to find. pinterest does not currently have a list of retailers and their buying experience feels completely disconnected.
the fancy has taken a page from facebook’s playbook in that it allows retailers to place a “fancy it” button next to products within a website. users have the ability to like, tweet, +1, and now “fancy” things they wish to share socially.
in summary, comparing “the fancy” to “pinterest” is like comparing a bombardier q400 to a cessna 152, a ferrari california to a fiat 500, or a weekend stay at the hotel du cap to a new england bed and breakfast.
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darkred8628 reblogged this from emergedmedia
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johnnorton361 reblogged this from emergedmedia
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jennabaird reblogged this from emergedmedia
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lebubbletea reblogged this from emergedmedia
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futurecurious reblogged this from emergedmedia and added:
agree. Love The Fancy. (And no Pinterst Android app.)
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osahonthegreat reblogged this from emergedmedia and added:
I might agree. The Fancy...Svpply dont get enough credit
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eoingalla liked this
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emergedmedia posted this
