Does Pinterest have the Facebook magic?

Pinterest is not the new Facebook. Though the article for this week’s reading posed that question, looking at a few important variables shows how vastly different the two sites are. The mission of Pinterest is for customers to share ideas and products that they like on what can be considered their online scrapbooking page. While Pinterest’s mission is to connect people with ideas, Facebook’s mission is to connect people with people.

I understand that the line is blurred and the overall point that Pinterest is the new big up and coming site is important to note. But the main difference between the two is that Facebook basically started the genre of social networking. It existed before, but Facebook elevated the concept to a whole new level. Pinterest is a unique idea that I suspect will continue to grow in popularity and profitability; however it is too soon to tell since Pinterest has about 4 million users versus Facebook's one billion users. Does Pinterest have the ability to completely revolutionize its own online niche? The answer to the question will reveal if Pinterest is truly the new Facebook.

The article on Facebook shows how these websites must evolve over time. I have noticed the sponsored ads on my newsfeed. I remember when Facebook first gained popularity and having ads on our page would seem like an intrusion. I think customers now recognize that the site provides a free service and as such needs to advertise. I do wonder what their algorithm looks like for their ad space. Once I changed my relationship status, I received ads in my newsfeed for all sorts of wedding vendors. When I started looking at local real estate sites, I started seeing ads for Long and Foster showings in my area. While some people may be annoyed by these ads, I am mostly intrigued by how they can figure out what would interest me. While people complain about this development, there is no threat to Facebook that people will stop using their site. There simply is no viable alternative. However, if and when that alternative becomes available, then Facebook will need to be creative and roll out new innovations to the website to keep people engaged.