Last week, Pinterest announced “Buyable Pins,” which means users will soon be able to buy that shirt they pinned to their “Style” board or that craft glue to make the over-the-top Halloween costume for their kids. Buyers will be able to shop by price and select alternate colors for the item they are interested in all through the Pinterest app. Pinterest said there will be over 2 million products available to purchase on the social network from retailers including Macy’s, Neiman Marcus and Nordstrom once Buyable Pins rolls out later this month. Mashable

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More and more online interactions are happening through phones. Pinterest is very aware of that fact and has optimized Buyable Pins for mobile purchases. Many users are already buying items they find on Pinterest, and this new feature just makes it easier.

This is great for retailers who were already seeing a great amount of traffic from Pinterest. But it is especially great for Pinterest since it will now be able to make money (well, eventually) and justify the valuations it has been given. This, along with Promoted Pins and Cinematic Pins for advertisers, is promising for Pinterest’s future.

It is not so great for bloggers and prominent pinners who were making money through affiliate links to the products they pinned. People who once made revenue from affiliate links were angry about Pinterest’s decision. Although the company stressed that bloggers and Pinterest users could still make money through by curating boards for brands, consulting, or creating original content, those opportunities aren’t as easy to find as simply using affiliate networks. Business Insider

Just as with other social networks, Pinterest is no longer free for brands if they want to get the attention of their target audiences. How can brands stay relevant on Pinterest without paying to play? For now, you should continue you as you are doing: pin relevant content to your business that is interesting to your customers and potential customers, being sure to link back to your website when possible. For the future, plan for advertising dollars to apply to Pinterest in your marketing budgets.