As the two newest social networks, Google+ and Pinterest have gotten a lot of attention recently. It's no surprise. Each has experienced rapid growth and adoption, leaving marketers wondering how to effectively leverage each new platform for business. So which -- if either -- are worth a marketer's time? And how do you decide?
To make the decision a little bit easier, we've compiled a new ebook, Battle of the New Social Networks, which gives you a side-by-side comparison of the pros and cons of Pinterest and Google+. The ebook is available for free download -- no form completion required -- here.
So exactly how impressive is the growth of Google+ and Pinterest comparatively? We also pulled together 35 interesting facts about the two social networks to give you a better sense of how the two networks are faring. Check 'em out!
Google+ Statistics
1) As of April 2012, Google reports that Google+ now has 170 million active users. (Google) Tweet This Stat
2) Google+ attracted 20 million users within the first 3 weeks of its launch. (comScore) Tweet This Stat
3) As of January 2012, American users spent an average of 3.3 minutes on Google+. (eMarketer) Tweet This Stat
4) As of January 2012, Google+ accounted for .22% of referral traffic, falling from .24%. (Shareaholic) Tweet This Stat
5) Websites using the +1 button generate 3.5x the Google+ visits than sites without the button. (HubSpot) Tweet This Stat
6) Two of the biggest user groups on Google+ are college students and software developers. (Remcolandia) Tweet This Stat
7) 63% of Google+ users are male. (Remcolandia) Tweet This Stat
8) Over 40% of marketers report that Google+ is "useful to critical" for their business. (HubSpot 2012 State of Inbound Marketing Report) Tweet This Stat
9) Google+ is expected to attract 400 million users by the end of 2012. (Remcolandia) Tweet This Stat
Pinterest Statistics
10) Pinterest is now the 3rd most popular social network in the U.S. in terms of traffic. (Experian) Tweet This Stat
11) As of February 2012, Pinterest had accumulated 10.4 million users. (AppData) Tweet This Stat
12) Over 80% of pins are repins. (RJMetrics) Tweet This Stat
13) Pinterest is retaining and engaging users as much as 2-3 times as efficiently as Twitter was at a similar time in their history. (RJMetrics) Tweet This Stat
14) Daily Pinterest users have increased by more than 145% since the beginning of 2012. (Mashable) Tweet This Stat
15) As of January 2012, American users spent an average of 97.8 minutes on Pinterest. (eMarketer) Tweet This Stat
16) Over 1/5 of Facebook-connected users are on Pinterest daily (which represents more than 2 million members). (AppData) Tweet This Stat
17) 80% of Pinterest's users are female. (comScore) Tweet This Stat
18) Estimated unique visitors to Pinterest.com increased by 429 percent from September to December 2011. (Compete) Tweet This Stat
19) The quality of the average new Pinterest user (as defined by their level of engagement and likelihood to remain active) is high but declining. Users who have joined in recent months are 2-3 times less active during their first month than the users that came before them. (RJMetrics) Tweet This Stat
20) 30% of Pinterest users are women 25-34 years old. (Ignite) Tweet This Stat
21) Pinterest users in the U.S. are more likely to live in midwestern states than your typical social networker. (comScore) Tweet This Stat
22) The top interests on Pinterest in the U.S. include crafts, gifts, hobbies/leisure, interior design, and fashion designers/collections. (Ragan.com) Tweet This Stat
23) Etsy is the top site in terms of “source domains.” (Source domains are the sites that content on Pinterest links to externally.) Google is second, followed by Flickr, Tumblr, and WeHeartit.com (RJMetrics) Tweet This Stat
24) As of January 2012, Pinterest accounted for 3.6% of referral traffic. (Shareaholic) Tweet This Stat
25) Total same-store referral traffic from Pinterest to five specialty apparel retailers rose 389% from July to December 2011. (Monetate) Tweet This Stat
26) In January 2012, Pinterest reached 11,716,000 total unique visitors. (comScore) Tweet This Stat
27) With over 11 million unique monthly visitors (and counting), Pinterest became the fastest standalone website to eclipse the 10 million per month mark ever. (PR Daily) Tweet This Stat
28) A call-to-action pin description sees an 80% increase in engagement. (Pinerly Study) Tweet This Stat
29) Tutorial & guide/DIY & recipe pins see a 42% higher click-through rate than other pin types. (Pinerly Study) Tweet This Stat
30) Pins related to trending topics see an average of 94% increase in click-throughs. (Pinerly Study) Tweet This Stat
31) The best time to pin during the day is between 2 and 4 PM EST. (Pinerly Study) Tweet This Stat
32) The best time to pin in the evening is between 8 PM and 1 AM EST. (Pinerly Study) Tweet This Stat
33) Shoppers referred by Pinterest are 10% more likely to make a purchase than visitors who arrive from other social networks, including Facebook and Twitter. They’ll also spend 10% more on average. (Wayfair) Tweet This Stat
34) Pinterest referrals spend 70% more than visitors referred from non-social channels, including search, according to industry reports. (Wayfair) Tweet This Stat
35) In the month of March 2012, HubSpot's visitor-to-lead conversion rate for Pinterest was 15%, compared to just 9% from Google+. (HubSpot) Tweet This Stat
How have you been using each social network? What insights can you share for other businesses considering the two for marketing?



Natalie 3:36 PM on April 13, 2012
Extremely helpful stats that help to set strategy first, then apply tactics. Thank You.
Dave(Groundwire Consulting) 6:10 PM on April 13, 2012
Great Article and timely as we are determining how to be advise our clients on how to strategically use these tools. Thanks for the amazing detail.
Megan 10:26 PM on April 13, 2012
This is a great article. I am currently in a social media class and I think that soon the class will have to include Pinterest. Thank you for the information.
Denver Painters 12:47 AM on April 14, 2012
Very neat of this article comparing the 2 Pamela, and would like to share what I just posted on my FB pg. last night, but please don't call me crazy LoL.
Ok..here we go~ Not all bookmarks are created equal. A link, is a link, is a link, but how these links or bookmarks are indexed makes them as valuable as the search engine showing them.
Having nothing against anyone of them, all good, better than not having any at all, but if you had a choice, would you prefer the ones getting most exposure, or ones getting the least? Goes without saying, most of us prefers most exposure. Backing up a min. have a question, which I will answer. Which search engine gets the most traffic? Of course Google. About 85% of all online search is through, you guessed it, Google. The other 15% is from Yahoo/Bing combined. These search engines index the most relevant info. they deem important. Yahoo/Bing indexes FaceBook nicely, and occasionally YouTube, where Google on the other-hand indexes G+, YouTube, Digg, StumbleUpon and so forth. The more links or bookmarks a page has, the more important this becomes on that particular SE.
Therefore, if I were looking to maximize my bookmarks, asking for them, it would be directed in Google's arena, again gaining maximum exposure, traffic, links, and buzz. Using all other popular social media outlets for more of a personal note, bookmarking biz occasionally showing friends.
Can see more on FB at http://www.facebook.com/#!/PaintingDenver trolling for +1's !
mark omohundro 7:23 PM on April 14, 2012
I have been using both Google+ and Pinterest for about 3 months now. What I have noticed is that I am associated with a seemingly more professional crowd on Google+ and a more artsy crowd on Pinterest.
MarketingGal 3:06 PM on April 15, 2012
Its seems to me, I see more Pinterest post than I do google, but I am also a woman and a mom, so the circles I run would lean towards the more artsy. I do agree a more professional group attracts google+. Thanks for the great read.
Wessels 1:15 AM on April 16, 2012
Great statistics, and indeed pinteres specifically is one of the newborns most marketers need to pay attention to! will use the data here to apply my new marketing research. thanks!
Dale - Perth Design 9:52 AM on April 17, 2012
Great Stats. Pinterest is very visual and so seems good for marketing fashion, while google + is much more male focused.
But will people get bored of pinterest. The stats make it sound like the novelty wears off quickly.
Dance 3:06 AM on April 20, 2012
Looking at the home page of Pinterest one would assume, a bias towards the female user.