Pinterest has published a new research report which suggests that one in four Pinners are interested in cars, while the platform also reaches 35% of people who are likely to buy a car within the next 6 months.
Pretty amazing stats, right?
What's more, demand for auto content on Pinterest has increased 77% year-over-year, now comprising some 202 million Pins saved to over 30 million boards.
The report is the latest in Pinterest's industry-specific reports on platform performance. Last year, they published research on key beauty industry trends, and how Pinterest plays a part.
Their latest report is less visual, but likely more surprising - while the average income of Pinterest users is (according to Pew Research) is more towards the upper end of the spectrum, not many would associate the platform with cars.
Why? Because Pinterest's audience is predominantly female, and the two interests don't, traditionally, intersect.
Or do they?
More recently, trends have shown that females now have more influence in the automotive buying process, with women influencing more than 85% of car buying decisions in the U.S. Given that, and the skew of Pinterest's audience, the data actually makes perfect sense - if you're selling cars or auto-related content and you're not active on Pinterest, you may be missing out.
And even though Pinterest's audience is more female-dominant, it's male usage is growing, which Pinterest also highlights in their findings:
"In fact, Pinterest reaches more men than notable auto shopping destinations like CarGurus, MotorTrend, KBB and Edmunds. And since Pinterest offers a range of ad formats, from Search Ads to Promoted Video Pins, marketers can capture shoppers' attention at every step of the car buying journey."
Pinterest also reports that 17% of Pinners have looked up Pins on their phones while shopping at a car dealership, and that Pinterest reaches 17 million mobile shoppers every month who are classified as "in-market" for a new vehicle.
At first glance, the partnership between Pinterest and auto sellers may not be obvious, but the extended data certainly supports their position.
The report also comes on the back of another recent report from Facebook which underlines the potential of Facebook ads in the Canadian auto sector, specifically.
And the focus on automotive ad dollars makes sense - according to eMarketer, automotive and entertainment brands will see the fastest growth in digital ad spend in the next three years, with the U.S. auto sector alone set to account for up to $14.14 billion in digital ad spend by 2020.
That, too, might be part of the reason why Pinterest is opening a new office in downtown Detroit, which, they say, will "support domestic auto campaigns, while existing offices in Los Angeles and New York serve import auto brands operating in the US".
Some very interesting points to consider - as noted, if you're marketing in the auto sector in any way, the insights show that it's worth giving Pinterest a look.
You can read the full Pinterest "Auto marketers reach car shoppers earlier on Pinterest" report here.