Pinterest has taken the social media by storm. Some data suggests that there are 10+ million registered users. A quick news search on Pinterest will reveal articles on how the WSJ is covering NY Fashion Week through Pinterest, how the military is using Pinterest for recruitment, and how pinterest may impact the 2012 elections. Haven’t heard of Pinterest? Here’s a good beginner’s guide from Mashable.

What I find the most interesting about Pinterest is that it is actually quite different from all of the other major social media sites. Here are five ways it’s completely different from Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and LinkedIn:

1. Pinterest lets users curate content in a new way, but users cannot create content. On all other social networks, you can post a picture and write a little (or big) status update. You can’t do that on Pinterest — you can only “pin” things that appear elsewhere on the web. [UPDATE: I stand corrected.  As Brianna correctly mentions below, you can "create" new content right on Pinterest.  It's not as common, but it is possible]
2. Pinterest recognizes that people are complex and multi-dimensional. It’s interest-based, not person-based. Take me, for example. I’m interested in things as broad as being a dad, social entrepreneurship, poverty, sports, crossfit, the Paleo diet, social media, online advertising, and playing the accordion. And compared to others I know, I’m pretty boring. So, if you happened to follow me on Twitter or Facebook, you’d get all that goodness. On Pinterest, you can just follow specific areas of interest (i.e., “boards”).
3. Pinterest lets users express themselves in a new way— not just in what content to curate, but how to organize the buckets of content. Other social networks give you a museum, and you fill it up with paintings. Pinterest gives you a big open space and lets you figure out where to build the walls and then put up the paintings. This might be my feature of Pinterest — it’s not only that I can pin awesome content to my “Being a Dad” board, it’s that I could choose to create a Being a Dad” board in the first place. It is utterly fascinating to see how cleverly others have created boards.  Some of note: Do the Do, Home Sweet Africa, Groovy Moods, and Trips to India. We’ve even been using Pinterest internally to share design inspiration among the team at Creatology.
4. Pinterest requires your content to be visual. If you try to share a page without an image or video, it won’t even let you. Wow.
5. Pinterest early adopters are women, not men. Some data suggests that 97% of Pinterest fans on Facebook are female. When Google+ and Twitter first launched, they were filled with male engineers, IT professionals, and the like. Pinterest is almost the polar opposite of that.

When I look past all the hype, what I see for businesses is this: Social media rewards businesses who think of themselves as publishers and curators of compelling content. The more compelling the content, the more likely it is to go social. Pinterest just continues this trend, enabling individuals and businesses a creative new set of social tools to share content. When businesses ask me, “So, what should I do with Pinterest?” here are some principles to start thinking about:

1. Visual content is more important than ever (just like headlines are important, so now is the square thumbnail image). In fact, some say that Pinterest has “changed web design forever.”  Make your content visually and emotionally appealing. Words — even the sweetest, most eloquent ever written — can only take you so far.
2. Infographics are more important than ever, too. Infographics are already one of the most shared type of content out there. They’re just so darn tweetable that most tweeters just can’t resist. Well, infographics are so pin-able, too.
3. People can experience your brand in a new way. Put your creative hat on and think about what broader topics and interests your customers have. Why not create boards for those areas and become known as a go-to place for great information? Put some creativity into coming up with unique, different board topics.
4. Collaboration on boards will create new ways for businesses and customers to interact. Since Pinterest allows you to collaborate on specific boards, I could see businesses working with customers and partners to build common interest boards. It’d sort of be like opening up your Facebook wall to posts from anyone, except now you’re creating visual galleries. I’d love to see specific boards of customers using a company’s product in new, creative ways.

What do you think? Is Pinterest just another flash in the pan, or is it onto something much more that will change the game?