Leading businesses on social media manage an active presence across multiple platforms. For those looking to catch up to the big players, you probably already have a stronghold on Facebook and Twitter, and are debating whether or not to launch on Pinterest or Instagram, the leading photo-sharing social media platforms. Content marketers are quickly learning that users respond strongly to visuals, which is just one reason why these two photo based platforms are on fire. But which one is right for your brand or business?

At the core of each platform is a different philosophy. Pinterest is all about posting ready to be admired images, while Instagram and its filters encourage the user to creatively manipulate any picture before posting. In effect, Pinterest is an art gallery where each visitor is a curator; on Instagram user is the artist. Brands that don’t have the resources to create visually stunning content can do best by crowdsourcing content on Instagram. However if your ultimate goal is related to traffic or sales, Pinterest is amazing for driving traffic to brand sites, and increasing conversion rates.

Even though Instagram just launched web profiles the platform originated as a mobile beast, so to make a mark you must keep that in mind. Most companies still insist on giving staff Blackberries, but your social media manager absolutely must have access to an Iphone or Android for superior image quality and seamless sharing. If they don’t use one of those devices personally, an investment should be made in a corporate one. Pinterest, on the other hand, lets a department have more control over the content, from its development to the time it goes live online.

You can toss over the facts as much as you want before diving in, but as any digital marketer knows, success requires the ability to react on short notice to stay on top of the constantly innovating field.

Experien Marketing Services ranked Pinterest the world’s third most visited social network, and Instagram number 11. Last year Pinterest was number 188, Instagram number 609.

Malikah Kelly is an e-commerce and digital communications pro and Digital Girls Club contributer currently based in Milan, Italy.