Facebook is trying to make the platform more attractive to small business owners, and in doing so have announced a new feature allowing users to buy products directly from the businesses page.
Facebook announced on Thursday that it will be testing a new “Buy” button feature with a few small and medium sized businesses around the US. The button will be available on both mobile and desktop versions of Facebook, and will let consumers buy items directly from businesses.
For those who are excited to try out the new feature, however, you might have to wait a little longer unless you plan on purchasing an item from one of the very few businesses who will be trying it out. A spokesperson for Facebook even said that the number of businesses using the feature can be counted on one hand.
Though it is only being tested out on a small scale for now, if it is a success it could be huge news for small businesses. According to Facebook, there are 30 million active small business pages around the world.
This will not be the first time Facebook has attempted to enter the ecommerce industry. Back in 2012, the social media giant tried out a feature called Facebook Gifts, which ended less than a year later.
The feature is being added after conversations Facebook has been having with small business owners and marketers about the challenges that they face. While many small businesses are technically savvy when it comes to the digital world, many do not have the platform to sell products online.
The new feature will allow users to buy products without leaving a company’s Facebook page. All processing will be handled by a third party, meaning Facebook will not be able to access a users bank information. Currently the feature is free for small businesses, and Facebook says that they have no plans to monetize the feature.
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