Warc, 22 July 2014
SAN FRANCISCO: Facebook has begun testing a new 'buy' button
that will allow users to make purchases direct from their newsfeed without
being redirected to a vendor's website, the social network announced in a blog
post.
To allay concerns about privacy, Facebook insisted it has
built the feature "with privacy in mind" and that no financial
information shared with Facebook when completing a transaction will be shared
with other advertisers.
Although currently only in the test phase, if it proves
successful then Facebook may earn revenue by charging a fee from advertisers
for processing any direct payments and boosting conversion rates, TechCrunch
reported.
The 'buy' button would complement its 'like' button and is
designed to sit in the bottom right corner of advertisements where, once
clicked, would lead to purchase as long as a user's payment details have been
stored on the network beforehand.
It means users would not have to fill in lengthy finance and
contact details while at the same time it may boost conversion rates and
impulse purchases.
As well as being of potential value for advertisers, by
simplifying the buying process, Facebook hopes it would help to keep users on
the network without forcing them to go to another app or site to make a
purchase.
The development comes as Twitter announced that it will
acquire CardSpring, a mobile payments infrastructure company that allows
vendors to offer deals to consumers that can be loaded onto their credit cards,
the New York Times reported.
When the card is used to pay at the store, the coupon is
automatically applied – and it, too, means users would not have to leave the
Twitter site.
Data sourced from Facebook, TechCrunch, New York Times;
additional content by Warc
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