Facebook Pilots News Feed Buy Buttons

The day that consumers will be able to buy goods they see advertised on Facebook is closer than ever. After testing its “buy” button, Facebook wants to expand to retailers on Shopify, reports TechCrunch.

How does it work? Shopify merchants who run Facebook pages can promote their post ads (organically or with a cost) and include a buy button. Facebook users can then buy in one click if their payment details are already registered. Otherwise, they simply complete the purchase via their card or debit card details.

ECommerce is high on Facebook’s agenda. In February it upgraded its For Sale Groups, whereby members can choose the Sell feature when creating a post. And in July 2014, it was already experimenting with embedding a purchasing function. Users, for the first time, were able to purchase items directly from ads placed within Facebook instead of merely clicking to a new site. In an attempt to reassure its 581 million users, Facebook has affirmed that users’ payment data will not be passed on to advertisers.

So when will Facebook make its Buy Button available to everyone? No one knows yet. But it will surely look at social media competitors out there working on making their sites shoppable.

Just days ago, the public got its first look at Pinterest’s “Buy Button.” And two weeks ago (June 2), Pinterest introduced the concept of Buyable Pins — which will turn the site shoppable. Twitter, on the other hand, is lagging a bit behind. While its “Buy Now” feature is starting with small commerce, Twitter’s CEO Dick Costolo said the company plans to look into its options in the future but doesn’t have any more plans in the works in terms of expanding Twitter’s payments or commerce reach. Google Shopping previously would refer shoppers to merchants’ websites through its search function but is now working to team up with merchants to promote two-day shipping for products bought through Google Shopping.

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