With a post on his social networks, Mark Zuckerberg himself announced the arrival of Facebook Shops! It is a new tool designed for small businesses, a fundamental part of the Italian production fabric, in order to facilitate the online selling of the products.
It is something different from Marketplace (already in use for some time as an eBay competitor) and also from what you can see on Instagram. The vision of Facebook Shops it should be a way for small businesses to be able to "put into play", especially in a period like this where COVID-19 it has undermined global economies.
Facebook Shops: for small businesses and users
According to what was officially declared by the Menlo Park company, the new service will be "a place to experience the pleasure of shopping and to discover and buy, in a simpler way, the things they love. And, at the same time, we want to help small businesses adapt to this new reality".
It is therefore a matter of trying to give a base to all those businesses that have not yet had the opportunity to offer their products to a wider audience going beyond the concept of a physical store. With Facebook Shops there will be one Online shop which can reach users in two (almost) boundless basins: Facebook is Instagram (which can count on different types of users).
The realization of one's own Facebook Shop sar Free and you can choose the products to be offered for sale in the company catalog. Furthermore, to stand out, you can customize the look of your virtual store with a cover image and ad hoc colors.
You can then advertise your shop through advertisements or insert it in your own company Instagram profile. At this point the user will be able to browse the catalogs of the products on sale and then be directed to Online shop company. In the USA the functionality will go further allowing the purchase directly in-app thus providing greater continuity.
A virtual salesman ready to help the customer
If there are any questions, monitor the order and delivery of the products on sale in the Facebook Shops you can send messages through messaging services such as WhatsApp, Messenger or Instagram Direct. But not over here! The company has promised that, in the future, it will be possible to buy directly from a chat on WhatsApp, Messenger or Instagram Direct.
Even if the launch took place today, in reality the path will last a few months where the functions will be gradually expanded so as to make them more complete and engaging.
Instagram Shop will arrive in Summer and you can buy it from the "live"
Instagram Shop, will be another novelty always linked to Facebook Shops and will arrive in the summer (from the USA). What is it about? Users will be able to purchase directly from the "explore" section of the popular social network. They can be searched brand o types of products such as those dedicated to beauty, furnishings or for the home. After the summer, however, there will be a tab dedicated to shopping in the navigation bar so as to make navigation less confusing (and the section dedicated to purchases is easier to find).
Even the "Live" they will be a tool to buy products (and for companies to sell them). A brand for example, I can not only do "una live" to show a product, but tag it directly into them Facebook Shop (or in the catalog) and then be shown at the end of the video. This will allow users to purchase them more easily. This functionality, in particular still being tested for a selected number of brands, should in the future reach a greater number of company profiles.
Also new for i loyalty programs. Currently being tested, in the future it should be possible for all businesses to create and link loyalty programs to their virtual store while users can check the points awarded and the relative prizes.
It also focuses on partners and privacy
Facebook has announced that it is partnering with companies such as Shopify, BigCommerce, WooCommerce, Channel Advisor, CedCommerce, Cafe24, Tienda Nube and Feedonomics to support small businesses. Reportedly, the experience of these brand it will be put at the service of small companies by providing sophisticated and already used tools.
Obviously privacy will be fundamental for the success of Facebook Shops. For this the company has created a page which explains who and what will or will not be shared. According to what reported, friends and contacts will not see their activities in the Shops (unless the user does not want to do it). Aggregated traffic data will be shared and therefore shopkeepers will not be able to trace the individual user.
Navigation within the Facebook Shops however, it will impact what the user will see as ads or posts within the social network (both on Facebook and on Instagram). If you pay through Facebook Pay, your credit card data will be encrypted and not shared in any way. It will then be possible to subscribe (or not subscribe) to the mailing lists of a shop that interests us while you can view your transactions and add or remove payment methods.
