Buzzfeed News has reported that Facebook is starting to transform its business pages into online stores.
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Lately it feels like “buy” buttons, which add the ability to shop directly from webpages and apps, are the hottest thing to hit the Web.
Facebook confirmed the new shopping features to Mashable Wednesday, saying it’s now being tested among a small number of users and a handful of retail and e-commerce companies. Google, Pinterest, and Twitter now all have their own buy buttons too. Facebook plans to add incremental features and capabilities in the future.
The website reports that Facebook is testing out a “shop section” which will enable users to buy products that have caught their eye. If you want to buy one of the products, the retailers will be able to choose whether the actual transaction will take place within Facebook or whether you’ll be redirected to the company’s website.
It’s not clear what format the shopping experience takes, but a mock-up supplied by Facebook at the top of the page suggests it might looks a bit like browsing a gallery of photographs.
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Buzzfeed said Facebook is displaying these shops very prominently on mobile, under the standard toolbar and about section. Meanwhile, they continued testing its buy button in Ads on newsfeed and now taking its next logical progression with dedicated shops on Pages where users can browse for and purchase items. As of now, Facebook has provided no timeline as to when the feature will be available to all merchants internationally and has declined to name currently participating businesses.
