Facebook has been working over the years to be a do-it-all company, meaning it has branched out into all kinds of online programs and apps. The newest of these is Facebook Marketplace, launched today in some markets, possibly moving into other markets if it is successful. The idea is to replace your local Craigslist with something that is much more user friendly. And by the looks of it, the features of Facebook Marketplace are going to be much better than what Craigslist has to offer.
Smartphone friendly
Being able to buy and sell from your smartphone is becoming more and more popular. Almost everyone has a smartphone, and it has become the main way people browse the internet. Any company that isn’t taking advantage of smartphone marketing through mobile optimization of their website or text marketing should seriously consider making a change. One of the biggest things Facebook Marketplace has going for it is that it is much more mobile friendly than Craigslist, and people can easily see and buy what they want to get.
Ratings capabilities
One of the reasons why people get nervous about buying and selling locally on Craigslist is that they don’t trust the other person to come through or they worry about getting ripped off at the last minute. With the ability to rate another user, whether on the buying side or selling side, you take away a lot of that concern. It is also nice to be able to post comments like that a person didn’t show up to the meeting or they jacked up the price upon meeting. It makes people feel safer and more comfortable exchanging items in person.
Communicating through Facebook
By communicating through Facebook, you don’t have to give out any personal information (such as phone numbers) if you don’t want to. You can just message each other the details of where to meet and when as well as negotiate price. Because you are able to see the other person’s Facebook picture, you know who to look for when you show up to meet and it is a little less scary to try and find a stranger.
Easy browsing capabilities
According to TechCrunch, a lot of the websites like Craigslist are hard to look through if you just want to browse. These sites were built before smartphones made taking and posting pictures so easy, so they didn’t incorporate that into the browsing abilities. Now, though, customers want to be able to just look at pictures of the items as they are looking for them instead of just descriptions. If you can just scroll through images, you are more likely to find stuff you like and a seller is more likely to make the sale. It’s just another reason why businesses need to ensure they are keeping up with technology and staying ahead of the game, or someone else might come along and steal their business.
