Facebook Sets Sight on E-Commerce as It Prepares for Life post-iOS 14.5

UTC by Oluwapelumi Adejumo · 3 min read
Facebook Sets Sight on E-Commerce as It Prepares for Life post-iOS 14.5
Photo: Depositphotos

According to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, they are “investing in building the future of commerce.”

Mark Zuckerberg, owner and CEO of Facebook Inc (NASDAQ: FB), during the social media giant earnings call held on Wednesday, April 28th 2021, stated the plans of the firm for the world of e-commerce and advertising after one of the most momentous developments in the mobile ad targeting space.

Zuckerberg spoke on Marketplaces, Facebook’s premier e-commerce platform, a craigslist-like platform with over a million shops selling to over a billion buyers. Facebooks’ subsidiary social media platforms, WhatsApp, and Instagram will also see updates to their e-commerce sections.

Facebook Shop for WhatsApp and Instagram’s Creator Shop would also be revolutionizing Facebooks’ e-commerce and advertising strategies. The Facebook Shop for WhatsApp allows business owners to buy ad spaces that open directly in WhatsApp, upload catalogues, and sell products directly on WhatsApp Business. At the same time, the Instagram Creator Shop will allow Instagram creators and influencers to run shops and enable e-commerce on their profiles.

During the Wednesday earnings call, Zuckerberg noted the importance of e-commerce to his firm, especially when one considers the effect of the coronavirus. The billionaire added that many companies have been forced to change their approaches to business, Facebook included.

Apple’s iOS 14.5 Hinders Facebook

Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL), a tech giant, recently released the iOS 14.5 update for their line of smartphones and tablets. The update will allow users to decide and agree to ad-tracking, bringing greater privacy to users, who will now be able to pick which apps can track their activity on their devices. This development is set to have a ripple effect on the social media sites like Facebook who are dependent on features like ad-tracking to help their commercial arm.

Facebook relies on a system of measurement known as View-through conversions to track how a user made a purchase related to an ad, they did not click. This metric has helped Facebook know how effective their ads are. But with the advent of their e-commerce platforms, Facebook may not have to rely on this cross-site user tracking if they keep the trade on these platforms high.

Choosing to focus on its e-commerce platform, Facebook has proven a good decision so far, with its stock rising by 6% after the launch of its various markets.

In the words of Mark Zuckerberg, they are “investing in building the future of commerce.” “We have a long way to go to build out a full-featured commerce platform across our services. This modern commerce system is going to bring together several areas where we either already have strong offerings like in ads, community tools and messaging with areas like shops and business messaging and payments,” added he.

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