Something new is coming to Facebook. And no, it’s not another forced transition to a format you don’t really want. Or your private messages on your Facebook wall (heh).
This time it’s something that may actually be pretty helpful, especially for busy parents.
Meet Facebook Gifts, an honest to goodness, buy-a-birthday-present-for-your-best-friend-or-best-“friend” online store that Facebook is quietly rolling out soon. And we’re not talking about the virtual tiaras, sprinkled cupcakes and rainbow-haired troll figurine “gifts” people used to send online either. These cupcakes will be the real thing.
Now, from what I’ve seen, Facebook Gifts will be offering all kinds of household goods, gift cards, food items and more that will make it simple to acknowledge friends’ birthdays, new babies and other important events. Soon, users will encounter gift-giving prompts on people’s timelines and on the birthday reminders that appear on the site. A few simple clicks later and gifts will be on their way. Amazing.
As for the gifts themselves, as Cool Mom Picks readers know, we’re pretty picky about the things we recommend and we’re glad to see it looks like more cool stuff (Magnolia Bakery cupcakes, Star Wars Mimobot flash drives, Starbucks gift cards) than wilted flower bouquets.
Now I admit that I’m a little unsure of the convenience factor of the whole thing, because in order to give a gift, it has to be approved by the recipient, and then they must provide a shipping address. Not everyone will be quick to give Facebook more personal info, for obvious reasons, and I’m just not a big fan of any gift that makes the recipient have to lift a finger.
Plus, with all the sharing and posting to Facebook, I really hope it doesn’t turn into some sort of awful competitive thing where you feel bad because you didn’t get your aunt a real gift while your brother did.
That said, it just might prove useful to have such an easy way to recognize special events in friends’ lives. And if you’re like me, my 3-kids-later brain needs to act right when I’m thinking about something or I’ll forget it completely. –Stephanie S.
What do you think about the upcoming Facebook Gifts — would you use it? And stay tuned for a full review once it’s launched.
This is a Great move by Facebook.
There’s no doubt that F-commerce is the next step in the eCommerce evolution!
We at StoreYa (https://www.StoreYa.com), see an enormous traction, there’s an amazing daily growth of merchants, creating their own Facebook shops.
Mia
It is interesting to see how Facebook has integrated Karma into its offering and time will tell how successful it becomes, but clearly it’s not the end point since there are some major drawbacks.
1. It’s Costly. The Karma model, which Facebook has adopted, is to offer expensive products from a limited selection…you still have to pay shipping and handling. The costs add up quickly!
2. It’s Not Social. There’s no option for a group to contribute to an individual gift, which means I have to pay the full amount. For close friends and family, I might spend $30 or more….but not on all my Facebook friends.
3. It’s Limited. Granted I can choose a gift from their catalog….and the receiver can change it. They may be trading just to get something better, but it doesn’t mean that’s what they really want…just better than what you selected.
4. It’s Facebook only. What if I have friends on LinkedIn, Google+, or even people who don’t use Facebook (yes, there are some)?
If you want a truly inexpensive, social, and cross platform gifting solution that lets the recipient get exactly what they want, then check out http://www.zPerfectGift.com. You can chip in as little as $5 towards any gift….invite friends and make it a group gift. The recipient transfers the funds onto a gift card of their choice and buys exactly what they want. It’s completely free too and works across Facebook, LinkedIn, Google+ or with any email address. A much, much better gifting solution!
This application from the Facebook is really enchanting. A great development. I appreciate it.