Truly Integrated Social Media + Retail

Facebook is stepping up its integration of social media and retail partners with its invention of “Facebook Storefronts”. Soon 20 stores can have more than just fans of their brand, but give their customers the ability to actually purchase items directly through Facebook.

“While retailers like “Sears, the department store, and Threadless, the T-shirt seller, both let users add items to their shopping cart on Facebook;” never before have users been able to purchase goods without ever leaving Facebook’s site as they will be able to soon. 1-800-Flowers is the first retailer to have constructed a free-standing virtual shop on Facebook, with more to follow in the coming weeks. Facebook, however, “has no current plans to organise the storefronts into an online mall, or to make money from them by either taxing the transactions that take place on its site, or by offering its own virtual currency.” [FT]

Definitely something to think about with any new project.

via Racked +  Financial Times

(Melissa Scott)