The newly acquired Meta platform – Instagram has been on the news for quite some time due to the rolling out of a new payment feature called the ‘payments for chat’ feature. This will enable users to pay each other through a very seamless method that’s nothing but “direct message” (DM). This announcement came from Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg through an Instagram post which provided ample details about the feature and what to expect from it.
Payments for the chat feature by Instagram will be enabling users to purchase products from a dedicated range of small businesses which can further be tracked via DMs. The payment service right now is available only for United States users but will be rolled out globally as well. “You can now have the ability to buy products from small businesses and track the order in chat on Instagram in the US,” confirmed Zuckerberg. By sending a DM to any business page with whom you want to make a purchase, users now enjoy the benefit of paying, tracking and asking questions on orders in the same messaging thread without much inconvenience.
Instagram has implemented this new payment for chat feature as it has recently noticed most of its users discussing orders with businesses that did not have an in-house payment solution. Considering this situation now users will be able to make payments directly via DMs and also gain additional chat support from others of any questions the buyer may have. Meta also highlighted that such small businesses in the US can also discuss products, create orders with customer details and accept in-app payments without having to switch to other apps or to another third-party website.
The widely used social platform also stated that over one billion people have been messaging a business across Meta, Instagram and WhatsApp requesting support, discussing brands and exploring for products to purchase. The payments which are now being leveraged in the chat feature will help users to make a purchase of an item through a more seamless transaction from the buyer, instead of the traditional multi-step process of clicking and scrolling through between pages or websites. Conversion numbers for sellers will also increase as a result. However, buyers and advertisers need to remain aware that fraudulent pages, copycats, and hackers are still prevalent and users should be cautious while using the in-chat payment method.
We are sure this new feature is going to revolutionise the way transactions are made as Instagram is one of the most widely used video-based platforms in the world and is also a hub for many new small businesses. Stay tuned for the daily dose of social media news and updates only from the #1 digital marketing agency in Chennai!
