Love them or hate them, Facebook ads haven’t stopped 1 billion of us from logging onto Facebook daily. The only über successful Facebook-owned product that is free of ads is Facebook Messenger. However, that’s about to change.
The Scoop on Facebook Messenger Ads
A leaked document attained by TechCrunch disclosed that Facebook is planning to allow businesses to send ads and promotions to users through Facebook Messenger starting in Q2 2016. Before we start freaking out, let’s discuss what this all really means.
According to the document, businesses will only be able to send ads to users whom they have previously messaged. This is to ensure that only users who expressed interest in that business and its products and/or services are the only ones to receive the ads.
Will It Work?
For the most part, Facebook Messenger is used by people to chat with their friends and family. It’s one of the most personal and intimate aspect of our Facebook experience. So opening the advertising gates and allowing businesses more access to consumers’ personal space can potentially go south very quickly. It’s possible that users may view this act as spammy or too intrusive, and may stop using Facebook Messenger. Or, even worse, they may quit Facebook altogether.
The Verdict
As a social media marketer and an avid user of Facebook (remember those days when you needed a valid college email address?), I have confidence that Facebook will be able to find the perfect balance for its Messenger ads. Ever since MySpace tanked and everyone migrated to Facebook, Zuckerberg and his team have been very mindful of user experience and have taken precautions to ensure retention. Examples of this commitment include jumping on the hashtag bandwagon when Twitter made it all the rage, readjusting the newsfeed algorithm to show more posts from the people (and sometimes businesses) that we interact with the most, and not displaying irrelevant ads even if there’s a huge budget behind them.
Facebook has also done a great job building out Messenger’s infrastructure. It allows users to reply to wall posts with private messages and create “Saved Replies” to quickly respond to private message inquiries, and there are convenient “Contact Us” and “Send Message” call-to-action buttons.
I believe Facebook Messenger ads will serve as a benefit to all. Businesses can connect with consumers who are already engaged. Users can receive updates from businesses that interest them. There are bound to be to a few small kinks, which will be ironed out as the program matures. Facebook will most likely introduce features to ensure good user experience, such as adding an “unsubscribe” button for those businesses that abuse Messenger ads.
Bottom line: Facebook Messenger ads will most likely not send users running. So everyone rest assured that as a business owner your Facebook leads will stay intact, and as a consumer, your inbox will stay spam free.
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