The next big thing in social media may not be a Facebook competitor, like Snapchat, or a high-profile Facebook acquisition, like WhatsApp. Instead, given Zuckerberg’s strategic focus and investments, there’s a good chance that Messenger could dethrone Facebook. Messenger has almost entirely been a Facebook experience so far. It is now transforming into a consolidated commerce platform as well as the global go-to communication platform.
On the commerce side, Messenger now natively processes payments. This is a huge step that allows for a seamless transition from intent to transaction, all within the same platform. On the communication side, Messenger is gaining ground in both peer-to-peer and B2C markets. Messenger allows users to send GIFs, transfer money, edit photos, and conduct audio/video conference calls, while offering a directory of Facebook’s ~2 billion users. But that’s not all – Messenger is opening up to third-party content that will keep users engaged and also help developers find an interested audience – something web Canvas did so well on desktop.
FB's network of active business pages is growing. These businesses are using FB to connect with a target audience. That is the first-leg of the B2C relationship. The second-leg of the B2C relationship is turning that connection into a transaction, and this is where Messenger naturally comes into play. The obstacle for other messaging platforms, such as traditional SMS, is they do not support an already established first leg of the B2C relationship. Messenger is on a path to replace phone based customer service and apps. Bots for Messenger will allow businesses to deliver automated interactive experiences, e-commerce guidance and customer support with the help of chat-bots. Bots have the potential to increase user engagement and satisfaction for a brand.
While the future looks very promising, it’s not without a set of watch-outs. Messenger’s worry, ultimately, has to be that it’s almost impossible to win over young consumers who have grown up using chat apps. That issue aside, Messenger needs to evolve much further and in more fields to become dominant in the future. On a strategic level, it could invest in the following areas:
(1) Extend its use case beyond private communication in order to capture business relationships. If people get used to using Messenger in a professional context, interacting with brands, carrying out e-commerce transactions and directing digital assistant applications won’t be that unusual anymore.
(2) Improve user engagement by developing a creativity ecosystem. It should let users create their own messaging experience by letting them be creative and do things they couldn’t do before.
(3) Target the masses with valuable services offered through the conversational interface. It should make bots discoverable and more present in the online and offline world.
In summary, Messenger is well positioned to become the holistic platform that hosts all different kinds of services in the future. Messenger already has a strong position with its vast user base across the world but needs to keep innovating in order to continuously engage and delight this user base in new ways.
No comments:
Post a Comment