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The Bottom Line | Is Graphite the Answer to F-Commerce Woes?
LONDON, United Kingdom — It wasn’t so long ago that many technology analysts made bold predictions on the potential of so-called ‘F-commerce,’ the practice of using Facebook as a direct sales channel. Some even speculated that transactions conducted on Facebook, the world’s most visited website, could threaten e-commerce giant Amazon. But, thus far, selling directly on Facebook has failed to take off. Indeed, in the last year, major fashion retailers like JC Penney, Gap and Nordstrom have shuttered their Facebook stores, citing unsatisfactory results.
While it may be too soon to declare it an outright flop, many have linked the poor performance of F-commerce to a fundamental issue: visitors to Facebook, who use the platform to connect and socialise with friends, are simply not in the mindset for shopping and that putting the proverbial cash register next to the proverbial watercooler is a fundamentally flawed approach.
“It was like trying to sell stuff to people while they’re hanging out with their friends at the bar,” Sucharita Mulpuru, a senior analyst at Forrester Research and outspoken F-commerce skeptic, told Bloomberg earlier this year.
Others have attributed the poor results to unimaginative retailers who failed to adapt their approach to the Facebook platform and offered users nothing more than a simplified e-commerce experience. “It was basically just another place to shop for all the stuff already available on the retailer websites,” said Wade Gerten, founder and chief executive officer of 8th Bridge, a leading social commerce development company (and the first to open a Facebook store in 2009 for 1-800-Flowers).
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While it may be too soon to declare it an outright flop, many have linked the poor performance of F-commerce to a fundamental issue: visitors to Facebook, who use the platform to connect and socialise with friends, are simply not in the mindset for shopping and that putting the proverbial cash register next to the proverbial watercooler is a fundamentally flawed approach.
“It was like trying to sell stuff to people while they’re hanging out with their friends at the bar,” Sucharita Mulpuru, a senior analyst at Forrester Research and outspoken F-commerce skeptic, told Bloomberg earlier this year.
Others have attributed the poor results to unimaginative retailers who failed to adapt their approach to the Facebook platform and offered users nothing more than a simplified e-commerce experience. “It was basically just another place to shop for all the stuff already available on the retailer websites,” said Wade Gerten, founder and chief executive officer of 8th Bridge, a leading social commerce development company (and the first to open a Facebook store in 2009 for 1-800-Flowers).
Continue Reading »
