Facebook Marketplace has always sat in an enormous gray area between the other two major online marketplaces. It was slicker than the “Cheetos-dust-stained serial killer shopping for an Xbox at 3 a.m.” vibe of Craigslist, yet a more slapdash, disjointed shopping-and-selling experience than eBay.
Well, Meta’s given it an AI-infused, emoji-laden, socially collaborative redesign, and it sure looks different.
the new features
One of the hallmark new features is collections, which let you create a grouping of Marketplace listings and invite friends to join. That way, if you’re buying a couch, for example, you and your roommates can all ask the seller questions and coordinate who’ll be around to pick it up.
Facebook also added the ability to emoji-react and comment on listings. I don’t see the appeal or use of that. I imagine a 32-inch TV with 27 crying emojis, 16 heart emojis, and three eggplants as its frustrated seller waits for the only reaction that matters—a purchase.
Not just that, but what kind of comments do people need to read regarding something on sale? As long as potential buyers can ask the seller questions in a DM, a bunch of publicly displayed comments isn’t going to provide any added value. Maybe I could see it cutting down on repeat questions, but I could also see a bunch of irrelevant, random crap clogging it up.
I’m more intrigued by the incorporation of Meta AI into Marketplace. Facebook says that among young adults, however they classify that, vehicles are within the top five searches on Marketplace. So there are new features aimed specifically at car shopping.
“When you visit a vehicle listing, you’ll see AI-powered insights that can gather everything from engine options and safety ratings to transmission type, seating, cargo capacity, reviews, and price insights—all in one place,” says Facebook.
Earlier this year, Facebook Marketplace began integrating listings from eBay and Poshmark to a limited extent. If you click on one, you’ll be taken out of the Facebook app and into the other app for checkout.
Given that one out of four “Facebook young adult active users” in the US and Canada, however Meta defines that, visit Marketplace each day (according to Meta itself), it’s no wonder Meta is pouring such resources into dressing up Marketplace as a serious online classifieds platform.
The post Meta Overhauled Facebook Marketplace: Here’s Everything That’s New appeared first on VICE.
