Never leave the comfort of your screen!
When the Internet first began, AOL was synonymous with mail, contacts, messaging, and more. Just about everyone on the Internet was using AOL or their messenger, AIM, for a period of time. As with all things technology, however, innovation took a bit of the wind from AOL’s sails and bigger and, in some cases, better mail and messaging platforms emerged. Now, Facebook is looking to offer the same type of all-in-one technology hub that AOL once was for users.
Welcome to Facebook, land of everything
Facebook is already the go-to source for news, weather, messaging, and keeping tabs on friends and family. Now, Facebook has partnered with Eventbrite and Ticketmaster to make it virtually unnecessary to leave their platform. The new ticketing program is live and being tested on the desktop, Android and iOS apps (it’s not currently available on the mobile web version of the site). Event planners and concert-goers can access the feature.
Event planners can already add a “buy tickets” button to their event. Concert-goers can click the “buy tickets” button now to enjoy these events. However, this is a click-through action; the majority of the actual purchasing action takes place on the Eventbrite site. So why use Facebook?
Speedy buying process
With Eventbrite, Facebook will receive your payment information, name, and email address from Facebook, so all you need are two taps to complete the checkout process, speeding things along.
Eventbrite also provides a QR code to attendees directly within Facebook so they can access an event quickly and share it with friends. Ticketmaster offers something similar, only without the use of QR codes. Also, with Ticketmaster, you’ll be redirected to the site to complete your purchase, but some of your information will be shared to speed up the process.
Partners in advertising?
Eventbrite Vice President of Product, Lauren Sellier, stated, “We are committed to innovation that helps organizers sell more tickets. Meeting consumers where they are spending significant time online and then enabling a seamless purchase experience for them right there and then is an important step in this mission.” While Eventbrite was adamant that there is no revenue sharing between their company and Facebook; this doesn’t mean Facebook is receiving no benefits.
I mean let’s face it, they’re hardly doing this out of the kindness of their hearts. Instead, my opinion is they will receive gain additional analytical data that can be turned into advertising and other benefits. Not to mention advertising on Ticketmaster and Eventbrite will increase Facebook’s reach quite a bit. While the benefits aren’t strictly monetary, Facebook certainly stands to gain a bit of insight from this new partnership as users will gain a more seamless ticket buying experience.
