Facebook has announced several new features in its latest Messenger update, a few of which may make it easier for brands to get their Messenger accounts discovered. The update includes more advanced user interface customization for web developers, a simpler payment process for in-app purchases, a sharing option for individual messages and an introductory screen when users begin a Messenger interaction.
These updates will all prove useful to brands that have started to use Facebook Messenger as a platform for personalized customer outreach; the updates address individual customer concerns and directly link users to relevant content and product pages.
The biggest win for communicators in the Messenger announcement may be the rollout of "Messenger as a destination for News Feed ads." One of the biggest challenges in convincing audiences to engage with brands on new channels is letting those audiences know those channels exist. For brand communicators with even a small paid Facebook ads budget, a direct-to-Messenger ad is a new frontier for driving direct interaction. With an option to click right into a messenger thread straight from their News Feed, users can more directly complete a call to action, whether the brand's goal is to drive sales for a new product, collect survey-related feedback or grow clicks for a recent earned media placement.
It will be interesting to see where brand communicators take the individualized Messenger experience, and the growing applications of Messenger bots, from here. A few examples of brands already achieving success and innovating on the platform: CNN, which uses a Messenger bot to allow users to search for news stories; The White House, which promises writers an (albeit slim) opportunity to be included in President Obama's daily brief; and Everlane, one of the first e-commerce brands to use Messenger as a direct-to-purchase vehicle.
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