Back in December, Facebook was spotted testing a new “sell something” feature in Groups. This appeared as an option alongside “Write Post” and “Ask a Question” when you went to post in a Facebook group.
While it looks a little different, Facebook has has now officially announced the launch of buy and sell features in Groups.
“Now, For Sale Group members can choose the ‘Sell’ feature when creating a post,” a Facebook spokesperson said in an email. “Members can add a description to what they’re selling, including a price and set a pick-up/delivery location. Sellers can also mark posts as ‘Available’ or ‘Sold’ and easily view their catalog of previous items sold.”
The company shares a couple of examples of users who regularly use Facebook’s For Sale Groups:
Lisa Duncan-Thayer from Florida created Made By Mama Buy/Sell/Trade to sell her crochet work and give other local artisans a place to sell their handmade items. Now with more than 4,500 members in or near Pinellas County, Florida, the group has helped many women turn their hobbies into businesses.
Professional guitarist Kadu Carvalho from Rio de Janeiro created a Facebook Group to help musicians in Brazil buy and sell instruments. In nearly three years, the group has grown to more than 34,000 members. Not only has the group enabled Kadu to personally buy, sell and trade musical instruments, it’s raised his profile and awareness for his band, Swell.
Facebook is rolling out the new features in the coming months across iOS, Android and the Web. It’s unclear if this includes Facebook’s standalone Groups app, but that seems like a no-brainer. If you run a group and wish to get in on this, you can apply here.
Image via Facebook