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Shopify Puts its Support Behind Facebook’s ‘Libra’ Cryptocurrency

Published

3 years ago

February 22, 2020

Honestly, I was starting to think that Facebook’s Libra cryptocurrency project might never become a thing, but there is still some hope that we may see it reach the next stage.

This week, eCommerce giant Shopify has announced that it’s joining the Libra Association, which is the support group that will oversee Facebook’s crypto governance.

As explained by Shopify:

“Our mission is to make commerce better for everyone, and to do that, we spend a lot of our time thinking about how to make commerce better in parts of the world where money and banking could be far better. That’s why we decided to become a member of the Libra Association. This is one step, but not the only step we’ll be taking to be a part of the solution to this global problem.”

Shopify says that, as part of the Libra Association, it will work with Facebook and other project partners to “build a payment network that makes money easier to access, and supports merchants and consumers everywhere”.

This is the true promise for Libra, facilitating a process that enables cheap, easy funds exchange. Facebook would then look to benefit from this by connecting streamlined eCommerce and bill payment options into the same network – once your money is being transferred in this way, it’ll be easier for people to spend on Facebook as well. Shopify will be looking to get in on the same – the idea begins with improved funds transfer, then expands into a wider network of online shopping, built into a single stream.

But Libra remains some way off being a reality. Most of the initial partners for the project have since pulled out, while various government groups have raised concerns, and even flagged blocks of the payment network, due to concerns around its governance and conflicts with existing systems.

Most notable on this front is India, where more funds are transferred through remittance than anywhere else. At the Libra launch event last June, Facebook confirmed that India would not be part of its initial rollout plan for the project, due to concerns around cryptocurrency from Indian regulators.

Will the addition of Shopify as a partner help resolve such?

In some ways, it gives the project more credibility – but then again, with the noted, aligned interest from Shopify in regards to eCommerce, it’s seemingly not a major vote in support of the project, at least from a regulatory standpoint. Over the last year, key financial partners like Visa, MasterCard and Stripe have all stepped back from the Libra Association, along with PayPal and eBay. Those are the backers that would likely imbue more regulatory confidence in the project, and in comparison, the addition of Shopify likely doesn’t add a heap.

But still, it may renew some level of optimism in the troubled cryptocurrency project, and it does show that Facebook hasn’t given up on it in favor of Facebook Pay and WhatsApp Pay just yet.

I mean, it still seems like that’s where Facebook is headed, but we could still see the rise of Libra at some stage in 2020.

Socialmediatoday.com

SOCIAL

LinkedIn Adds New Features for Company Pages, Including Post Templates and Link Stickers

Published

10 hours ago

September 29, 2022

Entireweb News Bot

LinkedIn has outlined its latest batch of updates for Company Pages, most of which had already been previewed in some capacity, but are now being rolled out on a broader basis.

First off, LinkedIn’s making its new post templates available to all company pages.

As you can see in these examples, LinkedIn’s post templates, as they sound, provide a range of visual enhancements for your LinkedIn updates, which could help to make them stand out in feeds.

LinkedIn originally launched post templates for individual users last month, but now, it’s making them available for Company Page updates as well.

As per LinkedIn:

“Create engaging, actionable LinkedIn content easier than ever with customizable templates, available directly in the LinkedIn app, with no third-party tools required.”

I mean, I don’t know that these types of posts really fit with LinkedIn’s professional approach. But then again, as many have noted, LinkedIn is increasingly becoming more like Facebook anyway, with more personal posts and updates that are less focused on professional aspects.

And that seems to be working – LinkedIn’s parent company Microsoft keeps reporting ‘record levels of engagement’ in the app every quarter, so maybe this is actually a good, valuable addition.

We’ll see how people feel about it when every other LinkedIn ‘thinkfluencer’ is posting using these templates. You can access post templates in the mobile app by tapping the ‘use template’ option in the post composer menu.

As an addition to this, LinkedIn’s also making its new link stickers available for Company Pages too, which could help to drive more direct response to your updates.

On another front, LinkedIn will also now enable all Company Pages to pin comments beneath their brand posts.

The rollout for this feature also started last month, with some users seeing the option to pin comments in the app.

That could be a good way to spark more focused engagement, and highlight top fans, while you could also use this to simply boost interactions by pinning the comment with the most engagement at the top of the reply chain.

As a reminder, LinkedIn Company Pages can also pin an update for similar purpose.

Finally, LinkedIn has also added a new ‘Our featured commitments’ section for Company Pages, where brands will be able to showcase their most important values.

“Increasingly in today’s market, job seekers are evaluating potential employers based on their values. They’re interested in knowing where companies stand on issues that are important to them, such as DEI, work-life balance, sustainability, etc. To provide greater insight and connections, LinkedIn is enabling employers to highlight these commitments on their LinkedIn company page to define their talent brand and values.”

Brands will be able to include up to five commitments in their featured commitments section, while you’ll also be able to host content that demonstrates the same, all of which will be displayed in a sub-panel in the ‘About’ section of your Page.

These are some potentially handy updates, with the link stickers and pinned comments standing out as likely the most valuable additions for LinkedIn page managers.

Post templates I’m not as sold on, especially for brands – but then again, there may be ways to use these templates to improve the presentation of your posts, and maybe, that’ll increase overall engagement.

You can read about all of LinkedIn’s latest company page updates here.

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