Google has recently announced that they will be adding a “Buy” button to searches on mobile. Their reasoning is that if someone is searching for a product on mobile, it can be clumsy to fumble around that retailer’s website, especially if the page is not optimized for mobile shopping, to enter card information along with shipping and billing addresses.
The new “Buy” button would direct you to a Google page where you could view the item and make decisions about size, color, fit, and other options. The page would also remember your addresses and card information, similar to the Amazon purchasing experience. While there isn’t a large amount of information about the functionality of the “Buy” button yet, it will presumably communicate with Google Wallet, the place where a lot of people already store card information as well as addresses.
To clarify, Google would not be distributing the product, they would simply act as a means of collecting payment, somewhat similar to PayPal. Macy’s has reportedly started a conversation with Google about being one of the first major retailers to pilot the service.
A concern with the service, while certainly easier for the customer, is that potential customers will bypass advertising campaigns on the retailer’s website, making Google the face of products and not the company itself.
If shoppers click on the buy buttons, they will be taken to another Google product page to complete the purchase, the people explained. On that page, they will be able to pick sizes and colors and shipping options, as well as complete the purchase.
This new Google feature is reminiscent of Amazon’s Firefly service that was launched on their Fire Phone in 2014 which allowed customers with the service to scan anything they saw or heard on their mobile phone and were then directed to an Amazon page where you could buy it with one click.
Whether this feature catches on remains to be seen. I can see that perhaps major retailers would prefer to direct customers through their own website, however they usually have the capability to develop a mobile friendly platform. Smaller retailers, without the means to develop a strong mobile payment option may benefit from the service largely.
Let us know your thoughts on the new “Buy” button. Do you feel it’s superfluous or potentially a useful feature. Do you think the service could hurt a retailer’s profits in the long term? Let us know in the comments or on social media.
[button link=”http://time.com/3882607/google-buy-buttons-search-results/” icon=”fa-external-link” side=”left” target=”blank” color=”285b5e” textcolor=”ffffff”]Source: Time[/button]Featured image courtesy of The Next Web
Last Updated on November 27, 2018.
