Meta and Amazon have announced a really interesting partnership that will let users shop Amazon’s Facebook and Instagram ads and check out without leaving the app.

Despite canning its live shopping efforts, Meta clearly believes that Insta and Facebook have heaps of potential in this area and are looking to exploit it by linking up with one of the world’s biggest shopping platforms.

The big dog bites back

Amazon isn’t immune from challengers, and the move could be seen as a way to keep TikTok at bay after it released a storefront called TikTok Shop in September. The short-form King is trying to cut Google and Amazon’s lunch with one product as it attempts to be a discovery engine and storefront all in one go.

TikTok’s popularity with Millennial, Gen Z and Gen Alpha consumers could see it become a credible threat to some of the internet’s biggest companies, and it’s no surprise to see the likes of Meta and Amazon fighting back.

Additionally, the move could also help Meta improve ad revenue following Apple’s iOS privacy updates that made it tricky for advertisers to run extremely personalised adverts on the platform. As a result, revenue declined for three consecutive quarters – although that has stabilised thanks to its investment in AI technology.

Good for advertisers

Thanks to the partnerships, brands can now sell goods on Instagram or Facebook without creating a custom storefront. All that’s required is a linked Amazon and Meta account and venders can get busy selling!

However, it should be mentioned that the new feature will only be available for selected products sold by Amazon or selected sellers on Amazon’s storefront. Once an account is linked, buyers can then check out without leaving Facebook or Instagram and their Amazon address and payment information will be used as default, enabling a quicker shopping and purchase experience that should improve conversion rates.

The partnership is low on detail for now, but that doesn’t mean there’s limited value for businesses and users. In a LinkedIn post, one ad expert explained why he thinks this will be a big deal.

Maurice Rahmey, Meta & Google Ads Partner, Disruptive Digital, via LinkedIn

“- Better targeting and optimization: Meta will now be using information sent from Amazon and stores offering Buy with Prime to show consumer’s ads.

 

– Better conversion rates: Consumers will be able to check out more quickly on ads when they connect their account.

 

– Better ads creative personalisation: Meta will tailor an ad’s messaging and product page based on whether a user is a Prime member or not and alter additional information such as real-time pricing and shipping estimates.”

Anything that increases conversion rates and ad personalisation is a good thing for advertisers, especially as Christmas approaches, who stand to boost sales and visibility of products during a crucial time of the year.

Being able to use Amazon’s data also helps get Meta around Apple’s ATT policy, which should improve performance for advertisers and lead to higher ad revenue for Meta. Additionally, it should help Amazon sellers improve performance as well.

Maurice Rahmey, Meta & Google Ads Partner, Disruptive Digital, via CNBC

“Amazon can start to extend their reach and help merchants find new customers that maybe haven’t searched for them. I think it’s a win-win for everybody.”

The move seems like it’ll benefit Amazon Prime members too, who will see various bits of product information within Instagram and Facebook – confirmed an Amazon spokesperson.

Callie Jernigan, Amazon Spokesperson, via Tech Crunch

“Customers in the U.S. will see real-time pricing, Prime eligibility, delivery estimates, and product details on select Amazon product ads in Facebook and Instagram as part of the new experience.”