Facebook to Make Money from Messenger

Facebook's new Messenger app has made it easier for businesses to have an organic connection with their customers, which could yet be another way for the giant social media platform to earn money.

According to CNN, Messenger has become a popular app for brands to communicate with their customers. Facebook head of ads and Pages Andrew Bosworth said, "It's not a big leap to go from that to a monetization strategy." However, Facebook has some ideas on how to make money through Messenger. Bosworth believes it could drive commerce, support repeat customers, and even offer discounts. Facebook can help automate these processes through its Messenger, which was recently debuted last month. Another way to monetize Messenger is develop a click-to-message ad feature, which lets users click the ad and get connected with the brand through a private Messenger conversation. As of now, there are more than 700 million people using Messenger every month.  

Fortune reported that Mark Zuckerberg said that their biggest strategic shift is to create a family of apps for Facebook users. Messenger has become a multipurpose app that lets users send and receive messages, photos, and videos. Facebook seems to know that users want Messenger to do other transactions like sending money and connecting directly with businesses.

According to Business Insider, Facebook can monetize Messenger through payments, promotions, and corporate communications. Earlier this year, Zuckerberg mentioned payments through Messenger, but said it will take years before executing the plan. Zuckerberg said, "We could take the cheap and easy approach and just try to put ads in or do payments and make some money in the short term." However, he said they are not going to do that.

Bosworth even sees the prospect of virtual reality in the near future. This is especially true with Facebook acquiring Oculus Rift, the maker of the anticipated VR headsets. Bosworth said, "That experience should include ads, because life includes ads. So to not have ads would make it less lifelike."

Despite not showing any concrete strategies to monetize the new app, one thing is for certain, the new opportunities to make money shows just how important Facebook Messenger is to the social media company.