Twitter's 'Buy Now' button leaks: You could soon be buying things with a tweet

In the bid to woo its investors and prove it is capable of generating ad revenue, Twitter has not only been experimenting new features that could give it a monetisation angle. One such feature we’ve been hearing for quite some time now is the ‘Buy Now’ button directly embedded into a tweet.   A  Wall Street Journal report two months ago had said that the micro-blogging site is testing multiple ad types including ‘shoppable’ Twitter ads. Now,  Re/Code has spotted some tweets that have been embedded with the ‘Buy Now’ button that redirected users to the shopping site Fancy. The button currently appears only on the mobile app, and not the web UI.   A Buy Now button embedded within the tweet could mean users will be directly rerouted to the company’s store or could possibly purchase direct off Twitter, if the company has the right payment tools built in. Though we’d like the latter, the first option is quite likely possible.  This seems to be a much-needed move for Twitter and finally a way to boost revenue, as brands could use the platform for more than just engaging with audience. According to Mashable, “Adding purchasing functionalities to Timeline seems like an obvious win for Twitter. Users are familiar with both ads and image previews by now, so the addition of a “Buy now” button wouldn’t be very disruptive. It would also add new revenue streams for Twitter and some of its brand users.” Such a button could also keep users on Twitter for a longer period.   Besides how it will help Twitter, it is also believed to give a push to social shopping. Social networking sites are already known to play a vital role in boosting the burgeoning domestic e-commerce market, and now ‘Twitter Commerce’ as it is believed to be named could further boost it. In the past we’ve seen several brands team up with social sites to promote/advertise their products.   Earlier this year, we’d come across the new feature called #AmazonCart that allows users to add Amazon products to their shopping basket without having to leave Twitter. But that doesn’t mean users could purchase products directly via Twitter. The feature only saves it to your account with an option to order it later. Basically, it lets you add a product in your cart, whenever you see an Amazon product link on Twitter. In order to save it, the user has to simply respond/reply to the tweet with a #AmazonCart.   However, Twitter Commerce is set to be different. If some earlier leaked documents and mockups are to be believed then users may be able to make purchases directly from Twitter. Yes, you heard it right. Users will have to give Twitter their names, addresses and all credit card information, which, according to the documents, will be “handled securely within the Twitter app.”   Twitter Commerce posts are likely to appear just like any other tweet and show up in-stream, like  **Promoted Tweets** . They could also show up under Twitter’s Discover section, which would contain follower activity with regards to their purchases on Twitter. Users can get more details about the products those they follow purchased with an option for you to do the same and other information about the seller.   Twitter is also known to be testing ‘ **retweet with comment** ’, which would further allow users to add their comments or reasons for suggesting a product. This means a retweeted message will turn into an image, leaving users with just under 140-characters to share their own thoughts with it. This also could be roped in for Twitter’s commerce plans. All in all, Twitter is prepping its platform to become the next big e-commerce destination.