Tumblr announced new features on Tuesday that include "buy," "pledge" and "get involved" buttons taken from Etsy, Artsy, Kickstarter and Do Something.
As Tumblr's active user base continues to grow (it grew 120 percent in the last six months, beating Facebook's 2 percent), the platform is monetizing its service by launching new buttons that allow bloggers to view and buy items directly from the site.
"At this time, we are testing this addition as yet another step to support creative communities on and beyond Tumblr. Our focus right now is this initial program, and we're thrilled with our pilot partners," a Tumblr spokesperson writes.
The new buttons allow for users to view, buy or make a pledge right on the spot. The new buttons automatically appear when a user copies and pastes a link to "something you love." For bloggers who post a link from Artsy, Kickstarter or Do Something, a button will appear on the top right corner, which will allow users to browse or make a pledge to the associated post.
When Tumblr bloggers post a link from Etsy, a buy button will automatically be generated, perfect for fashion forward Millennials looking to purchase items modeled in pictures. Although they won't be able to buy the item directly from Tumblr, they will be redirected to the site where it is sold.
Users can also set a reminder to return and make an action later by entering their email used to sign into Tumblr. This feature only seems to currently work for the buy options.
Bloggers who sell their own items could use the new feature to promote their own products.
Tumblr is only including the mentioned websites in their new buttons, but the social media platform could also include retail sites like Amazon or eBay in the future. This would help them further compete with Facebook and Twitter. Both sites are also developing their own buy buttons.
We wonder how users will feel about the new additions. Having an easy way to buy an item or make a pledge certainly seems very efficient. But on the other hand, having those options might make Tumblr, a place known for expression and curation, feel like an ecommerce site. Do users really want a reminder that they can buy an item every time they post a link to a cool photo?
While the new buttons may be exciting for some, Tumblr users typically complain when the blogging platform makes major changes. For example, changing the standard image size to 540 pixels (which caused gifs to look distorted) caused an uproar back in November.
There is good news for mobile users who are not on board with the changes. The buttons will initially be limited to desktop only while the company tests the water.
Photo Credit: Romain Toornier/Flickr
