After launching in November and running for just nine months, Twitter’s ‘Fleets’ feature has been closed as of August 3.
Ilya Brown, a Twitter product executive, said the feature was introduced to encourage a “lower-pressure, ephemeral way for people to share their fleeting thoughts.” Twitter did not see the user growth that they had hoped from introducing Fleets, so it was decided that the teams’ product executives would focus their attention on different possibilities.
How is Twitter putting e-commerce first?
Twitter is now introducing the Shop Module. E-commerce is thriving, which is why the platform is putting more energy into testing out the potential for shopping. One of the first steps towards launching Twitter Shopping is with the Shop Module that has just launched as a pilot.
In a blog post introducing the pilot, Twitter said the Shop Module is ‘a feature that allows us to explore how shoppable profiles can create a pathway from talking about and discovering products on Twitter to actually purchasing them.’
The pilot will begin testing with a handful of US brands using Twitter in English for iOS. The Shop Module will present as a dedicated space at the top of a brands profile where businesses can showcase their products. When users visit a brands’ profile with the Shop Module enabled, they can scroll through the carousel of products and tap through on a single product to learn more and purchase. The benefit of this feature as opposed to linking products in tweets is that users can shop seamlessly in an in-app browser, without having to leave Twitter.
Twitter believes that there is a strong potential for shopping features to succeed on the platform. Piloting tools such as the Shopping Module enables Twitter to create deeper partnerships with businesses from small to large. Stay tuned to discover how the Shopping Module will further drive engagement and business outcomes.