According to a report by The Information, Facebook seems to be working on building a team that would connect users to freelancers for odd chores, repair tasks, etc. This service will be available on Facebook Marketplace that was launched by the company around four years ago and has more than 800 million users globally.
Facebook Marketplace is like Craigslist, where users sell and buy, even exchange goods and products. Now, this new service for freelancers will expand its usage and scope as Facebook can take a small fee by posting these gigs and earn money by targeting ads to the users on the basis of their shopping interests.
Another famous platform, Upwork that provides services for freelancers and connects them to potential clients has claimed that there has been a 24% increase in people joining these platforms amidst the coronavirus pandemic. It makes sense because many people lost their jobs and had to turn towards freelancing during this pandemic. This trend is likely to rise, and with tech giants like Facebook also in the same league will most likely diminish the other platforms like TaskRabbit. However, it is not sure whether Facebook will continue with this plan or not? It may get abandoned eventually. Because it is not like Facebook does not have any means for online businesses. Recently only, Facebook expanded online commerce for Instagram users by allowing them to sell off their products through their profiles. Brands and businesses can now get their products linked and advertised within Reels on Instagram too. And these features and services have already started showing their popularity as Instagram is expected to gain more than 1 billion users around the world by the end of this year, as per the predictions of experts who are watching its popularity and growth trends.
Besides, there are many freelancers’ groups and pages on Facebook that people from all over the world use and make connections with potential clients. So, this is already happening on Facebook and its apps. Let us see if this new service comes into action for Facebook Marketplace, how it will eventually impact this gig economy industry, and how it will benefit the freelancers who are always looking for jobs online.
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