Twitter Launches E-Commerce, Unveils ‘Buy’ Button

One small step for shoppers; one giant leap for Twitter. After months of rumors, the social media juggernaut officially launched itself into the e-commerce space today, unveiling a "Buy now" button that will appear alongside tweets.

Although it's still in its infancy, Nathan Hubbard, the company's head of commerce, assures the new platform will safe and user-friendly. "When you’re talking about a consumer’s payment info and commerce in general, we’re going to wade very cautiously into those waters — [so] when larger brands jump in, they can feel great about the experience,” Hubbard told WWD. Burberry, Pharrell, and nonprofits like GLAAD, among other partners, are among the first to test out the module.

For all of you other curious souls, here's how it'll work: That just-tweeted pair of heels from your favorite label will only require a click and confirmation — not unlike retweeting or favoriting a post — to purchase. For now, the button will be available to a select group of users on iOS and Android: This is to allow time for the microblogging site to scale up to other brands. Hubbard says the availability will "ramp up really quickly to 100% of U.S. users in a matter of weeks to a month."

The coolest feature? You won't need to leave Twitter to confirm purchases. First-time shoppers will need to enter payment and shipping information, and Twitter will securely score the data for all future occasions. Soon, we wager, shopping your tweets will be quicker than ordering lunch through Seamless. And, well, that's saying something. (WWD)