Facebook Could Dominate the Social Enterprise Space with Workplace: How It’s Possible

Mentioning Facebook often brings images of exuberant online exchanges with friends, perceived as unruly by some. Yet, this image doesn’t capture its full essence. Facebook doubles as a vital platform for millions of advertisers and businesses seeking exposure to its expansive 1.71 billion user base.

The appeal of Facebook goes beyond mere advertisements. Users have leveraged it to maintain a professional network, keep tabs on industry trends, and engage with their favorite brands. With over 45 million small to medium-scale businesses using Facebook Pages, the platform houses a beehive of diversified commercial activities. Now consider how employees of these businesses, dispersed across various geographical locations, could benefit from a professional connection akin to LinkedIn. Enter Facebook Workplace.

The recently unveiled Facebook Workplace seeks to bridge the gap in professional connectivity. It distinctly stands apart from LinkedIn by offering tools for increased productivity at the workplace. It encourages collaboration through presentations, live videos, and more in a consolidated News Feed. Workplaces can expect enhanced communication and team-building efforts through this service – seeing people as employees rather than users.

Formerly known as Facebook at Work, it underwent a rigorous 18-month testing phase with over 1,000 businesses. Given its resounding success, Facebook made the decision to open the service to more businesses.

How Could Facebook Dominate the Social Enterprise Space?

From the 45 million businesses using Facebook, to the trial performed by 1,000 companies – including household names like Starbucks and RBS – Facebook’s pool of potential Workplace users is vast. Businesses have leaned into the model, creating over 100,000 groups within the 18-month trial period.

Facebook’s dynamic live-video feature achieves a seamless collaboration between individuals across the hierarchical strata of a business. In advancing its interactive tool to facilitate cross-interaction between employees of different organizations, Facebook is setting an unprecedented virtual networking precedent. With such networking, ideas can be exchanged, and partnerships forged, possibly leading to business expansion.

The upcoming addition of the Workplace Partner Program demonstrates the continuous adaptability of the platform. The feature will allow consultancy firms like Deloitte to manage client relations and guide their decision-making process. Consultants can recommend and set up such tools for clients who might be too busy or unfamiliar with the tools. By designating such professionals as Workplace Partners, Facebook creates a win-win scenario for all parties involved and introduces the potential for more businesses to adopt Workplace tools in the future.

Utilizing their financial muscle, Facebook is offering Workplace at a competitive price point that undercuts similar services. For those contemplating the switch, the chart could make compelling reading.

Slack: $8-$15/month

Convo: $9/month

Salesforce Chatter: $15/month

Microsoft Yammer: $3-$24/month

Facebook Workplace: $3 declining to $1/month per employee

Facebook’s aggressive pricing makes their service stand out. Complemented by its acclaimed analytics (Insights), this promises businesses a comprehensive understanding of performance trends over time. That’s a key benefit for strategic growth plans and mainly why their Facebook Pages have been successful. With Facebook now venturing into paid services like Workplace, it’s exciting to imagine what’s to come.