Apparently, Facebook is experimenting with the “save” button again.
Josh Constine over at TechCrunch has acquired some screenshots of the new test, in which Facebook is adding a big ol’ “save” button inside articles shared on the desktop version of the site.
When users click the save button, the link is put into a “saved” articles section on users’ timelines. In the test, users can also access their saved links from a shortcut on Facebook’s left-hand navigation bar (again, desktop only).
The idea behind a “save” button is that users could store links that look interesting, but they simply don’t have time to digest at present. It’s a save it for later feature that would allow users to come back to all the content they might have just scrolled past. There’s a lot of stuff on one’s Facebook News Feed, and a saved links folder would help users cut through the clutter.
If this all sounds familiar, that’s because Facebook has experimented with this same kind of thing before. Way back in 2012, the company tested a “save for later” feature that let users save posts for later viewing. At that time, Facebook tested it on both mobile an desktop. Facebook confirmed to us that they were testing the ability to save News Feed stories with a small percentage of users (the company line)–but then it just went away. Facebook scraps small tests all the time, so this wasn’t that surprising.
But there’s always been this buzz-phrase around Facebook: “personalized newspaper.” In March of 2012, when Facebook unveiled Interest Lists, the company said that “Interest lists can help you turn Facebook into your own personalized newspaper, with special sections—or feeds—for topics that matter to you.”
That idea of a personalized newspaper has engendered multiple News Feed tweaks. Facebook even created a standalone app around the idea of a newspaper-like feed of shared stories.
All I’m saying is that a “save” button seems to fall in line with one of Facebook’s goals. Of course, it’s just a test–and you know what that means.
Image via TechCrunch