The social networking giant, Facebook, has rolled out five star ratings for brands on its timeline but in a hush hush manner. This rating systems is not new for Facebook users but this the first time the site has attempted to make the reviewing system so prominent.
"We're extending star ratings on Facebook from mobile to desktop - to make it easier for people to discover great businesses around them. This is beneficial for both businesses and consumers," said a Facebook spokesperson, reports techcrunch.
"Now we're bringing the visibility of star ratings to a more prominent spot at the top of Pages' timeline on desktop and to the preview in News Feed."
Why the online community service is so silent on its new roll out is still not clear. However, the service will not be available for all its users as of now and has been extended to a limited number for initial testing.
Quite often Facebook users are asked to rate the places they have been to or the products they are using or give ratings for content or app on their Timeline. But it's for the first time the ratings will appear on the official brand or business pages, attracting more viewers than before
Ratings have a different significance altogether for the Facebook users. The like or the share button shows the user's preference or emotions regarding the postings or content but it does not clarify their overview on the products. Ratings will not only disclose the outlook of the users but keep the brands informed on the ever changing trends and tastes. Ratings are more like a bridge between the two where the users need to be more active.
The rating system can help Facebook adopt a more public platform, which can be used by marketers to get a pulse of the preferences of its consumers. The marketers can use the information to better their products and services offline too
Foursquare and Yelp are already into the rating game but when it comes to Facebook, the game becomes more challenging.
