The tech world was abuzz this week as the latest announcement from Twitter sparked curiosity and speculation among tech-heads and fans alike. In a surprise announcement, the microblogging platform has revealed that Small Business Friday (SBF) initiatives will no longer require their users to have SPF registration when it comes to transactions. In other words, users will no longer be required to manually review the identity of people they’re transacting with on the platform.
This change follows a push from Twitter to make it easier for small businesses to use their platform. With this latest development, small businesses can feel free to use the platform without worrying about complex steps like enrollment and identity verification. This new policy will apply most notably for transactions involving products, services, and/or money.
In discussing the decision, Twitter’s Director of Global Business Development, Kelly Perrett, remarked, “Small businesses are the lifeblood of our economy and we want to make it easier for them to succeed on Twitter.” Perrett went on to explain that extra security measures like SPF registration can delay customer interactions and create an obstacle to successful small business operations. She also stressed that the priority is to make sure that both parties are as “safe and secure” as possible, while still being able to complete transactions quickly and efficiently.
In addition to the news of SPF exemptions, Twitter also announced upcoming changes to its Terms of Service. As a result of these changes, all business users on the platform will need to be registered with an SBA ID. The SBA ID will ensure that all business accounts are properly identified and thus able to use verified e-commerce mechanisms to complete transactions.
For right now, Twitter is the only platform to have adopted this policy change. It will be interesting to see if other social media and tech companies follow suit, or if Twitter’s decision to allow SBF initiatives to operate without SPF registration will remain exclusive to their platform. Nevertheless, it is clear that small businesses are being prioritized, and this policy will ultimately make the lives of small business owners much easier, and hopefully more successful too.
