The bidding war for business applications is about to get even more heated. Facebook Inc is entering the game with its enterprise platform, called just Workplace by Facebook, offering a multitude of features familiar to the social network’s users but strictly tied to a business environment.
The company officially released the final version of the platform on Monday, following a long journey from developing Facebook’s intranet into an application for businesses and professionals worldwide. It is also the latest move by Facebook to make sure it has at least one standing competitor in all areas of social networking.
The social giant’s primary rivals are the specialized startup Slack and Microsoft’s Yammer, an enterprise-focused platform similar in nature to Workplace and Slack. Facebook is betting on its more than 1 billion users to propel Workplace to the top, making it the choice application for companies everywhere over rising opponents.
Workplace offers Facebook’s best features and more
Workplace by Facebook was born out of the company’s internal communications network. From there, engineers were only a couple of steps away from developing a fully functional, business-oriented platform spun off from Facebook itself.
The market for corporate communications has always existed, and, in fact, most of the world’s top companies hire software firms to develop tailored intranets for them. Enter Slack and other enterprise-based platforms in recent times, seeking to supply the market with a centralized solution for all of their interactional needs.
Workplace sets itself apart from the rest with a couple of almost unfair tricks up its sleeve. The product is a suit-and-tie overhaul of the popular social network, including iconic features such as the news feed on the homepage, live video streaming, trending posts, live chats, groups, and, of course, personalized profiles for all users.
Facebook adds Workplace-specific features to the platform in the form of performance metrics and analytics for companies to track their progress as they work. The new enterprise venture by Facebook also announced the introduction of an exclusive feature called Multi-Company Groups, which will allow employees from different companies to collaborate in a safe environment for common goals.
Workplace by Facebook has competitive prices over Slack
The best part about the new Workplace by Facebook is, arguably, its pricing options. The social giant offers three main pricing tiers for companies depending on the bulk of their workforce. Businesses with up to 1,000 monthly active users are charged $3 per user, whereas those between 1,001 and 10,000 users see a price drop to $2 per worker. Companies with more than 10k members using Workplace will only pay $1 per user.
A 3-month free trial period is available for businesses curious about how Facebook stands its ground against the standard free version of Slack. Moreover, the paid option for Slack users starts at more than double ($7) the priciest Workplace option. Workplace by Facebook also offers the services of the platform entirely free of charge for non-profit organizations and educational institutions.
Workplace by Facebook is readily available for subscription starting today. The likes of Starbucks, Danone, Booking.com, YES Bank of India, Oxfam, and more than a 1,000 other companies have already signed up for Workplace as of now.
Source: Facebook