Tumblr Updates Its Mobile App With New Buttons

Microblogging platform Tumblr recently updated its mobile app to enable users to buy or provide funding for products and campaigns on other websites, including Kickstarter and Etsy's online marketplace. 

Specifically, Tumblr is adding a "Buy," a "Pledge," and a "Get Involved" button to its mobile app for Android and iOS users. These buttons will be displayed at the bottom part of posts that link to Kickstarter, Etsy, and DoSomething.org. The buttons will also appear on Tumblr's dashboard. The Buy button will also show the price of the product.

The addition of the buttons is a continuation of Tumblr's ongoing effort to try out new features in the hope of increasing interactivity among its users. Back in December of 2014, Tumblr had announced its intention of incorporating action buttons on its posts in order to give users the ability to either buy, browse, pledge, or participate. When Tumbrl made its announcement, only four websites were revealed to be supported. These were Kickstarter, Etsy, Artsy, and DoSomething.org.

As seen on Tumblr's mobile app, the new buttons appear on the bottom of the blog posts. When users tap these buttons, they will be redirected via their smartphone's default web browser to the appropriate web page on the site in question. Interestingly, when browsing Tumblr using any method other than directly through the mobile app, users will not be able to see the buttons. One possible reason for this is that Tumblr blogs often have customized themes when viewed on the web, and the buttons might not have been properly integrated yet in all themes.

But the buttons are viewable on the Tumblr dashboard though. They are located on the top right corner as seen on the web, or on the bottom of the post when viewed on mobile, appearing as a small green button that leads to Kickstarter, Etsy, or DoSomething.org.

For now, the list of supported websites for the buttons is still very limited. But who knows in the near future, we could have eBay or Amazon added to this list. Furthermore, by adding these types of buttons, Tumblr may put itself in a good position to compete with Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest, all of whom have already started toying with the idea of putting Buy buttons or any e-commerce feature on their pages. Tumblr certainly has a good chance of succeeding -- as of November of last year, it has already overtaken Instagram as the fastest growing social platform in the world.