• by Gavin O'Malley  @mp_gavin, November 25, 2019

Adding another potentially useful tool for marketers, Facebook just debuted Viewpoints -- a market research app that rewards users for taking part in surveys, tasks and research.

“We believe the best way to make products better is to get insights directly from people who use them,” stated Erez Naveh, product manager at Facebook.

Initially, Naveh said the data collected by Viewpoints will be used to improve Facebook’s own platforms, including Instagram, WhatsApp, Portal, Oculus and its flagship app.

Yet, the new app has obvious implications for Facebook’s brand partners hoping to collect feedback from customers.

Emphasizing user privacy, Facebook is promising to be clear about what information the Viewpoints app collects, how it will be used, and how many “points” users will receive in exchange for their opinions.

To participate in Viewpoints, users will be asked to provide their name, email address, country of residence, date of birth and gender.

Users might be asked to share additional information -- like their geographic location -- in order to qualify for particular programs. 

“Before you begin any program, we’ll let you know how the information you provide through that program will be used,” Naveh noted.

Facebook is promising not to sell app users’ information to third parties, or publicly share their Viewpoints activity on Facebook, or other accounts to which they’re linked, without their explicit permission.

Facebook plans to let the app’s users know how many points they need in order to receive payment. Every time they reach that amount, they should receive a payment sent directly to their PayPal account.

In conjunction with its launch, Facebook is employing Viewpoints to better understand how social apps (like Facebook) impact users’ sense of well-being.

“Information from this survey will help us build better products that aim to limit the negative impacts of social media and enhance the benefits,” according to Naveh.

At launch, Facebook is also limiting participation in Viewpoints to U.S. adults.