Facebook adds shopping features to news feed, allowing people to buy things without ever leaving the app

The site will also hope that people communicate with shops through Messenger, so that Facebook controls the process from start to finish

Facebook chose the list of new reactions by studying which sentiments were expressed the most in comments (Facebook)

Facebook users will now be able to buy stuff without ever leaving its app.

The site has said that it will be adding a special buying section to allow people to do their shopping with companies’ Facebook pages — and the entirety of the process will be done within Facebook.

Most internet use is now done on mobile devices like phones or tablets. But the shopping experience there has often been difficult and purchases from mobiles still only account for about 2 per cent of all shopping, according to research company eMarketer.

It isn’t clear that Facebook will be taking a cut of the purchases through the shopping tool. Instead, it will be charging for the ads that allow people to get to the shopping mode.

Those ads will show as normal in the news feed, but when people click through they will be taken to a special page within Facebook. A shop might have a normal ad for shoes, for instance, and clicking will show the full selection — as well as the option to buy through the app itself.

Companies will also be able to include buy buttons on their pages.

And Facebook will be hoping that the site then conducts the rest of the process through Facebook Messenger. Earlier this year, the company showed how the messaging app can be used by companies to keep their customers up to date with their orders, sending receipts and delivery notifications through there rather than over email.

"We're looking to give people an easier way to find products that will be interesting to them on mobile, make shopping easier and help businesses drive sales," said Emma Rodgers, Facebook's head of product marketing for commerce.