Buh Bye Buy!

Sharp-eyed members of Empire Avenue will have noticed a minor change today -- the lovely green Buy button is gone. Well, the button is still there, but the text now reads, 'Invest'. We've changed only the text, not the functionality.

Why tell us about it?
It's a subtle change, but one we feel is important to highlight. The word 'buy' never seemed to capture the true sentiment of the action taken by Empire Avenue members when connecting and engaging with other members. You're not simply 'buying' a piece of a member when you press that button.

Rather, you're starting an engagement process that will, hopefully, benefit both members in ways that transcend simple ownership.

The word 'invest' seems a much better description in this context, and I'm going to refer to the Dictionary.com definitions of the words to further illustrate the point.

Buy
to acquire the possession of, or the right to, by paying or promising to pay an equivalent, especially in money; purchase.

Invest
to put (money) to use, by purchase or expenditure, in something offering potential profitable returns, as interest, income, or appreciation in value.

See that? "...offering potential profitable returns, as interest, income, or appreciation in value." Much more inline with how we think of an engagement transaction.

So yes, a minor change, but one that helps align the spirit of the engagement transaction -- your investment in another member -- with the spirit of Empire Avenue.

In other words, an investment is a way to say, 'I value your engagement, your content, your contribution', or show support, or even thank someone. Invest is a much better word for all of that -- at least we think so.

How 'bout you? What do you think of the subtle shift from 'Buy' to 'Invest'? Let us know in the comments!