Need help making plans? Facebook now lets your friends lend a hand

Because Facebook knows we're already addicted to our News Feeds, the social media juggernaut is rolling out new features designed to maximize our time on the service, plus maybe get out more.

The latest upgrades to Facebook now let users poll their friends for recommended shops, find goings-on in their area, and even place orders or schedule appointments with local businesses without leaving the app.

Using the new Recommendations feature, users can turn a regular post into a shout-out for suggestions from their friends, such as local salons that just opened, or must-try restaurants in a rarely visited part of town.

Friends then chip in their two cents, while the Recommendations post keeps track of them on the map, allowing you to plan a full-on tour or a trip of convenience.

More Eventful

Facebook is also revamping its Events system, rolling it into Recommendations for those polling the best way to spend their Saturday night.

The new Events tab also makes it easier to see what all's happening, based on your area, past events attended, and what all your friends are getting excited about.

The expanded Events planner is expected to roll out in the coming weeks, starting with the US. Facebook's dedicated app for hosting and finding eventswas just released, if you're looking to get out of the house ASAP.

Order a pizza ... on Facebook?

Finally, business owners can now outfit their Pages with the ability to take orders, send quotes, schedule reservations, or buy tickets from inside the Facebook app. 

Ordering food is done by syncing the page with services like Delivery.com or Slice, while Fandango, Ticketmaster, and Eventbrite let users grab a seat for a night out through their local event space's Facebook Page.

These new Facebook features are available starting now, but are currently only available in the US. Facebook promises that even more productive features are in the works, and those should make an appearance in "the coming months."

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