Facebook is working on something rather unusual. The social network is considering offering companies the chance to post a virtual tip jar when posting pages and other bits to Facebook. A virtual tip jar might seem like a really strange concept, but it’s actually something that’s been tried (albeit rather unsuccessfully) before by other companies.

With Facebook’s reach, though, there’s a great chance that this new tip jar option might actually take off. Here’s what you need to know.

Tipping Virtually

Facebook’s plan is to (eventually) let people add tips to a virtual tip jar to tip pages and posts and even people that they like. So let’s say that your company posts something really awesome on Facebook and that awesome post reaches thousands of people, you may just get thousands of tips. The challenge here for Facebook is creating a tip jar option that’s linked to a payment option that will work well.

The Problem

In the past, companies that have tried to offer virtual tips have failed largely because there was no good way to help people make those tips. But Facebook has the potential (and setup) to let people make tips through a platform like PayPal. Since most people using the Internet have a PayPal account and don’t mind tipping a few cents or dollars for a really great post, this might actually work very well.

What Facebook Gets

Facebook not only gets the recognition for starting a virtual tipping system that will work, the company may also draw more advertisers because virtual tipping does work through the social network. If some companies and smaller startups or popular people can get dollars through reaching a large audience on Facebook, those people are far more likely to buy into Facebook advertising.

This ensures that Facebook will not lose companies to some extent. It also strengthens relationships with a payment platform like PayPal. If Facebook can generate more revenue for a company like PayPal, that would be a stronger relationship. It’s a win-win for Facebook, which is good news all around.

Quiet for Now

Even though word of Facebook’s new virtual tip jar has reached press, the company is still keeping this option quiet for now. Sometimes Facebook’s newer ideas never make it to the public site, but this one seems like it’s well on its way to becoming a Facebook option. If you run marketing for a company or want to create a public image for yourself, this might be a golden opportunity.

It may even become a popular crowdfunding option for some. You’ll have to stay tuned for the release of the Facebook tip jar, but it does look like it’s coming sometime in the very near future.

The people that will benefit most from the tip jar are those that have clever Facebook marketing ideas and companies that post excellent content. Then again, most people leave cheap tips, so that’s something to think about too. If you’re on the other side of the tip jar, though, remember that the companies and people you do follow on Facebook work hard to get there, so why not add a tip or two?