Instagram — a place to promote a person or, most likely, a product. If you have a product and you’re not using Instagram, you’re missing out! The platform with a 500M strong following. With Instagram moving deeper into e-commerce, your shop needs to keep up.
Instagram Shopping allows people to turn motivation into movement and discover more about products when they find you. Upon setting up a shop on Instagram, you enable people to browse and learn more about your products. Such as the product’s name and the item’s price, without leaving the app.
What exactly is an Instagram Shop?
An Instagram Shop lets you incorporate your product catalog with your Instagram profile which allows you to boost your products directly to Instagram users through posts, Stories in the Explore tab, and a Shop tab on your profile.
You can see the “VIEW SHOP” tab at the bottom of the post, where potential customers can click on it and lead them to your online store.
You can also tag Instagram Shop products in your posts like you would tag a friend by simply adding a little shopping bag icon to your image. When customers tap the photo, they can view the prices of the products featured, and they can tap the product labels to view product pages.
When they do, it means that you have ticked their interest, and they are now leaning toward learning more about your product.
You can tag five items per image or up to twenty items per carousel.
Each time you tag a picture with your products, that content will materialize in an exclusive shopping feed on your Instagram business profile. Finally, you can promote your products on Instagram Stories – by simply tagging the product using a sticker.
Instagram Shop product pages feature all the things a user might want to learn before purchasing an item, including:
- Product’s Name
- Image
- Description of the product
- Price (including sale price if applicable)
- Link to view your product on the website
- Other related products
Benefits of having an Instagram Shop:
- It makes shopping easier for consumers
- It helps you promote your product directly to the target audience and potential buyers
- Exposes your product to potential buyers with high purchase intent
Before you set up, make sure you meet these steps.
- Meet the Eligibility of all Instagram requirements. You can’t use an Instagram Shop to market services, only eligible physical goods. Furthermore, your business must comply with Instagram’s commerce policies.
- Instagram must also find your company in a country with access to the feature. To see a list of the countries with access to the Instagram Shop feature and the countries, visit Instagram’s Shop page.
- You need to confirm your latest version of Instagram to utilize the Instagram Shop feature. If you don’t see any Instagram Shop tags when using the app, head to your device’s settings to update the app.
- Next, to start an Instagram Shop, you must have an Instagram business profile.
- Thankfully, converting your Instagram profile to a business profile takes a minute. Plus, you’ll gain access to other business tools, such as Action Buttons, Instagram Insights, and Instagram ads.
Here are the steps in opening an Instagram Shop:
- Set up your shop using commerce tools for business; your Facebook and Instagram business account page must comply with Facebook Policies.
- Your Facebook page must have product information. It should be linked to your Instagram shop to sync your product catalog. If you haven’t, you might consider a Shopify store and add some products to it. Then, to connect your Shopify store with your Facebook page, click the plus icon next to “Sales Channel” in the left-hand sidebar within the Shopify dashboard.
- Once you have connected your Shopify to Facebook, you need to add your product catalog to Facebook. Go to the product manager in the Shopify dashboard, choose your products, click “Make Products Available” in the dropdown menu, and select Facebook.
- Set up Instagram as a sales channel in the Shopify dashboard similarly. Click the plus icon to add a sales channel, then add Instagram.
- Wait for your account to be approved.
Make sure you have all these:
- Convert your Instagram profile to a business profile.
- Linked your Instagram business profile to your Facebook business page.
- Linked your Shopify store with your Facebook page.
- Created a Facebook Shop and synced your products to it.
- Linked your Shopify store with your Instagram account.
Once you’ve done all the steps, wait and take a breather. The review process can take a few days, and Instagram notes that the process can take longer.
- Confirm Which Facebook Shop to Add to Instagram.
- Once you receive the approval notification, you must verify which Facebook Shop you want to link to your Instagram profile.
- Tap “Get Started” on the notification, head to Instagram’s business settings, and tap “Shopping.” Then, select the Facebook Shop you want to use with your Instagram profile. Your products are now synced across Instagram, your Facebook Shop, and your Shopify store.
Congratulations, you now have an Instagram Shop!
