To start, what is Instagram Shop? It’s a shiny new feature that is soon to be introduced to all the Instagrammers, everywhere! Put simply, it’s a marketplace for Instagram that will act as your new social storefront. It’s easy to set up too – read on to the end where I’ll walk you through creating your very own.
Creators and businesses can tag a product on their story or feed and the ‘clicker’ (you & I) will be taken straight to the product page where further information is listed. You’ll then be able to click on a link that will take you out of the app and straight onto the chosen retailers product page where you’ll only a couple of clicks away from getting the ‘Your order is on its way’ e-mail.
With this exciting new change to the Instagram app, I’ve predicted some changes in our behaviour and exposure on Instagram!
We will become even less patient
It’s all about convenience! If you’re standing in a long queue in a sweaty shopping centre with your child close to tears, you’re less likely to go through with the purchase, aren’t you? However, if you could buy the product within a few clicks of seeing it, you’re more likely to buy.
This translates online. If you can buy a jumper after just a few clicks of seeing it on Tanya Burr’s Instagram, then we’re not going to bother with the faff of going onto a specific website, trying to work out where the jumpers are placed and seeing if they have your size in stock. Websites will need to adapt and simplify their checkout methods if they want to compete with our attention.
A spotlight will be shone on smaller brands
This will be an invaluable tool for smaller companies and independent brands to step into the spotlight. Influencer marketing could make a substantial difference on the sales of smaller retailers. For example, if Poppy Deyes tagged (using the Instagram Shop), a scarf that she brought from an independent shop in Brighton, her followers could then track it and buy the same headband within a few clicks. This will result in many more sales for that little shop – perhaps too much for the company to cope with!
We will spend even more time on Instagram
Twenty minutes? 1 hour? 2 hours? How much time do you think you spend on the app per day? This is only going to increase when you can do your shopping on the app too. Great for Instagram, not so great for our Insta-morphed way of life!
To give creators and businesses an idea about how you can access this tool, I’ve jotted down a step-by-step guide of setting it up.
A step-by-step guide:
1.) Convert to a business or creator account
2.) Connect to Facebook page
3.) Upload a product catalogue by doing this in Facebook Business Manager or by a e-commerce platform partner such as Shopify or BigCommerce
4.) Submit your account for review by signing up for ‘shopping’ in settings and following the steps
5.) Once your account has been approved, you can flick the switch and turn the ‘shopping feature’ on
6.) You can now get tagging in your posts and stories to let your audience know exactly where to buy your products
Exciting times for Instagram!
Photo by Harry Cunningham on Unsplash
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