Instagram has expanded itself beyond just being a social media website to interact. Its networking strength has given brands a medium and purpose to interact and know their audience. Instagram has an audience of 230.25 million Indian users, and having an Instagram shop would open the potential for the business to target the massive Instagram population.
Instagram is a highly potential platform for brands to sell their products and services because as per research, 90% of users follow at least one brand, and it has a large daily active audience. Instagram has also been working towards providing more features and easing eCommerce for brands and buyers.
What is an Instagram shop?
Instagram allows brands to share their product catalog over their Instagram profile. It enables the promotion of these products directly to Instagram users through posts and stories. Customers can also explore the product catalog through the particular shop feature on business profiles. Tagging the product with a sticker for information, and price with other details, in posts and stories is another feature making eCommerce accessible for brands.
Learning about a product is a few simple taps away for users, providing them with a seamless experience. Buying a product is just as simple since Instagram provides website redirection and the feature to checkout within the app itself.
These few steps and attributes allow brands to enjoy Instagram’s streamlined process of eCommerce:
- Create the business account:
The benefits of having a business account do not just end with having a shop, it benefits brands with customer insights, analytics, creating promotions, and direct contact features which enable easier access for users to reach out. - Set up the shop:
It is recommended to set up the shop using a commerce manager or a supported platform as they allow better management of the shop.
Select a checkout method to be provided to the customers to complete their purchases.
If the business has a Facebook shop, connect it to the Instagram shop. Having the two shops connected allows a much smoother process for the buyer. - Add the Product catalog:
Product cataloging on Instagram has two options- Use the Commerce manager and upload all products manually to it.
It requires the addition of every product detail like image description and price and SKUs, website links, and brand policies. - Use the product database from certified eCommerce websites like Shopify.
It requires selecting a partner platform from the provided range of e-commerce platforms to source data for the catalog.
After integrating the catalog through either of the options, catalog maintenance should be the shop’s priority, providing the users with a seamless experience.
- Use the Commerce manager and upload all products manually to it.
- Get Shop Approval:
One of the most integral steps of setting up Instagram shops is getting it reviewed and approved. The response for approval does not take longer than a few days, and its status can be tracked in the shopping tab in settings. - Connect to the Shop:
Post approval, the catalog and Instagram shop need to be connected to make it available for the users to explore.
Details that will provide your shop with a competitive edge:
- ● The home page:
Websites have landing pages, similarly, the Instagram shop has a storefront with a customization feature that can be utilized creatively for the brand’s advantage to interest customers. - ● Collections:
Curated collections display a structured and refined storefront for the customers. It also avoids confusion and friction, decreasing the bounce rate and leading to higher conversion rates. - ● Discovery tab:
Introducing the discovery tab on Instagram is another effort to bridge the gap between brands and audiences. It is a great source for brands to boost brand awareness among a broader audience. - Even though the ‘checkout’ feature for Instagram shops is not global, its popularity for redirection is equally huge. The introduction of the checkout feature has the potential to grow Instagram shops further along with the other features Instagram has planned for developing its eCommerce platforms.
