How to Leverage an Instagram Shop for Your Small Business
We all know how popular online shopping has become, however it’s common for small businesses to bypass utilizing selling features via social media platforms. If you haven’t had time to set up a perfectly curated and functional website or you’re a small business ready to take your holiday shopping to the next level — the Instagram Shopping feature is perfect for you! Instagram Shopping helps business owners enhance their eCommerce product selling capabilities. Keep reading to discover why setting up an Instagram Shop is important for your small business.
What is an Instagram Shop?
Instagram Shopping connects the products that you have on your website to your Instagram business profile, which allows customers to view your products strictly within the app. Customers can view your products using product tags or by viewing your online store directly provided by your feed. This means that your posts are now “shoppable,” making it so much easier for your followers to support you!
Instagram Shopping Benefits
In this day and age people like things to be easily accessible. One of the perks of your Instagram Shop is that your followers do not have to leave the platform. 2.5 Million people scroll through instagram everyday and of that amount, each spends roughly an average of 2 hours perusing the platform. With that in mind, having your products visible and available for preview is a must-have part of your marketing digital ecosystem. Not everyone will stumble upon your product by a Google search without ad placement, but they might on an Instagram discovery feed. When you utilize this tool you also have the opportunity to be featured on the Instagram Shop tab — a shopping destination accessible from Instagram’s main navigation menu. Not only does it make their shopping experience smooth, but it helps you as a business owner as well. Now your products, ads, and orders can all be in one organized space aiding in your ability to keep track of everything. There are so many more amazing features that you are not going to want to miss when setting up your shop!
1. Checking Eligibility
The first step in the setup process is making sure you’re eligible! These are four things you need to go through before reading the next paragraph.
Your business is located in a supported market
Your business has an eligible product
Your business complies with Instagram’s merchant agreement and commerce policies
Your business owns a website domain in which you intend to sell from
Yay you made it! Ok let’s continue with the next steps!
2. Convert to a Business or Creator Account following these steps.
Go to your profile and tap in the upper right corner.
Tap Settings.
Tap Account.
Tap Switch to Professional Account.
Tap Continue.
Select a Category for your business and tap Done.
Tap OK to confirm.
Tap Business.
You should now be able to update all of your business info as well! Once you’ve dotted your I’s and crossed your T’s let’s move on to step 3.
3. Connect to a Facebook Page
1. Select Edit Profile from your own account
2. Under the “Public Business Information” section, select “Page”
3. Choose a Facebook Page from your Pages that you want to connect.
4. You will have to create a new facebook page if you don’t have one.
4. Upload Your Product Catalog
We’re almost done and this part is pretty fun! You can do this manually within Facebook Business Manager. You can also utilize an Ecommerce platform Partner to help make this a little easier.
5. Account Review
One of the last steps is submitting your catalog for review. This can be achieved in the following steps:
1. Tap the Menu ico from your instagram profile
2. Select Settings
3. Sign up for shopping
4. Follow the steps to submit your account
5. Visit the Shopping Tab within the next few days to see updates
6. Turn on Shopping
1. Check out your business’s instagram profile and tap the menu icon
2. Select Settings
3. Click Business and then Shopping
4. Select the product catalog that you want to connect to your account.
5. Click “Done.”
How to Sell
One way for you to make sure you’ve got this new shop set up is if you see a new exciting tab on your profile! See the below:
This tap will read “View Shop.” Once clicked, your followers can view your entire product catalog! On your end you can now start tagging products in your posts, making your shop just a click away.
You’re set, you made it through the entire process and can always reference this blog when you need it. We hope this blog is going to help you turn your inspiration into action!
Here at Calatrello Creatives, our mission is to support small business owners and assist them with scaling on social media. If you’re interested in our social media support and management packages, please reach out to us! https://www.calatrellocreatives.com/contact.
