How do i add shopping to my instagram

How to Set Up Instagram Shopping

5 min

This lesson will prepare you to:

Set up Instagram Shopping and start selling on Instagram.
Feature the products you want to sell in postsand Stories on Instagram.

Turn Instagram into your digital storefront

Instagram Shopping helps people turn inspiration into action and learn more about products when they discover them. When you set up a shop on Instagram, you can help people browse and learn more about your products, such as the name of the product and the price of the item, without leaving the app.

Meet Mangata & Gallo

Mangata & Gallo is a high-end jewelry store that sells diamond engagement rings. Most of the brand’s sales come from its website. Mariana, the owner and lead designer, manages Mangata & Gallo’s Instagram business account and consistently posts photos of the brand’s offerings.

She wants to attract new customers on Instagram and set up a shop on Instagram.

What is Shops on Instagram?

Shops enables you to create an immersive, full-screen shopping experience on Instagram. Customers can access your shop directly from your profile, posts or story. When people visit your shop, they can explore your products and take steps to purchase them. If you have an eligible business in the US, you can set up Checkout on Instagram so that people can make purchases directly in your shop without leaving the Instagram app.

Prepare to set up your shop

To use Facebook commerce tools for your business, your Facebook account and Page or your Instagram business account must meet the following requirements.

Step 1. Comply with Facebook policies

Your Facebook account and Page must comply with Facebook’s Terms of Service, Commercial Terms and Community Standards, and your Instagram professional account must comply with Instagram’s Terms of Use and Community Guidelines.

In addition, lack of compliance with Facebook policies, including the Merchant Agreement, Commerce Policies, Ads Policies and Pages, Groups, and Events Policies, may result in loss of access to Facebook commerce surfaces or commerce features and may lead to your account being disabled.

Step 2. Represents your business and your domain

Your Facebook Page or Instagram professional account must contain product listings that are available for direct purchase from your website or Checkout on Facebook or Instagram.

If you are directing buyers from Facebook commerce tools to a website in any supported market, you must provide Facebook with the single non-shortened domain through which you sell. Your Facebook Page or Instagram professional account must represent the store or website associated with the domain provided. To confirm you own your domain, Facebook may require you to complete its domain verification process.

Your Facebook Page or Instagram professional account must contain product listings that are available for direct purchase from your website or Checkout on Facebook or Instagram.

Step 3. Be located in a supported market

Your Facebook Page or Instagram professional account must be located in a supported market to use Facebook commerce tools. Supported markets for commerce tools on Facebook are listed here. Supported markets for Instagram Shopping are listed here.

Checkout on Facebook and Instagram is currently only supported in the United States. Facebook will update its supported markets lists if and when new locations are added.

Step 4. Demonstrate trustworthiness

Your Facebook account and Page or Instagram professional account must have demonstrated trustworthiness, including through an authentic, established presence. This may also include maintaining a sufficient follower base.’

Step 5. Provide accurate information and follow best practices

Product information listed through Facebook commerce tools must not contain misleading pricing and availability information. Your refund and return policies must be clearly displayed and easily accessible from your website or on Facebook or Instagram.

Once you confirm your eligibility, follow these steps to convert your account to an Instagram business or creator account and start using Instagram Shopping.

Convert to an Instagram business account or creator account

Play Icon

Once you have a business or creator account, you can add relevant business information like your store hours, business address, phone number and a link to your website.

To switch your profile to a business account:

Step 1. Go to your Account's Settings

Go to your profile and tap the three lines in the upper right corner.
Tap Settings.
Tap Account.
Follow the steps to connect your business account to a Facebook Page associated with your business. When you connect a Facebook Page to your Instagram account, you’ll get access to commerce tools that help you expand the reach of your business on Facebook and Instagram.
Add details, like your business category and contact information.
Tap Done.

Go to your profile and tap the three lines in the upper right corner.
Tap Settings.
Tap Account.
Follow the steps to connect your business account to a Facebook Page associated with your business. When you connect a Facebook Page to your Instagram account, you’ll get access to commerce tools that help you expand the reach of your business on Facebook and Instagram.
Add details, like your business category and contact information.
Tap Done.

Step 2. Switch to business account

Tap Switch to Professional Account.
Tap Business.
Follow the steps to connect your business account to a Facebook Page associated with your business. When you connect a Facebook Page to your Instagram account, you’ll get access to commerce tools that help you expand the reach of your business on Facebook and Instagram.
Add details, like your business category and contact information.
Tap Done.

Tap Switch to Professional Account.
Tap Business.
Follow the steps to connect your business account to a Facebook Page associated with your business. When you connect a Facebook Page to your Instagram account, you’ll get access to commerce tools that help you expand the reach of your business on Facebook and Instagram.
Add details, like your business category and contact information.
Tap Done.

Step 3. Add your business information

Follow the steps to connect your business account to a Facebook Page associated with your business. When you connect a Facebook Page to your Instagram account, you’ll get access to commerce tools that help you expand the reach of your business on Facebook and Instagram.
Add details, like your business category and contact information.
Tap Done.

Follow the steps to connect your business account to a Facebook Page associated with your business. When you connect a Facebook Page to your Instagram account, you’ll get access to commerce tools that help you expand the reach of your business on Facebook and Instagram.
Add details, like your business category and contact information.
Tap Done.

Set up your shop

Mariana meets all of the eligibility requirements, so she’s ready to start the onboarding process for Mangata & Gallo’s shop in Commerce Manager.

A click-by-click guide to set up your shop

Use Commerce Manager or a supported platform to set up a shop.
To choose a checkout method, select where you want customers to complete their purchases. Tip. Checkout on Instagram is recommended for businesses based in the US because it enables people to buy your products directly on Instagram.
To choose sales channels, select the Instagram business account you want to be associated with your shop. Tip: If you have a Facebook Page, check the box next to your account to have a shop on both Facebook and Instagram.
To add products to your shop, select the product catalog you want to use in your shop. If you don’t have any catalogs, you can create one. Learn more about how to add productsto your catalog.
Review your shop. If everything looks good, submit it to Instagram for review. You’ll be notified when it has been approved.

Note: A Business Manager account will automatically be created for you when you set up your shop. You’ll use this account to set up your shop in Commerce Manager.

Business Manager enables you to manage your ad accounts, Pages and the people who might be working on them.

Use Commerce Manager or a supported platform to set up a shop.
To choose a checkout method, select where you want customers to complete their purchases. Tip. Checkout on Instagram is recommended for businesses based in the US because it enables people to buy your products directly on Instagram.
To choose sales channels, select the Instagram business account you want to be associated with your shop. Tip: If you have a Facebook Page, check the box next to your account to have a shop on both Facebook and Instagram.
To add products to your shop, select the product catalog you want to use in your shop. If you don’t have any catalogs, you can create one. Learn more about how to add productsto your catalog.
Review your shop. If everything looks good, submit it to Instagram for review. You’ll be notified when it has been approved.

Note: A Business Manager account will automatically be created for you when you set up your shop. You’ll use this account to set up your shop in Commerce Manager.

Business Manager enables you to manage your ad accounts, Pages and the people who might be working on them.

Start using Instagram Shopping

Mariana has set up her new shop in Commerce Manager. To start using Instagram Shopping, Mariana needs to submit her account for review and turn on shopping features. Here’s how:

Submit your account for review

Once you connect a product catalog to your shop and have products in the catalog, follow these steps to submit your account for review. Account reviews typically take a few days but can take longer.

Go to your Instagram business profile and tap the three lines in the upper right.
Select Settings.
Sign up for shopping.
Follow the steps to submit your account for review.
Under Settings, visit Shopping at any time to check your account status.

Some businesses may be notified that they need to provide additional information to prove ownership of their website domain. If you receive this notification, follow the steps to complete the domain verification process to submit your account for review.

Once you connect a product catalog to your shop and have products in the catalog, follow these steps to submit your account for review. Account reviews typically take a few days but can take longer.

Go to your Instagram business profile and tap the three lines in the upper right.
Select Settings.
Sign up for shopping.
Follow the steps to submit your account for review.
Under Settings, visit Shopping at any time to check your account status.

Turn on Instagram Shopping

Once your account is approved, you can turn on Shopping features. Note: If you don't see Shopping under your settings, your account is probably still under review or it hasn't been approved for Instagram Shopping.

Go to your Instagram business profile and tap the three lines in the upper right.
Select Settings.
TapBusiness, then tap Shopping
Select the Product Catalog you want to connect to your account.
Select Done.

Go to your Instagram business profile and tap the three lines in the upper right.
Select Settings.
TapBusiness, then tap Shopping
Select the Product Catalog you want to connect to your account.
Select Done.

Highlight your products

Use clear and consistent product catalog imagery

When you upload images to your catalog, present your products as they're shown on your website. Ensure products are clearly visible against clean backgrounds. Showcase a single product with minimal clutter.

Mariana tries a few different shots of Mangata & Gallo’s rings and chooses one that best highlights the ring’s features.

Maintain a consistent look and feel.

Use the same visual treatment across all of your product images. Consider adding a logo on a product, a colored background or simple props to create a visual identity.

Mariana takes photos of all of Mangata & Gallo’s rings against the same white background.

Use multiple formats

Add videos to your catalog if it’s helpful for customers to see your product in motion. Try experimenting with a single product, like a flowy dress, with lifestyle imagery, detail shots and different angles. Or film a tutorial, like a makeup demonstration, to show your product in use.

Mariana includes videos of Mangata & Gallo’s rings to show a 360-degree view.

Provide context

Add multiple images to give people a clearer idea of what your product looks like. Consider showing different product angles, color variants and model sizes or skin tones. Display all your product options so your customers can choose from a selection of different colors, sizes and materials.

Mariana includes photos of her customers wearing Mangata & Gallo’s rings.

Something Went Wrong

We're having trouble playing this video.To watch the video, please upgrade your web browser.

Learn more

What’s next: tag your products

Now that Mariana has set up her shop, she can highlight her products in photo and video posts. She can use product tags to highlight items in her feed and story. People can view information about her products, such as the name and price of the item, without leaving Instagram.

Key takeaways

When you set up a shop on Instagram, you can help people browse and learn more about your products, such as the name of the product and the price of the item, without leaving the app.
To use Facebook commerce tools for your business, your Facebook account and Page or your Instagram business account must comply with the commerce eligibility requirements.
Use Commerce Manager or a supported platform to set up your shop.

Keep learning

Related Blueprint courses

Help Center

About Instagram Shopping
Turn on Instagram Shopping in the Instagram App
About Ecommerce Platforms for Connecting a Facebook Catalog

About Instagram Shopping
Turn on Instagram Shopping in the Instagram App
About Ecommerce Platforms for Connecting a Facebook Catalog

Additional resources

Instagram Shopping Setup Guide

Instagram Shopping Setup Guide

Build Your Audience on Instagram

Adding Product Tags To Photos and Videos on Instagram

Was this page helpful?

Thanks for learning.

More courses

What Is Instagram Shopping? Everything You Need To Get Started

Create a business accountGet a personalized marketing planCreate successful postsAdvertise on InstagramBoost my postsSet up a shop on InstagramInspire people to take actionOptimize your shopCollaborate with creators

Featured

Shopping

Here is your guide on how to start reaching customers with your shop

Download the Guide

Products

Ad SolutionsVideo SolutionsInstagram ShoppingBranded ContentFeedStoriesReelsInstagram Direct

Featured

Reels

Here is your guide to how to create effective Reels ads.

Download the Guide

For Creators

Inspiration

Latest News & TipsHouse of Instagram EventsCase Studies

Featured

Creators

Here’s your guide to help get the most out of creators for your business.

Download the Guide

Instagram Help CenterFacebook Ads GuideFree Online Courses

Nearly half of people say they use Instagram to shop, weekly.¹

So, what is Instagram Shopping?

Instagram Shopping is a set of features that allow people to easily shop your brand’s photos and videos all across Instagram.

It all starts with your shop, your storefront on Instagram.

People can shop your products throughout Instagram.

How to set up Instagram Shopping:

Open your shop by completing the set-up process below in Commerce Manager.

1. Make sure selling on Instagram is right for your business.

Review our Commerce Eligibility Requirements to ensure you sell eligible products and comply with our policies, like our commerce policies, terms of use, community guidelines and more.
Make sure your business has its own website domain. Your shop must contain product listings that are available for direct purchase from your business’s website, and you must represent the store or website associated with the domain provided.
Check to see if you are in a supported market.
Confirm that your Instagram profile is a business or creator account. You will need to connect it to a Facebook Page if you plan to sell on both Instagram and Facebook.
If you don’t have one already, set up a Business Manager account. You'll need a Business Manager account to set up your shop in Commerce Manager. Business Manager lets you manage your ad accounts, your pages and the people who might be working on them.

Review our Commerce Eligibility Requirements to ensure you sell eligible products and comply with our policies, like our commerce policies, terms of use, community guidelines and more.
Make sure your business has its own website domain. Your shop must contain product listings that are available for direct purchase from your business’s website, and you must represent the store or website associated with the domain provided.
Check to see if you are in a supported market.
Confirm that your Instagram profile is a business or creator account. You will need to connect it to a Facebook Page if you plan to sell on both Instagram and Facebook.
If you don’t have one already, set up a Business Manager account. You'll need a Business Manager account to set up your shop in Commerce Manager. Business Manager lets you manage your ad accounts, your pages and the people who might be working on them.

2. Pick a tool to start the onboarding process.

You can choose to onboard onto Instagram Shopping by setting up your shop in Commerce Manager or a supported platform. Or, you can get started directly within the Instagram app.

3. Fill out your shop details in Commerce Manager.

First, choose how you want your customers to complete their purchase by selecting a checkout method.
Next, choose your sales channels by selecting whether to have your shop on Instagram, Facebook, or both.
Add products to your shop by connecting your existing product catalog or by creating a new one.
Finally, review your shop, then submit it to Instagram for review!

First, choose how you want your customers to complete their purchase by selecting a checkout method.
Next, choose your sales channels by selecting whether to have your shop on Instagram, Facebook, or both.
Add products to your shop by connecting your existing product catalog or by creating a new one.
Finally, review your shop, then submit it to Instagram for review!

GET STARTED IN COMMERCE MANAGER

Get the most out of shopping on Instagram.

@instagramforbusiness

How to add a product catalog to Instagram, how to tag products

Elena
Sergeeva Targeted advertising specialist

According to Facebook Ads, 70% of users learn about new products from Instagram. To help sellers promote them, Instagram created the Instagram Shopping tool, which became available in Russia in March 2021. We will tell you why to connect this tool and how to set it up.

What is Instagram Shopping

Instagram Shopping is a tool that allows you to tag products in your posts and Stories. Instagram takes information about products from the catalog that the seller uploads.

The profile with the option enabled looks like this:

There is a bag icon on the photo, which means that if you open a post, goods will be marked in it. Source: COS

Several items can be noted in the photo. When clicking on shopping tags, users will see the price and description of the product, and will also be able to follow the link and place an order on the site.

In addition to prices and the products themselves, the user also sees additional information about them: in the description, you can specify the composition of the fabric, size, available colors, etc. The user can also view the item from different angles in the gallery or learn about other products of the online store All this without leaving Instagram.

To get to the catalog with goods, you need to click on the "View store" button. Inside the store, products can be grouped into thematic collections, such as new arrivals or gifts.

US residents can pay for items within the app using Facebook Pay. In other countries, including Russia, this option is not yet available: users follow the link on the product to an external site and pay for the order there.

Why include Instagram Shopping

The selling element is integrated into the content, which is convenient for both the buyer and the seller. The buyer does not need to switch between applications and communicate with the seller to select a product and find out its characteristics. And the seller can do without the same type of posts in the “follow the link in the description” format.
Sellers don't have to create multiple posts for different products: they can be placed on one photo. Adding products does not take much time, and you can mark them not only in posts, but also in Stories.
Also can be found in automatic recommendations in the "Shop" tab, which appeared for some users. You can keep up to date with the latest from your favorite brands.

Setting up Instagram Shopping: Getting Started

Read the Facebook Ads Trade Agreement : it describes the requirements for goods, the responsibility of the parties, etc. For example, Facebook prohibits the sale of brand replicas and any products with copyright infringement, and in order for the system algorithms to work correctly, the advertiser must consent to the transfer of data from his site. Violation of the trading agreement can result in account suspension.
Create an Instagram account - for business or for the author. You can't post items on your personal profile. How to set up a business account on Instagram, we tell in the instructions.
Link your Instagram account to your Facebook business page . For more information on how to do this, we have described in the article. If you don't already have a business page, create a Facebook Business Manager account first, you'll need it to set up your store in Commerce Manager. With Business Manager, you can manage your Facebook and Instagram accounts and pages, and assign people who can work with them.
Download product catalog . The new catalog is created in Facebook's Commerce Manager, a section within the social network where you can manage your inventory and sales. If you already have a catalog, you can add it using one of the partner platforms: OpenCart, WooCommerce, Shopify, etc. We will talk about this when we go through the setup.

In the catalog you can

Manage products: create them, edit the image, description, price and other important characteristics.
Combine products into collections to show customers exactly what they are interested in.
Give access to product management to other people or partner companies.
Set the country and language so that buyers see the correct information and the correct prices.

How to add products to Instagram through Commerce Manager

The system prompts you to create a shop or catalog. The store is a single storefront for Instagram and Facebook, which is available to companies with physical goods. To promote products on Instagram, click Add Catalog. Choose the type of catalog depending on the subject of your business, e-commerce is suitable for online stores.

In the next step, you need to configure the parameters and method for loading products. From the drop-down list, select the advertising account to which the catalog will be linked.

You can create a catalog yourself - by uploading a spreadsheet or by connecting a pixel - or through integration with one of the partner platforms. In the second case, the goods will be loaded from an existing online store.

Click the "Create" button - the catalog is ready.

Important : the catalog must contain exact prices and information about the availability of each item. In addition, the rules for returning goods must also be indicated - on the store's website or in the Instagram account.

To proceed with product creation, select the desired catalog in Commerce Manager and then click Add Products.

Add products using one of the following methods:

Manually - this method involves filling out a form for each product and is suitable for companies with a small assortment.
Via a data feed (spreadsheet). You can download many products at once and set up regular updates. Files in CSV, TSV and XML (RSS/ATOM) formats are supported, as well as Google Sheets.
Automatically - through integration with one of the partner platforms. In this case, the goods will be loaded from the existing store.
Using the Facebook pixel. If you haven't installed the pixel yet, we recommend contacting the webmaster.

If you choose to download manually, a form will open. In it you need to add the name of the product, its description, images, link to the site and price. The system will tell you which data is not required.

After completing the form and uploading, the products will appear in your catalog.

How to create a collection with products

Inside the catalog, products can be grouped into collections: for example, by subject, season, upcoming holidays, etc. Collections help sellers to get to the user's interests more accurately, and users to quickly select goods.

You can create not only the standard collections, but also those that will attract more attention, such as "Top 10 coats" or "Gifts for best friends".

You can combine products into groups manually or using filters, for example, if there are a lot of products.

At the final stage, specify the name of the collection and click the "Create" button.

After creating a product catalog, you need to send an account for verification. The verification may take several days.

How to add products to Instagram

To add a catalog to Instagram, go to the "Settings" section in the application and select the "Company" tab.

Then click "Set up Instagram Shopping" and follow the prompts.

If the catalog passes the check, a "Purchases" section will appear in your Instagram account. Once your account is approved, turn on Instagram Shopping. To do this, in the "Purchases" section, select the product catalog that you want to connect, and click "Finish".

How to tag an item

To tag an item in a post, start posting as usual - add a photo and post text, and then follow these steps:

Click Mark Items.
Find the product you need and select it from the catalog.
Click "Done" and share the post with your followers.

You can also mark the product in Stories. To do this:

Select an image to publish and click on the sticker icon in the upper right corner of the screen.
Select the product sticker and the desired product in the catalog.
Tag a product with a sticker and share your story with your followers.

Up to 5 products can be tagged in one photo, up to 20 in total in the gallery. In Stories, a sticker is added to only one product, but you can change its color and text.

In conclusion

Instagram Shopping will increase sales and user engagement in your account. The product catalog can be used not only to familiarize subscribers with the assortment, but also to set up targeted advertising on Facebook and Instagram.

We especially recommend this tool for e-commerce: the user immediately sees the price and all information about the product. True, if a product or service involves preliminary communication with the client and a long transaction cycle, then the published price may scare the user away. Therefore, before using Instagram Shopping, consider whether the tool suits your product and the behavior of your target audience.

Online store advertising is easier with eLama

15+ systems in one service, tools to simplify the work with advertising, closing documents and support at every stage

Try eLama

How to connect Instagram Shopping | Manual

Since March 2022, Instagram has been banned in Russia. In other countries, all its features are still available.

Instagram Shopping allows users to buy directly from a photo or video in any section of the social network. At the same time, there are different opportunities in different countries. About all the nuances - in this article.

Instagram Shopping Features

When creating a store, you can choose a sales scheme. On the website, on Facebook, on Instagram or through private messages. There are limitations here.

Somewhere you can’t sell inside the application - only show tags, information about the product in the card, and then go to the site, from where you can already place an order.

In the US and a number of other countries, full functionality is available - placing an order directly in the application. It works on the basis of the Facebook Pay service. Companies decide for themselves whether to connect the checkout feature on Instagram or not.

If they decide not to connect, they will be able to transfer the user to the site, and use Instagram solely as a showcase. The company and bank account must be registered in the United States.

If you're temporarily in a country where Instagram Shopping isn't available (for example, while traveling), you may lose the ability to tag products. Restoring access takes up to 2 weeks.

How to connect Instagram Shopping

Consider a variant with limited functionality when sales go through the site. The feature is available on business accounts that are connected to a Facebook page.

MySklad already has integration with Instagram Shopping and Facebook — you can automatically upload products, current balances and prices to social networks, and add product links directly to posts.

Create a catalog on your page on the social network, and unload the goods, their modifications, photos, prices and balances from My Warehouse. The data is synchronized automatically - you can set the interval or start the update yourself at a convenient time.

A link to the main online store is attached to each product - the buyer follows it and places an order. Integration is available free of charge on all tariffs of MoegoSklad. You can set it up if your business account on the social network has the Instagram Shopping feature. See video instructions for more details.

How to set up Instagram Shopping

Create and link a directory. Can be done using the Commerce Manager tool, a desktop platform for managing sales on Facebook and Instagram. The service helps to create a new catalog or connect an existing one, process orders, etc. To use product tags and stickers, select an e-commerce catalog.
Connect Instagram Shopping in your profile settings and submit your account for verification. It usually takes several days. The verification status can be found at any time in the "Purchases" section in the settings. As soon as the account is approved, a notification will be sent from Instagram.

After that, you can create a post with a shopping feature. Up to five products can be added to a post with one image, and up to 20 products can be added to a post with multiple photos or videos. You can only add one product sticker per post in Stories.

Thus, you use Instagram Shopping as a storefront - a buyer on the social network will examine the product, but will go to the site to purchase.

Instagram Shopping Tags and other opportunities to promote

Instagram Shopping has a set of tools that make trading easier.

Collections of goods. You can collect products into groups by topic. At the same time, it is not necessary to make collections that are familiar to everyone, for example, “New Products” or “Hits of Sales”. Categories can be any and convenient for customers. You can create "10 Gifts for Grandma" or "All for the Holidays".

Product tags. Instagram Shopping Tags are special tags. The user clicks on them and gets to the page with information about the product. From there, he can go to the site and make a purchase. Thus, the number of clicks decreases, and the client does not postpone the purchase.

Advertising. You can set up ads with product tags. You can promote already existing publications with tagged products in the feed or popular, or create new ads in Ads Manager.

You can also create custom audiences for advertising: select groups of users who have performed a specific action. For example, those who viewed or saved the product. How to set up ads - we tell below.

You can attract new customers by creating new custom audiences or expanding old ones. Create a user group from both Facebook and Instagram. You can include more sources if you choose audience expansion.

For example, you can create a shopping custom audience that includes people from both Facebook and Instagram. You can also create a shopping custom audience based on multiple events. For example, based on the Add to Cart and View Product Details events.

For whom and for what niches Instagram Shopping is suitable

To understand which product is easier to promote on Instagram, you need to look at the portrait of the platform's audience. It's more of a female audience. Age category from 18 to 34 years.

Hence the assumption of which products will sell well on Instagram:

Things that reflect the lifestyle - clothes, jewelry, shoes, accessories, cosmetics, perfumes, sporting goods.
Trendy products that reflect the spirit of the times. It can be anything from a case for wireless headphones to masks and sanitizers.
Visually appealing products whose purchases are dictated by emotions. For example, decorative interior items or handmade.

The list can be supplemented with household appliances, car parts and pet products. We will talk about limitations in the next section.

The US was among the first to gain access to Instagram Shopping in 2018. And there, entrepreneurs can already draw conclusions about its effectiveness.

Magnolia Boutique women's clothing store owner Susan DelPriore told Big Commerce that after publishing 117 tagged posts, traffic from Instagram increased by 4% and revenue from the social network increased by 20%. She advised telling subscribers about the new feature in the feed and stories, as well as doing cross-promotion in other social networks. In addition, it is important to give instructions on how to place an order correctly.

John Lott, director of children's clothing store SpearmintLOVE, said that after 208 posts on Instagram Shopping, traffic from the social network increased by 12.61%, and revenue from Instagram increased by 8%. He also noted that it was important to tell subscribers about the new feature - the store published instructions in stories for two weeks.

Do not forget that in the USA the option of ordering and paying directly from the social network works.

What not to sell on Instagram

Instagram is owned by Facebook and is part of its advertising network. The same rules apply for paid publications of both sites.

For example, you cannot advertise and sell tobacco and tobacco products, as well as prescription drugs, drugs, and wiretapping devices.

We have put together in a table a list of all products that cannot be advertised on Instagram. Download and study it.

Fragment of table

Download Facebook and Instagram trading rules

How to manage the range of products in Instagram Shopping

On Instagram, just like on Facebook, you need to upload the products you are going to sell to a catalog. There are two ways to link a catalog to your social network account:

Via Commerce Manager. This is a do-it-yourself tool available in Facebook Business Manager.
Through a partner e-commerce platform. For example, Shopify or Big Commerce.

By the way, if you have a store on Shopify, you can connect it to the MyStorage service. This is how you add data on orders and counterparties from the platform for launching an online store to a single accounting system, where there is everything for online trading.

In My Warehouse, you can always see information about the balances that will be automatically uploaded to Shopify.

Try MySklad

With the catalog you can:

Add and manage product details. You can upload an image, write a description, set a price, change color or size. And also - add several positions at once and a link to the store's website.
Group ads. This is useful if you need to combine different posts with a common theme. For example, information about discounts and promotions.
Create selections for stores. To show customers all the products that may be of interest to them.
Assign permissions. Then other people or partner companies will be able to work with your catalog.
Download country and language information. This way, buyers will automatically see the correct information and prices for items in the ad or in the store.

Read also: 7 problems that prevent trading on the Internet

It is not necessary to create multiple directories. All product data can be stored in one. You can change information about a product in the catalog at any time. But it is important that it always contains accurate data on prices and availability of each item.

Also, the rules for returning goods and funds should be written either on your website or in the store's Instagram account: for example, in current stories or in a separate post.

Sometimes sellers do not indicate the cost of goods and call it only in private messages. But not everyone does this. For example, the NeBabushka yarn store does not hide prices, says its owner Natalya Maltseva. The ability to put a price tag directly on a photo in a post is convenient for her.

We have never closed prices. The price in the label in the post will not scare anyone away. And if this happens, then this is not a representative of our target audience.

Natalia Maltseva

shop owner "NeBabushka"

See also: How to tie big money: the success story of the Nebabushka yarn store

According to Natalia Maltseva, Instagram Shopping tools will help meet spontaneous demand: “Now it’s traditional for us — follow the link in the profile description. And the person is forced to either leave the post and follow this link, or enter the name of the site in the browser.”

But for some sellers, the main disadvantage of Instagram Shopping is precisely that live communication with the client is lost. Sellers say that sometimes with the “answered price in PM” format, a dialogue is started with the client, which ultimately leads to a sale. Indeed, in a live conversation, the seller can always offer an alternative or resell something else.

Firstly, you can use visual content to attract potential customers, and secondly, you can immediately get feedback.

“If you break Instagram down into elements, then there will be no unique tools for promotion in the social network,” says Ekaterina Pyankova, a target specialist at MoegoSklad.

Hashtags, targeting, bloggers, smart feed - all this is also available in other social networks. Taken together, the social network continues to be one of the best for business. There are probably almost no brands left that do not have an Instagram account.

Ekaterina Pyankova

targetologist of My Warehouse

The owner of the NeBabushka store believes that the secret of Instagram's effectiveness is that communities of people with the same interests are quickly formed there.

People come to see what's going on in the store. And through Instagram, we convey the atmosphere that residents of other cities and countries cannot feel when they come to the store. For them, this is a kind of window.

Sales in social networks are suitable for those who want to receive orders online and at the same time do not invest in the creation and promotion of an online store. Watch our tutorial to learn where your products will sell best, how to process orders, and how you can save money.

Get master class recording

Targeted advertising

There are three main ways to promote your store on Instagram:

targeted advertising,
advertising with bloggers,
advertising in thematic communities.

Ekaterina Pyankova considers target to be the most effective of them. This is an advertisement that is shown to an audience according to predetermined parameters: user behavior on the network, their age, interests and field of activity.

It is easier for those who use it to increase sales, because in this way the publication is most likely to be seen by those who are interested in buying. To run targeted advertising, all you need is a business account.

There are no fixed numbers on Instagram. Sometimes it's expensive and good, sometimes it's cheap and bad, sometimes it's expensive and bad, sometimes it's cheap and good. Any result is useful information for further work.

To run targeted ads, you need to set up a campaign in your Ads Manager dashboard. Through it, for example, you can run ads on:

people who "similar" to your customers in terms of age, occupation and hobbies;
all visitors to your page or site;
regular customers;
visitors who added items to their cart but did not purchase them.

Most stores stop at targeting or working with bloggers.

We review our products and engage bloggers to talk about our products. We didn’t work with targeting for a while, but now we have changed a specialist, and we will launch this type of advertising again.

Shopping ads and posts tagged with Instagram Shopping Tags

Instagram Shopping tools complement existing types of advertising. For example, you can promote posts with tagged products or create ads from scratch in Ads Manager.

Product tagged ad For a business that has been promoting their products on Instagram for a long time, the button to go to the site under the publication is a chance to increase sales even more.

The ability to place a link to buy under the post will significantly increase the conversion.

What hinders the promotion of goods

Since 2016, Instagram has had an algorithmic feed, so the time of publication of advertising posts does not affect their effectiveness in any way. But the cheating of subscribers, which is still sometimes used by both business and bloggers, will not lead to anything good. In the worst case, you can lose your account.

There are other difficulties that a business may face.

If you don’t have a constant influx of new subscribers, the number of outreaches decreases. Our task now is to ensure a constant influx of fresh subscribers.

“The audience has high requirements for brands. The account must comply with trends and actively adapt to new ones. And at the same time, there are high requirements for sincerity and openness,” explains Ekaterina Pyankova.

The influence of Instagram is based on visual imagery and on conveying emotions through text and video. If a person did not immediately respond to your offer, it is likely that in a second he will be distracted and fly away somewhere else.

For example, it’s not enough for a clothing brand to simply post a photo. The audience expects videos from production, promotions, contests, high-quality videos, user-generated content.

The audience of the social network is spoiled, any “respite” threatens with replies and loss of interest.