Instagram updates platform to bring shopping to more countries
Both large and small businesses have started to incorporate the shopping feature on Instagram as part of their online marketing. And, coming soon, the feature will be available to even more businesses around the world as the platform makes it available to more countries.
In November 2016, the growing platform started testing the feature with large brands and by March 2017 Instagram Shopping was rolling out to businesses large and small. Now the platform is making the feature available for businesses in Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the UK.
This is exciting. Instagram is a huge benefit as it is to businesses. More than 80 percent of people follow a business account. Additionally, the social media platform has a global community of more than 600 million.
As they scroll through their feeds, users want to explore and find new things from brands they love. And, businesses want more opportunities to build relationships with these valuable customers.
Instagram is a place where people go to discover and share their passions. Shopping on it gives people a visual storefront to explore new products from businesses they follow. It also allows easy access to pricing and product details. All shoppers have to do is tap on a tagged post on their feed or through the shop button on a business's profile and they are led to the steps it takes to learn more.
With more than 200 million accounts visiting one or more business profiles daily, shopping on Instagram offers more opportunities for businesses to showcase their products and more time for people to explore the brands and products they love.
It’s a great time to be a business on Instagram, that’s for certain! Adding this method of social media marketing to your business could be a huge game changer for you. All you have to do is post beautiful images of your business and its products and then add tags to items that are available online for shopping.
If one of your followers were interested, they’d simply tap a button to view products.
This action will display tags for all the products that have been tagged, and display the product name and its price. If they are interested in a specific item, they can click on the accompanying tag to get more info without ever leaving Instagram.
If they want to continue to purchase the item, they simply click on the “shop now” button, which will take them to the corresponding product page and allow them to complete the purchase. Quick, easy, and satisfying!
To use the feature, brands need only to push their inventory to Facebook. Within two weeks, the Shopping on Instagram option should appear.
Why you need Instagram Shopping ASAP
Since implementing the shopping feature on Instagram, businesses have had a massive increase in both traffic and revenue. Some brands have seen a whopping 1,416 percent increase in traffic and others a nearly 20 percent increase in revenue.
Instagram is all about telling stories and showcasing lifestyles. If someone is following you, they are interested in your brand’s culture. When you feature your product in such a way as to exhibit the ways in which it can be used, it makes people want to have it for themselves. And, the easier you make it for them to buy, the more likely it is they will.
With shoppable posts, customers can picture themselves with the product more easily, see the relevant information they need to determine whether or not they’re interested and get to the point of purchase without even leaving the app. What a powerful tool for businesses.
If you are a product-based business who has an Instagram account and you’re not using shoppable posts, you’re missing out on a valuable tool that helps you close leads.
Tips on how to boost engagement with Instagram Shopping:
- Post real photos of the product.
- Share user-generated content with packaging and use those images on your feed.
- Take photos anywhere you can. They don’t have to be perfectly produced photos. Showcase the product in real life.
- Collaborate with other brands who complement yours and work together.
- This isn’t advertising or sales. People need a reason to follow you. Show off your personality and the lifestyle behind the product.
- Be genuine.
Remember, the goal of all social media is to be social. So don’t treat this new feature strictly as a sales tool. All of your posts should primarily be focused on telling stories to your audience and building the relationship you have with them. When the post can be enhanced with the shopping tags, do so. Its purpose is to make things ultra easy on your followers if and when they decide to move forward with a purchase.
Have you started using shoppable posts on Instagram? Let us know what it’s done for your business in the comments below.
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