Followers on Instagram Shops: Latest Updates in E-Commerce

It’s no secret that Facebook began from the old TheFacebook of 2004 that we all grew up with. But thanks to all the technological advancements, Facebook now has the amazing features that we enjoy. In fact, this year gets more exciting and profitable. Online merchants and shoppers can now use Facebook for selling and buying products.

Facebook declared a bunch of updates before this week. One of the main items propelled is Facebook Shops. The newest feature is a new version of the current Facebook highlight with a comparable name, Facebook Page Shop. It aims to enable independent and small businesses to adjust to the needs of their customers. Also, it plans to make it simpler for individuals to find and shop for the things they love. As the biggest step Facebook has taken in the e-commerce business. Facebook Shops give huge breaks for businesses to continue to flourish. This is especially beneficial now that the coronavirus pandemic when the non-essential traditional brick-and-mortar stores are forced shut due to the lockdown implementations.

Followers on Instagram and Facebook Get Shopping

Facebook Shops are going around the market already. It will be all the more broadly accessible in the coming months. Facebook gives bits of knowledge on how it manufactured Shops in line with its clients’ protection and privacy and safety. The tech giant also gave details on how businesses could use their Facebook accounts as their business site.

Facebook Shops allows the transfer of item indexes on the retailer’s Facebook page or Instagram profile. Such is done with help from e-commerce companies that create software for online retailers. These e-commerce companies include Shopify, BigCommerce, WooCommerce, and many more. Facebook takes note that its clients will have the option to discover these shops. The discovery options include looking inside the retailer’s Facebook page or Instagram profile. Another way is by tapping on an advertisement that side-tracks to a shop inside the apps rather than the retailer’s site.

Furthermore, it is no secret that Facebook also owns Instagram. For this reason, it became easier for them to integrate the Facebook Shops algorithms to the said platform.

Instagram Launches Shops and Direct Shopping From Explore Tab

Another spot that is being offered for Instagram users is Instagram Shops. This feature lets users find items and buy their favorite brands within Instagram. Similar to its leading partner Facebook, Instagram Shops is an accessible, vivid online store. Buyers can find the stores on the business’s Instagram profile or Facebook page. Also, shops can be found on the timeline, stories, and advertisements. Instagram Shops are “free and very easy” to make. The platform extends this business feature to all businesses around Facebook and Instagram in a staged rollout. Here's how you can gain success from followers on Instagram Shops.

Sellers will be able to choose which product they should put on their catalogs. They can also customize how their shop should look and feel. The location of Instagram’s Shops is on Instagram Explore. Instagram Explore will directly take users to a specific brand’s shops. Users will then have a new shopping experience within the app, anywhere, and anytime they want. 

A few years ago, Facebook had launched the “Buy” button. However, it never worked out well aside from the Marketplace section.  This year, Facebook Shops and Instagram Shops intends to bring different brands in the frontline of customers who spend hours online. This feature makes it more obvious to Facebook and Instagram users that they can do more than just scrolling and hitting “Like” on the apps.

Below are some of the most amazing features Facebook ever made in the e-commerce business:

Instagram and Facebook Shops’ Checkout

Facebook will not charge any fees or take a portion of a retailer’s sale who sells in Facebook Shops. The only time Facebook will charge fees is when they use the Facebook “Checkout” feature.  Through this feature, they can accept payments directly from ready-to-buy customers. Meaning, they no longer have to use another software firm outside the app. The platforms will collect a 5 percent commission per shipment for purchases done using the Checkout feature.

Launching this kind of feature is beneficial for Facebook, Instagram, and online merchants. The pandemic has caused a huge pullback in online marketing. This is one of the reasons why Facebook resorted to Facebook Shops’ additional features to recover their losses. The Checkout feature greatly benefits businesses who will use it. Their customers will save more time in paying directly inside Facebook. This is because they no longer need to use third-party payment processors.

How Valuable Checkout is For Your Business?

Once a customer used Checkout when purchasing an item on Facebook Shops, payment information is saved. Meaning, there is no need to re-enter it anymore for the next purchase.

Payment information is secured and protected in one place. So, there’s no need for logging in to a different website or creating new accounts.

Also, businesses and inventory are kept in high quality by Facebook’s policies.

Furthermore, Facebook provides constant images and descriptions. This will help customers to remember your brand for a better purchasing experience.

Selling Through Live Shopping

Who would have thought that you can also sell products when you are live on Facebook or Instagram? Along with the Facebook Shops and Instagram Shops, Facebook is also checking the capability of marketing products in real-time through Live Shopping.

Retailers, creators, and brands can now tag products they are selling from their Facebook Shops before going live. During the live stream, the tagged products will appear at the bottom part of the live video. From there, viewers can easily tap those products to buy or learn more details. Live Shopping will be surely more accessible and popular in the coming months.

Connection of Loyalty Programs to Personal Facebook Accounts

Facebook finds ways to link company loyalty programs to customers’ Facebook profiles. Businesses will be able to manage those loyalty programs using their Facebook Shops. Moreover, customers can view earned points and rewards from their favorite shopping brands. Facebook will surely give in more details about this as it will be more broadly used a few months from now. 

The Internet has become broader and richer. It almost offers everything we need in just one click. Over the past years, people learned to be more Internet-reliable. It seems like Facebook knows that consumer behavior has changed a lot. The platform is also aware people became more comfortable with online shopping and transactions. With these new Facebook and Instagram features, online shopping became more accessible and more comfortable than before. 

Date: November 4, 2020 / Categories: Interesting, / Author: E O