How To Sell On Instagram With Shopify?
Introduction
In today’s digital landscape, social media platforms have become valuable channels for promoting and growing your online business.
Instagram, with its visually-driven and highly engaged user base, offers immense potential for showcasing your products and connecting with potential customers. By connecting your Shopify store to Instagram, you can unlock a range of features and opportunities to grow your business.
In this blog post, we’ll walk you through the simple steps of linking your Shopify store to Instagram, helping you to seamlessly integrate your products and increase engagement.
This integration opens up a world of possibilities for showcasing your products, running targeted ad campaigns, and driving traffic to your Shopify store.
So, let’s dive in and connect Shopify to Instagram, expanding your reach and driving sales like never before!
Prerequisites for Connecting Shopify to Instagram
Connecting Shopify to Instagram allows you to sell your products directly from your Instagram posts or stories.
Before you can connect Shopify to Instagram, you need to meet some prerequisites.
- Instagram Business Account: An Instagram Business Account is required. If you don’t already have one, you can change an account’s settings on Instagram to become a business account.
- Facebook Page: You must have a Facebook Page that’s connected to your Instagram business account. This page should represent your business, as it will be linked to your Instagram account and Shopify store.
- Product Catalog: You need to have a product catalog on Facebook. Shopify can help you create this catalog.
- Location Requirements: Your business needs to be in a region where Instagram Shopping is supported. Please check the Instagram Shopping page for the updated list of supported countries.
How to Link Shopify to Instagram?
Once you’ve met all the prerequisites mentioned earlier, you can link your Shopify store to Instagram. Let’s get into the steps to do so!
Step 1: Create your Shopify Store
To connect Shopify to Instagram, firstly you’ll need to create a store if you don’t have one. If you already own one, just skip this step.
Follow the below-mentioned steps to create a Shopify store:
- Go to Shopify’s official website and create an account. Choose from one of Shopify’s pricing and plans and create your store by following the prompts and lastly, selecting a theme.
- Next, you need to add products to your store. Also, starting product pages, add images, product descriptions, and prices.
Step 2: Create an Instagram Business Account
To create an Instagram Business account, follow the below-mentioned steps:
- If you don’t have an Instagram account, just hit the sign-up button. In case, you already have one, you can switch it to a business account by tapping the three lines in the top right corner and clicking on Settings & Privacy > Account type and tools > Switch to Professional Account > Business.
- Next, you need to follow the prompts in order to set up your business profile.
Step 3: Connect Your Instagram Account to Your Facebook Page
Follow the below-mentioned steps to connect your Instagram account to your Facebook page:
- Login to your Facebook account.
- Next, click on the drop-down arrow that you can find in the top-right corner of the page.
- There, you’ll find a Setting tab, just click on it.
- Next, click on Instagram which you’ll find in the left-hand menu.
- Click on Connect Account.
- Lastly, follow the prompts that you get on your screen to connect your Instagram account.
Step 4: Create a Shop on Facebook
In order to connect your Instagram account to your Shopify store, you need to set up your Facebook Shop first. This will help you tag products in the Instagram posts.
So, follow the steps to create a Facebook Shop:
- Login to your Facebook account.
- Next, click on the drop-down arrow that you can find in the top-right corner of the page.
- Next, click on Create Page.
- Follow the prompts that you get on your screen to create a new page for your Facebook Shop.
- Next, go to Meta Business Suite. This will help you manage all your marketing and advertising-related activities on your Facebook page.
- Next, go to Commerce Business Manager and click on Create a Shop.
- Lastly, follow the prompts to set up your Facebook Shop.
Step 5: Link Facebook & Instagram to Shopify
Your next step is to link your Facebook and Instagram accounts to your Shopify store. To do so, follow the steps:
- From your Shopify store’s admin panel, click on Sales Channel > Facebook & Instagram.
- Click on Start Setup and follow all the prompts that you get on your screen to integrate Facebook and Instagram into your Shopify store.
Well, it would take up to 48 hours to approve the process of connecting Facebook and Instagram on Shopify. Once done, you’ll be able to manage both from Shopify.
Step 6: Enable Instagram Shopping
After connecting Facebook Shop to your Shopify store, now you need to set up Instagram Shopping. To do so, follow the below-mentioned steps:
- From your Instagram profile, tap the three lines that you can see in the top right corner.
- Next, click on Settings > Business > Shopping. In case, you aren’t able to see the Shopping option, chances are that your Instagram account may still be under approval.
- Now you need to follow the prompts to connect your Instagram account to Facebook Shop.
- You need to wait until Instagram reviews and approves your product tagging.
Step 7: Tag Products from Shopify in Instagram Posts
Once Instagram approves your product tagging, you can now start tagging your products in your posts. To do so, follow the steps:
- Start by creating a new post on Instagram. This could be either a photo or a reel.
- Tap on Tag Products and click on the product that you want to tag.
- Place the tag in the appropriate area in the photo or reel.
- Lastly, share the post and you’re done!
Tips To Boost Sales After Connecting Shopify to Instagram
Once you’ve connected Shopify to Instagram, there are several strategies you can implement to boost your sales. Here are some tips:
1. High-Quality Visual Content
Being a visually-centric platform, Instagram users respond positively to visually appealing, high-resolution images and videos.
These visuals should clearly showcase your products, highlighting their features, details, and use cases, making them more attractive to potential buyers. Great visual content not only grabs the user’s attention but also helps establish a professional and reliable image of your brand.
It’s also beneficial to diversify the type of visuals you use, including product photos, lifestyle images showing the product in use, and video content such as tutorials or unboxing.
2. User-Generated Content
On Instagram, this often takes the form of photos or videos of your products shared by your customers on their personal profiles.
UGC shows prospective customers real-life use and satisfaction with your product. Encouraging UGC can be as simple as creating a unique hashtag for your brand and encouraging customers to share their photos and experiences using this hashtag.
You can then repost this content on your own profile (with their permission), enhancing your brand credibility and potentially attracting new customers.
3. Instagram Stories & Shopping
Instagram Stories and Shopping are powerful tools that can significantly boost your sales after connecting Shopify to Instagram.
Instagram Stories, with its “Swipe Up” feature, allows you to share engaging, time-limited content, such as new arrivals, flash sales, or behind-the-scenes peeks, and link these directly to your product pages, thereby encouraging immediate action from your viewers.
On the other hand, Instagram Shopping enables you to create a full-page virtual storefront within the Instagram platform itself. You can tag products directly in your posts and stories, which when tapped, will lead users to your product’s detailed page.
4. Influencer Marketing
Influencer marketing involves partnering with Instagram influencers, who are individuals with a significant online following and a strong impact on their audience’s purchasing decisions.
These influencers can promote your products to their followers through sponsored posts, reviews, or brand mentions. The key is to select influencers whose image aligns with your brand and who have followers that match your target audience.
This collaboration not only increases your brand’s visibility but can also enhance your credibility through the influencer’s endorsement, leading to potential increases in sales.
5. Run Instagram Ads
Running Instagram ads is a powerful strategy to boost sales after connecting Shopify to Instagram.
Instagram ads allow you to reach a larger and more targeted audience than organic posts. You can create ads tailored to your brand’s style and your audience’s interests. You can target users based on demographics, locations, interests, behavior, and more.
The ads can direct users to your product pages, increasing the chances of conversions. Hence, Instagram ads are a crucial tool for driving traffic to your Shopify store, thereby boosting sales.
Hashtags categorize your content, making it discoverable to people searching for or clicking on relevant hashtags.
You should use a mix of general, high-popularity hashtags related to your industry (#phonecovers, #mobileaccessories), and more specific, niche ones (#iphone12cases, #vintagephonecovers) that accurately represent your products.
Including trending and location-based hashtags can further extend your reach. Creating your own unique, branded hashtag can also help cultivate a community around your brand, encouraging user-generated content.
7. Offer Exclusive Deals
Offering exclusive deals is a powerful strategy to boost sales on Instagram after you’ve connected it to your Shopify store. This involves providing special promotions or discounts that are exclusive to your Instagram followers.
For instance, you can create a unique discount code and share it in your Instagram posts, stories, or bio, or launch a flash sale only promoted on Instagram.
Conclusion
Connecting your Shopify store to Instagram is a game-changer for your online business.
You can use the power of social media to promote your products, interact with your audience, and increase traffic to your Shopify store by connecting it to your Instagram account.
This integration allows you to reach a wider audience and convert Instagram followers into loyal customers.
We’ve laid out for you in this blog how to link Shopify and Instagram without difficulty, creating new chances for sales and brand promotion.
So, take the knowledge and insights gained from this guide and start connecting your Shopify store to Instagram. Engage with your followers, showcase your products, and watch as your online business grows.
In case you need further help, don’t hesitate to get in touch with us!
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