How to Sell on Instagram: Everything you need to know about how to sell products on Instagram

How to Sell on Instagram: Everything you need to know about how to sell products on Instagram

by | Jun 28, 2021 | Creative Services, Digital Marketing, Graphic Design, Photography, Root & Roam Blog, SEO, Social Media, Website

As of 2021, 1.074 billion people are on Instagram worldwide making it the perfect place to sell your products. Instagram has all of the tools you need to get your product in front of the consumer and make them remember it. Selling on Instagram takes hard work, dedication, and marketing skills. This guide will show you how to sell on Instagram.

Set up an Instagram business account

 

To sell on Instagram, you will first need an Instagram business account. An Instagram business account will give you access to all of the great Instagram business features, including a “contact” button, analytics, sponsored posts, and Instagram shop. Follow these steps to create your Instagram business account:
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Begin by creating a new account that does not contain any personal information.

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Go to your Instagram page settings, click – Account
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Click – Switch to Professional Account
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Follow the steps and input the necessary information.

Voila! You are now ready to start selling on Instagram.

Build your Instagram shop

 

Once your Instagram business account is set up, you will need to set up your Instagram shop. To do this, you will also need a Facebook business page. Create your Facebook business page in two simple steps:

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Connect your Instagram business account to your Facebook business page.
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Log into Facebook, go to your ads manager, and find Commerce Manager in the hamburger menu. Follow the instructions to upload your catalog.

Your catalog can be uploaded three different ways:

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You can bulk upload your items using an excel spreadsheet. You will need to create a spreadsheet and input the item name, description, and price. Then follow the instructions to upload your spreadsheet to your shop.

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You can opt to manually input each item into your Instagram shop. If you choose this option, you will need to fill in the required blanks within the shop upload form to upload each item individually.

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The third option is to integrate your instagram shop with your ecommerce website. To use this option, you will need to have already set up an ecommerce shop with any of the website platforms that Facebook integrates with. Your options are Shopify, Channeladvisor, Feedonomics, Admixt, Quipt, Woo Commerce, Bigcommerce, CommerceHub, CED Commerce, Data Caciques, and Zentail. The integrate option will automatically pull the inventory listed on your ecommerce website into your Facebook and Instagram catalog.

Once you have created your catalog, you will then need to set up the Instagram shop. Click the shops icon on the left hand side of your mobile screen. Follow the instructions to create the shop. You will be able to organize your Instagram product into categories, choose your shop colors, button styles, and fonts. When you are satisfied with your setup click – save, and publish. 

It may take some time for Facebook and Instagram to process your shop for approval. Keep the platform’s bylaws and rules in mind when adding products to your catalog. Once your shop has been approved, your customers will be able to shop directly from your Instagram business account.

Reach your Target Audience and Gain Shop Awareness

 

Reaching your audience is more than just posting content. Take the time to develop a strategy that shares content that grabs your target Instagram audience’s attention, and pair it with keywords, hashtags, and timing.

Strategically build your Instagram shop awareness and audience with Instagram’s paid and unpaid advertising options. Take advantage of various posting methods such as posting, stories, reels, IGTV, post promoting, and Instagram paid ads to get the word out about your Instagram shop. Devise a strategy for what methods you will use and how you will measure success. Continually adjust your strategy as you find what works best. 

Reaching your audience is more than just posting content. Content that grabs the views paired with keywords, hashtags, and timing are what makes a perfect post.

Timing is Everything

 

Instagram’s algorithm is designed to show the most recent posts at the top of the news feed. The Instagram insights feature shows you the time and days when your audience is most active. Post your content during the most active time for a better chance of getting in front of a larger amount of your audience and bringing in new followers.

Optimize your Instagram post with keywords

 

Optimize your Instagram shopping posts using keywords just as you would optimize your website. Keywords are also necessary for your Instagram post to be discovered in a Google search. Research keywords relevant to your niche and use them to strategically plan your next post.

Hashtag it

 

Hashtagging is not just a trendy activity. It could mean the difference between reaching additional audiences who would not discover your business otherwise. When you add a hashtag to your post, your post will appear in that hashtag’s feed. This means that anyone who follows the hashtag has the potential to see your post. 

There is quite a bit that can go into your hashtag strategy. A few dos and don’ts when using hashtags in Instagram:

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Use just a few relevant hashtags in each post that you upload to Instagram, regardless if your post is in your Instagram feed, a story, or a reel.

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Make sure the correct audience finds your posts by ensuring that the hashtags mean what you intend.

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Pay attention to the amount of posts within a hashtag. When you search a hashtag on Instagram, you will see the number of posts with that hashtag. If there are a large number of posts, the likelihood that your post will be seen decreases. Instagram’s algorithm currently shows the most recent content first. When many posts are being added to a feed quickly, your post will get rotated down quicker. If you are just starting or are a small business, we recommend using smaller hashtags.

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Do not use hashtags that are irrelevant to your post, products, or services.

Create a shoppable Instagram feed

 

Build a shoppable Instagram feed by tagging your catalog products in your posts. When consumers tap the image, they will be able to follow the tag directly to that product in your Instagram shop and purchase within Instagram. Creating a shoppable post only takes a few simple steps:

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Create a new post

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Choose your image

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Tap Products – find the product in your shop catalog and tag it. If there are multiple products in one photo, be careful to place the tags in the correct place to avoid confusion.

Creating a shoppable Instagram story is similar:

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Create a new story

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Choose your image

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Under links, choose – product

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Search and tag the product in the story

Use this method every time you post product photos, and you will have created a completely shoppable Instagram feed.

Let’s sell product on Instagram!

 

To achieve the results that you desire, everything you do with your Instagram business page and Instagram shop should be strategically planned. Remember to always develop a strategy prior to starting any social media project. Keep your goals in mind and plan your actions accordingly. Selling on Instagram is the way of the future.

Here at Root & Roam, we understand that even with all of the tools available, selling on Instagram can be time-consuming and quite overwhelming. If you have any questions on how to sell on Instagram, we are here to help. Contact us today for more information on our Social Media services. Let’s move your product on Instagram!

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The Importance Of Video In Your Marketing

The Importance Of Video In Your Marketing

by | Sep 1, 2020 | Photography, Videography

If you’ve ever taken a class on just about any kind of writing, you’re sure to have heard the words ‘show, don’t tell.’ When it comes to writing, it’s important to let people come to their own conclusions about the actions your characters are taking – instead of telling your readers who your characters are, you show them. When someone is allowed to draw their own conclusions, they’ve invested in that opinion. When you tell someone something, they have to take your word for it. When you show them something, they’re taking their own.

When you think about it, that makes a lot of sense.

This isn’t a little pointer that’s only applicable to writing – it’s a truth we see in our everyday lives. Actions speak louder than words. If we are to be authentic, we’ll let our actions speak for us as much if not more than our words. Video allows us to chronicle how we act while giving us a platform to speak our truths, making for a multifaceted medium more powerful than words or photos alone.

Let’s go back to grade school, back to the days of show and tell. Do you remember picking your favorite toy or bringing your favorite person – because it was something that was important to you, and you wanted to let the world know about it? Video helps you let the world know about what’s important to you, what you’re about. One of the reasons video is so critical to a successful and succinct message is that it has the unique ability not only to tell your story but to show it.

We’re going to be doing a weekly video series on how to do this. We’ll dive into what it is that matters, as well as how to show it in the best light. Here’s a breakdown of what you can focus on to showcase yourself both professionally and authentically, while building credibility and cultivating empathy.

SETTING YOUR CORNERSTONE – HOW YOUR BRAND CAME TO BE

 

What was your singularity? In physics, a singularity is a point at which a function takes an irreversible path into infinity. Imagine you are a function – what was the point in your journey where all the previous points came together to say “this is what I’m going to do now, and there’s no looking back.” How have you built upon that moment? That’s what your cornerstone is, and it’s a big part of your purpose.

SHOWCASING YOUR CORE VALUES AND BELIEFS

 

What principles do you look to embody, what beliefs help you manifest your vision into the world? How do you act these values in your day to day life and business dealings? These are the areas that help steer you, your business, your brand, your life. Find examples of how you utilize your core values and beliefs, and show them to people.

IF YOU DON’T TELL IT, SOMEONE ELSE WILL

 

At some point, you’ve probably come across the phrase ‘nature abhors a vacuum.’ Replace nature with ‘public image,’ and the same is true when it comes to any public facing entity – whether it be a person or a business. This means it’s your responsibility to prevent a vacuum and to set the record before someone else gets to. We live in a digital world of instantaneous communication. This is a place where ideas or claims that start as 280 characters or less can alter the course of history, not to mention your business or brand’s story. It’s important to provide people with media and information that shows who you are… because you know who you are best. What you establish will act like referential armor if and when someone sees you differently.