Instagram Shopping & Small Businesses! (Part Two)

Still intrigued about how Instagram shopping will benefit your small business? You've come to the right place. In part two of our current blog series, we are here to talk about and discuss just that! 

Welcome back to part two of our blog series discussing Instagram shopping for small businesses! Have you had an opportunity to go and begin the process of starting your Instagram shop for your business since our last blog? How has it been going for you so far? Have you been having any issues with the process or has it been enjoyable for you? We are excited to hear about your journey, so when you do finish this blog, please make sure to comment below and share your experience with us! This is still a new concept for us and many of our clients, and it has been an interesting journey to learn more about Instagram Shopping and to even experiment and try it out on our own time. There is an ease to it that helps the flow of in-app shopping more enjoyable, and it's so nice that you don't have to leave the app to find exactly what you're looking for. Many of our team members have commented that they'll see a post about amazing new products on Amazon, and they'll have to leave whatever app they're using and hop over to Amazon to find what they're looking for. While this really doesn't take all that much extra time, going right to what you want when you want it is very appealing. There is no wonder why it has been so successful! There is no in-between time to second guess if you should really purchase what you've seen on your Instagram feed or not! If anything should appeal to our small business owners considering adding all the shopping features to their Instagram page, that should be one of the top things to consider! When someone falls in love with your product and immediately has the chance to buy it, the more likely they are to follow through with the purchase instead of just leaving it in their carts! With that in mind, fellow small business owners, let's hop back into part two of our blog series! 

What Will Instagram Do For Small Businesses? 
We've said it a hundred times across all of our platforms, but not using Instagram to promote your business and products would just be crazy! Hundreds of millions of users are on Instagram every day and all of them follow at least one small business. This will cancel out a lot of distracts and steps for your customers, allowing them to continue what they're doing on social media and bringing your store directly to them. They can browse, save items, learn more, discover more, and buy everything right from the app. This also directly allows you to bring all of your products to your target audience without always including a call to action in your post or stories to have them visit your website. You can promote more and the products are already there in front of your customers.

Since its establishment and throughout the pivoting process that small businesses have been through in the last year, Facebook founder and Instagram owner Mark Zuckerburg has said that, "We're seeing a lot of businesses that never had online presences get online for the first time, and we're seeing small businesses that had an online presence now make them their primary way of doing business". All by taking those few simple steps of creating an Instagram shop, you are opening up your business to a larger market with ease and possibly a market you've never needed before. No matter what curve ball might be thrown at the business world next, this new addition will be a stronghold! This new idea and addition to Instagram will bring you closer to your followers and introduce your products faster, easier, and with better detail. By choosing an Instagram shop, you are cutting everything out of the middle and delivering your product right to your followers. Take the time to invest in your shop and watch how it helps your company grow! 

The Future of Now 
While Instagram will always be a very active social platform, it is also an up-and-coming e-commerce site that once it truly takes off, has the ability to become one of the most popular locations for small business owners to sell their products. While the destruction of the pandemic was felt through every part of our lives, online business kept us connected, calm and inspired when there was nowhere else to turn to, leaving in its wake a stronger e-commerce community than ever before. It's not only a huge step for small business owners to take freedom with their shops, it is also reviving the app itself. New apps such as TikTok have taken the spotlight away from Instagram and has left it in the dust with Facebook and its other predecessors. Thanks to the ease of shopping on Instagram, more users are returning once again - not only to go shopping but to open another platform for their products. This whole process is breathing life back into the app, which for those who adore the app, is also a relief! While the app has taken center stage, it had time while it was off in the wings to mature, grow, and become even more innovative than it was before. You can do so much more in this app that so many were already so comfortable with, that this lends even more benefits to shoppers. Users are already familiar with the app, so getting used to these new trends and new opportunities will be even easier to adjust to since no one has to go through and learn how everything works. You just have to tap, click, and pay, and before you know it your favorite new products are at your front door. What could be more appealing than that to all of our small business owners out there? 

A Kickstart To The Finishline 
You've learned a little bit about the overall process of what Instagram Shopping is, how to set up your shop, what its many features are, how it benefits small businesses, and what the future of e-commerce on the platform looks like, but you might be a little stuck with getting started. The secret is to just get started! When setting up your shop and creating posts that will grab the attention of your followers, current buyers, and future customers, a lot of your success will be found in many of the same tips and suggestions we've talked about when creating a powerful media marketing strategy for your overall business on Instagram. Think about these things when starting to focus on your shop, when you're creating shop-focused content, and when you're ready to start selling!  

• Sometimes you need to start with your words before the perfect graphic! While a picture is worth a thousand words, you need to make sure that the copy you're choosing can really support the picture you're sharing. You still need to craft some amazing copy that will not only grab your customers but will keep them coming back for more and inspire them to get out their credit cards. 
• Your feed needs to tell a story! It's not just about how every picture stands on its own, but how each graphic and video fits together into the whole grid of your profile. When an interested client visits your Instagram page, not just a single post, it needs to look like it flows, is overall appealing when scrolling through, and it all needs to be true to your overall brand. 
• Don't be afraid to offer a few incentives from time to time. While we will often say that you shouldn't force a sale with every post, there is also nothing wrong with sharing a little love from time to time. Offer some discounts, do a giveaway, or create a partnership with a fellow small business owner to create a packaged sale that will help new interested buyers get to know both of you at the same time! This is a creative space, so don't be afraid to get creative when you're using it! 
• Please be very smart about using hashtags! Hashtag research, how many you need to use, and when to use them can be a make-or-break situation for every single one of your posts. Be smart about it and make sure you understand how to use hashtags before you just begin to make them up and hope that they bring in sales. 
• Don't forget, this is a social app. Please don't forget that! While you are acting as a business, businesses still need to have some touch of humanity behind them! As your business, support fellow local businesses and causes that you support. Don't be afraid to do shout-outs to very supportive customers, post a comment or two on other posts that you love, and leave a like or two when you can. These little steps can make a huge difference! 
• Just like you would as a normal business Instagram page that isn't using the Instagram shopping features, you need to create content that is appealing and meaningful to your target audience and who is buying your products. If you are presenting unpolished graphics that just look dull and don't represent your brand, that won't do you any good. Present graphics you are always proud of, and that show your product in its best and most desirable light. 
• Much more! We encourage you to do a little extra research for what will work best for you and your company! 

Instagram for Business and Instagram Shopping is here to stay and is going to continue to see amazing growth. Even if you don't think your product would be a good one for Instagram Shopping, why not give it a try and just test the waters? You might be surprised! The pandemic pivot taught a lot of small businesses that almost anything is possible, especially when you least expect it. You and your business deserve the best, so why not use the tools that are already waiting for you? Go on, give it a try, and let us know how it works out for you! Thank you so much for joining us in this two-part blog series about Instagram shopping! Don't forget, if you're looking to build a website, design a logo, rebrand your company, have social media management, marketing analysis and consultation, and search engine optimization (SEO). We are here to help not only provide these services to you but to help your company become exactly what you've always wanted it to be and more. Until next time, stay safe and stay caffeinated!