Instagram to Shopify: The Ultimate Guide for eCommerce

People across the world have some amazing things to say about Instagram to Shopify. While some say that Instagram is the most powerful sales channel that an eCommerce business can have; some others are of the opinion that with the Instagram Shopify integration, eCommerce owners can really outperform their competition. If you are also wondering how to sell on Instagram in 2021, this post is for you!

Are you able to showcase AI powered related products, upsell items and frequently bought together products on your Shopify store? To get all of these and more, install Perzonalization for Shopify now and start your 14 day free trial.

When we talk about Instagram, it has been a rather interesting couple of years for this social media giant. According to Statista’s forecast from October 2020, there would be nearly 1.2 billion Instagram users worldwide in 2023. Besides, the platform already has 1 billion users.

Instagram is also an advertising machine in the sense that the platform’s US only social network estimated revenue for 2019 is 9.45 billion USD.

Shopify and Instagram

One of the biggest benefits of having a Shopify store is that the platform makes selling really easy for you. Be it CRM integrations, payment gateways, account software, plugins or extensions – Shopify has it all carefully planned out for your store. Instagram gives Shopify stores a “full” social media exposure and experience. It allows Shopify store owners to sell in multiple places, giving your customers a true “omni-channel experience.” So, once you have your Instagram shop online on Shopify, it’s a winning combination.

One of the biggest benefits of having a Shopify store is that the platform makes selling really easy for you. – Tweet This!

So, What Does Instagram to Shopify Mean?

According to a study by Omnicore, 70% of shopping enthusiasts turn to Instagram for product discovery. Thus, we can easily consider Instagram for Shopify a very productive channel for online brands.

Instagram Shopify sales channel enables you to sell more effectively on both channels. This in turn increases your selling potential and helps you reach more customers at any given time.

Instagram Shopify Integration

It is possible to connect Instagram and Shopify with an easy integration. Let’s look at some advantages of the Instagram Shopify integration:

Shoppable Instagram allows you to sell directly from your post’s images in a format native to Instagram.
The Instagram Galleries on your Shopify store allow you to bank on great user-generated content and build social following, which drives sales.
Instagram Follow buttons on your Shopify store again increase your social following, giving you a better way to market your products to prospective customers.
By installing the tracking pixel on your Shopify store, you can run retargeting campaigns on Instagram for your products.
Because of the combined effect of UGC and shoppable Instagram, Shopify stores can drive more sales onsite.
Instagram Shoppable posts allow brands to tag products within a post. With a couple of clicks, a prospective customer can now go from that post to the brand’s Add to Cart section on their website.
The Shoppable Stories Stickers enable you to shop for your favorite products directly from stories.

How to Connect Instagram to Shopify?

From your Shopify admin screen, click the “+” button next to the Sales channels heading.
On the Add sales channel dialog, click Instagram to learn more about the sales channel.
On the Add sales channel dialog box, click on Instagram.
Click Add sales channel.
Log in to your Facebook account page to authenticate your Instagram account in the sales channel.

After you’ve added your Instagram business profile, the same will be reviewed by Instagram. Subsequently, you’ll see a notification in your Instagram business profile enabling you to tag products.

How to add “shop” button on Instagram?

Once you have added Instagram to Shopify, the next step is to figure out how to add the shop button on Instagram.

First you need to enable product tagging. Tagging facilitate discoverability and help customers buy through posts. Below shows the steps taken by consumers during the product tag experience. For this, follow the steps mentioned below:

Go to your profile.
Tap the Get Started alert at the top of your profile.
If you don’t see the alert in the image above, tap options or the gear wheel.
Tap Products.
Tap Continue.
Select a product catalog to connect to your business profile.
Tap Done.

Note: If these options aren’t available to you yet, then your Instagram shop hasn’t been approved.

Instagram product Tagging – Shopify

Instagram Shoppable posts are those posts, which allow product tagging. This tagging is done by adding a link to a product or products in your store in the same way you would tag a user on Instagram. If the image or video you post on Instagram features multiple items, you can add more than one tags and more than one links (max of five per image). The price of the product/s is visible on the post and users can click through to purchase in a jiffy.

How to appeal Instagram Product Tagging?

After your request to add Instagram to your Shopify store has been approved and you have finished the setup for Shopping on Instagram, you’ll need to activate shopping from your Instagram App. Once you’ve enabled it in the settings, you’ll be able to feature products in your Instagram stories and posts.

To tag products in your Instagram posts:

Select a photo, add a caption and effects and filters – if required. Hit Once you have the product feature enabled on your account, you’ll find the option to tag products on the screen where you normally add your caption and other information.

Enter the names of the products you want to tag, then select them as they appear in the search box.

Tap Done.
Tap Share.

If you want to preview the posts before sharing or save a draft of the post, click Preview Tagged Products or Save Draft as applicable.

You can tag your products in both new and existing posts from your Instagram business profile.

The feature allows you to tag up to 5 products per single-image post and video posts, or 20 products per multi-image post.

Now that you have prepared your Instagram for Shopify, it is time to focus on more conversions! Start showcasing AI powered related products, upsell items and frequently bought together products on your Shopify store. To get all of these and more, install Perzonalization for Shopify now and start your 14 day free trial.

With Instagram product tagging, Shopify becomes an even powerful sales channel for you. When you tag products on Instagram, Shopify shopkeepers can display item prices, include special offers and also connect these products with the product page on their website.

Note To Remember on Shopify Instagram Shopping

You must remember that you will not be allowed to sell alcohol, weapons, tobacco products or paraphernalia, ammunition, and explosives. You will also not be allowed to sell animals, any healthcare products that include “before and after” images, downloadable digital products, any products with a sexual connotation or positioning and virtual currency.

Another benefit to setting up shoppable Instagram Shopify posts and tagging products is that you get a new “Shop” tab on your profile which curates all those posts that include product tags. So when your followers visit, they can straight away start shopping if they want to. And since 200 million Instagram users visit at least one business profile every day, you can very well do the math of how much shopping that can convert into.

Inspiring lifestyle images which provide some context to your brand and products tend to be more engaging, like the one below:

Instagram for Shopify enables you to sell more effectively both on Instagram and on Shopify. – Tweet This!

Shopify for Instagram Eligibility

To use Instagram for Shopify, you need to:

Have the Basic Shopify plan or higher and should have opened an online store.
Set up the Facebook channel with an approved Facebook Shop without any age or country restrictions.
Connect your Instagram business profile to a Facebook catalog.
Abide by Facebook’s merchant agreement and commerce policies.
Sell physical goods.
Use the latest version of the Instagram app that is available in your country.

Instagram Saved Stories

Instagram does not allow posting links to a website anywhere apart from the bio section. And thanks to this feature, a customer can now visit your site with a couple of swipes.

Instagram also allows users to save their stories into different folders. A vast majority of eCommerce stores have found creative ways to say their stories through this Instagram feature.

ASOS for instance, has put stories like Activewear, News, ASOS Mag and My Wardrobe as its stories. With the Instagram stories, you can turn any post into an amazing shopping experience for your customers.

Some of the ways in which you can make Instagram Stories for you are:

Demonstrate your brand in a positive light
Try to bank on the FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) factor through your Stories
Add a CTA to your Stories for an optimum effect.
Provide special offers and discounts
Provide some value continuously
Create a Story that makes your audience pursue it.
Explore Hashtags

Best Instagram Sales Apps for Shopify

There are some great Instagram Shopify plugins that make your Instagram on Shopify experience more enriched. If you are a Shopify store owner and you are still wondering how to use Instagram to Shopify more effectively, then the following section is for you:

Instagram to Shopify Supporting Apps 1) Flight plan

Flightplan is a free Shopify app that allows Shopify store owners to integrate retargeting advertising into their sales strategy. This app can boost sales by retargeting Instagram ads on Shopify and on Facebook. You can customize your ads to align to your product inventory, and track your conversions via Flightplan’s real-time data monitoring.

Instagram to Shopify Supporting Apps 2) Covet Pics

This application is available on a 14-day free trial and allows you to instantly create Instagram galleries for your ecommerce store. You can not only customize the look of your Instagram collections, but also can tag your collections for easier discovery and embed your eCommerce galleries on multiple platforms.

Instagram to Shopify Supporting Apps 3) Pixel Shop

Pixelshop brings together visual marketing and influencer marketing into one powerful app. Pixelshop enables your customers to buy products directly from your Instagram photos and also hashtag images of their purchases for you to use on your website. This way you can create relationships with influencers who want to promote your Shopify products and grow sales with social proof.

Instagram to Shopify Supporting Apps 4) Sprout Social

Sprout Social is a social media management platform with content scheduling and publishing capabilities. The app also offers in-depth Instagram analytics, with detailed reports on your performance. With the app you’ll also be able to track engagement and compare the success of your store’s account. It can monitor hashtags and comments allowing you to explore new opportunities for engagement.

Instagram to Shopify Supporting Apps 5) UserGems

This Shopify app acts as your eyes and ears by helping you identify influencers on Instagram for your Influencer outreach campaign on Instagram. The app pulls social media information about your customers, by identifying which of them have more than 10,000 followers, or which of them use the word “blogger” or “journalist” in their social media profiles, enabling you to identify your next influencer.

Instagram to Shopify: The Conclusion

It’s pretty clear that Instagram is steadily but continuously building the tools that will eventually make it a wholesome sales app for your products. The app already allows users to buy directly from your Instagram feed in Shopify feeds; and if you already have an established presence on Instagram that will certainly give you a head start.

Instagram to Shopify will eventually benefit your eCommerce store, no matter which apps you choose to use. And, thanks to Shopify’s amazing ease of use, Instagram Shopify integration can be set up quickly and could just yield long-term benefits for you. So, go ahead and enjoy selling with your Instagram sales app and let us know what you think. How is your Shopify store optimized through Instagram? Share your thoughts, knowledge, and questions with us!

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