Instagram Checkout

Instagram Checkout – Likes Transformed into Buys

23 July 2020

One of the leading Social Media platforms introduces a new feature to provide even more business value to their users. As Instagram Checkout is to be available globally later this year- let’s see what’s new!

Social Media

Ula Nowak

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Instagram has been providing all kinds of businesses with different options to support online sales for a while now. The company definitely knows how to follow market trends and perfectly fit into the increasing potential of social media as an e-commerce platform (according to Business Insider until 2024 about 8% of all online sales will be the one done via social media!). And they’re not slowing down!

Bringing shopping to social

Instagram globally debuted with the first solutions to support shopping within the platform in 2018. With the COVID-19 pandemic raging around the world and making online purchases even more popular, Instagram chose the perfect time to develop new features. The company started working on functionalities that would enable users to conduct the whole purchasing process within the app. This way Instagram can become the social platform and e-commerce service in one, all of it in the, let’s be honest, full of surprises 2020.

Until now, Instagram Shopping was providing product tags added to the organic photo posted on the company’s feed that displayed the price and type of the product. It gave the user the ability to directly go to the shop website and finalize the transaction. With the latest update, the purchase can be finalized without leaving the app! Instagram Checkout was introduced in 2019 and is available exclusively on the US market for selected megabrands such as Zara, Revolve, Nike, etc. Thanks to the new functionality, users will be able to access the payment process via product tag within the Instagram application.

Another new thing within the app is a shop page, also accessible within the app. It’s a customizable storefront that allows users to browse and shop directly on the business page.

Among new options seller will be able to use are:

Customizable storefront within the account,
Product launches,
Shopping ads,
Product detail pages,

For who?

Instagram Shopping options are available only for those who have an active business account on the Instagram platform. The account needs to be connected with an account and shop on Facebook. In case you’re not sure how to get access to Instagram Shopping - check the company instructions. As for the Instagram Checkout feature, the option is still available only for the selected brands and on the US market only, however, it is planned to be launched globally later in 2020. The option may not be accessible for all Instagram businesses as some might find it difficult to afford. According to the Business Help Center, there’s a 5% shipment fee or the fixed fee of 0,40USD for 8,00USD worth shipment.

Any disadvantages?

As appealing as the opportunity to close the deals within one app may seem, there’s also a slightly darker side of it. Instagram Checkout may cause sellers to lose important data about their customers as they provide all the information (such as name, email address, billing details, and shipment address) within the app. Previously this kind of data was saved on the shop’s website. For sure, there comes a great value with making Instagram a shopping experience for its users, but the real impact it will have on an e-commerce industry will be known when the feature hits the global market. Can’t wait to see how it turns out!