Instagram is the newest frontier in social media marketing. While Facebook and Twitter remain marketing hotspots for companies to communicate with users, Instagram has become a beacon for businesses to increase sales, generate user engagement, and showcase products for purchase. The photo and video sharing juggernaut boasts over 500 million active monthly users, surpassing all other social media platforms minus Facebook. The vast user base not only allows effective conversion creation, it also identifies Instagram as a viable source for online revenue. Monetizing Instagram can be seamless transition thanks to new social shopping tools.

Third-Party Tools

Atop the conversion funnel platform, Instagram is the go-to service for expanding brands and selling products. Ecommerce businesses have been creating successful online markets on the site for years due to innovative tools like Like2Buy and LIKEtoKNOW.it. Employed by big brands in various industries, these third-party platforms circumnavigate Instagram’s few advertising limitations and turn likes into confirmed mobile sales.

Like2Buy by Curalate

Launched in September 2014, Like2Buy has become one of the simplest ways to make Instagram shoppable. Created by Curalate, a visual marketing and analytics firm, Like2Buy solves the known issue of having only one hyperlink available in a bio by creating an accessible Like2Buy landing page with a grid of featured products. From there, users can select photos featured on the company’s Instagram feed and easily purchase the available items. The process streamlines the buyer’s journey by eliminating the need to open a separate browser to search for a particular product. With fewer clicks, Curalate offers a better user experience while shopping on mobile compared to its desktop counterpart.

LIKEtoKNOW.it

Similarly, LIKEtoKNOW.it offers a simple shopping solution for companies wishing to sell on Instagram. Signing up with the service gives companies the opportunity to create a product page with all the items seen on their site. Users are emailed a detailed description of products after liking photos that have a LIKEtoKNOW.it link and are forwarded to product pages with a quick click. This is an especially useful tool for businesses posting multiple photos of their products but are unwilling to create cluttering captions for each post. The service also fosters relationships with affiliate programs by providing a space for featured products from third parties on your LIKEtoKNOW.it page. This effortless tool will generate likes and engage your follower base while driving traffic to your company website.

Instagram’s Features

In addition to the third-party tools offered by Like2Buy and LIKEtoKNOW.it, there are other means to make your Instagram a user-friendly shopping experience. Utilizing the site’s established features is a great way to drive traffic and earn revenue from Instagram. Launching campaigns based on popular hashtags, for instance, will send users to your company’s page with little marketing effort. Showcasing lifestyle photos with real people using your products will also drive a remarkable amount of traffic. Even highlighting seasonal products with a unique image will give your Instagram personality, a vital element to making your business shoppable on the widely popular platform. If your goal is to create a tailored shopping experience for Instagram users, remember to offer easily accessible and varied content when taking your online marketing strategy to the next level.