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Shopping on Instagram and WooCommerce

Shopping on Instagram allows you to market and sell products using the Instagram mobile app and is available to all WooCommerce store owners who meet Shopping on Instagram requirements. Many shoppers are visual, and this gives them a channel to engage, explore, and buy.

Requirements

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  • WooCommerce store with physical products
  • Instagram app for iOS or for Android – most current version
  • Instagram account with an approved business profile
  • Use the free Facebook for WooCommerce extension
  • Facebook Page catalog to link to Instagram business profile

Setup and Configuration

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This guide walks you through setup of Shopping on Instagram with WooCommerce in steps.

Prepare your WooCommerce Store and Products

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  1. Use our Setup Wizard to start a new store. Or ensure your current store is updated and ready for visibility on Facebook and Instagram.
  2. Add new products or manage existing ones. More at: Adding and Managing Products.
  3. Ensure that physical products to be promoted are in compliance with the Facebook Commerce Policy.

Create a Facebook Page and Catalog

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  1. Go to Facebook and Create a Page for your Business.
  2. Go to Catalog Manager and Create a Catalog.
  3. Add products to your Catalog.
  4. Create a Product Set if there is a group of items you wish to promote together (optional; only if relevant).

Get an Approved Business Profile

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  1. Be located in a country where Shopping for Instagram is available. Countries approved for Shopping for Instagram.
  2. Create a new Instagram account for your business. Or convert your personal account to a business account.
  3. Connect your Facebook Page Catalog to your Instagram Business profile. More at: Connect a Facebook catalog with an Instagram Business profile.
  4. Wait for approval from Instagram. This process takes a few hours or days.
Once approved, a push notification appears. Screenshot showing an iOS lock screen notification from Instagram alerting the store owner that they have been approved to tag products Congratulations! It’s time to start tagging.

Tagging and Publishing

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Screenshot showing the Shopping start page within the Instagram app To start tagging products from your WooCommerce store in Instagram images:

Enable Product Tagging

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  1. Use the Instagram app and go to your Profile.
  2. Select the Get Started alert or the gear icon.
  3. Go to: Shopping > Continue.
  4. Select a catalog to connect to your Business profile.
  5. Done.

Tag Products on your Instagram Posts

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  1. Using the Instagram app, select a photo and add a caption, any filter or hashtag, as usual.
  2. Tap products you wish to tag.
  3. Enter names of products to tag, and select them as they appear in the Search box.
  4. Done.
  5. Share.
You can tag up to five (5) products in a single Instagram post or 20 products in a multi-image post. More at: Tagging Products on Instagram Posts. Here is a video of the process of tagging once you have a Facebook product source connected.

Usage

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Screenshot of the Instagram app showing an image tagged with a product

Tapping a tag on your Instagram post, a customer sees:

  • Image of the product via Facebook
  • Description of the product
  • Cost of the product
  • > Link that takes them to where they can purchase the product

Troubleshooting

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Why aren’t my products showing up?

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Facebook for WooCommerce: Products are only available for tagging when Hide is displayed on your Facebook catalog.
Screenshot showing the Product admin column with FB Shop Show and Hide
Products with “Show” will not be taggable, products with “Hide” will be taggable

Why do desktop viewers not see any tagged products?

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Shopping on Instagram is only available with the Instagram mobile app for now.

Frequently Asked Questions

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Which countries is Shopping for Instagram available?

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Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Belize, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Romania, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom, United States, and Uruguay. New countries are added by Instagram at their discretion. If you do not see yours, check the Shopping for Instagram Countries.

Can I change a tag once the post is published to Instagram?

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Yes, tapping the three dots on the top right of any image will bring up a menu. Select “edit” then tap the tag you want to remove. You can then add a new tag.

Where can I find more information about Shopping on Instagram?

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Read more at the Instagram Business site and Instagram Business Tools Help Center.

What the difference between Shopping with Instagram, and the WooCommerce Instagram plugin?

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Shopping with Instagram allows you to tag products to promote on Instagram and link back to your Facebook catalog. WooCommerce Instagram is an extension enabling you to display Instagram posts with a specific hashtag on your WooCommerce store product listing. More at: WooCommerce Instagram.

Questions and Feedback

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For support on the Facebook for WooCommerce extension or Shopping for Instagram, contact: Woo.com is unable to offer help and assistance for third-party products.