How many times a day do you consume content on Instagram? If you use this network frequently, it is very likely that you have made social purchases (even without being clear about this concept). 

Instagram is my favorite social platform. It has helped me create a very valuable community and it has also helped me a lot when it comes to selling.

But I have something very clear: and it is that despite the fact that users and companies use this network for different purposes, at some point their objectives align and converge in the famous “social purchases”.

Social shopping is made easy for you!

Think about it a bit, have you ever come across a sponsored post on Instagram about a product that you would love to have?

Surely this has happened to you on many occasions! It is also likely that you have selected the “View products” option and have been redirected to a sales page.

Better let’s do the exercise and see it with a more practical case! Let’s say you’re scrolling through Instagram and suddenly a post appears in your feed promoting a new fitness watch.

If you’re a fitness fan, or if you just find the design appealing, you’re going to interact with the promoted post and probably end up making a purchase.

But you won’t be making any purchase. You will really be doing social shopping

It’s that simple this works! Brands have understood the power of Instagram to boost their sales, since users can make transactions from the application itself in a matter of minutes.

Social media selling will raise your revenue goals for many reasons.

Social content that is designed strategically (always thinking about the needs or pain of your customers) has a great impact on their purchasing decisions.

The ABC’s of Social Shopping

The ABC’s of social shopping is quite simple and results from a powerful combination: social networks + e-commerce.

They are retail shopping experiences brought to life on Instagram; the same network that you use to interact with your friends or consume the content of your favorite artists or influencers.

If you are thinking that it is not so easy for small brands or entrepreneurs to reap the benefits of social shopping, you are wrong.

How can you boost your sales with this strategy?

Actually, there are many strategies that you can implement to multiply your sales (without even investing money).

These are some of them: generate more interactive content in your feed or stories, or design group shopping experiences that simulate purchases in physical stores.

Keep in mind that social shopping facilitates interactions between the consumer and your brand (from the moment they discover your products, until they make an actual purchase).

These purchases have revolutionized social commerce on platforms like Instagram and Facebook, and you don’t need to be a big brand like Amazon or Apple to take advantage of them.

Another step that you must take to promote your products more effectively is to rely on Instagram Shopping.

With this functionality you can encourage the purchase of your products directly from this social channel.

According to Insider Intelligence/eMarketer estimates , this year more than half of adults in the United States have made at least one purchase on social media.

you are part of the process 

According to the Harvard Business Review , social media sales allow brands, businesses, or startups to get involved early in the sales cycle.

And you will say, but Vilma, what does that mean? Look, getting involved from the beginning helps us define a more strategic, intelligent and powerful purchasing vision.

This means that we will be more likely to generate sales by promoting our products on Instagram.

That’s why I’m going to insist on this. Instagram is my preferred platform to engage with my community.

But it is also my great ally when it comes to selling, and believe me, you can also achieve this goal strategically.

Use networks to expand your business

This is how you can use social networks to expand your business:

1. Act from the social 

You can use social shopping through Instagram or Facebook to complement your online stores or your corporate websites.

But don’t focus solely on sales, let alone obsess over Instagram Shopping. 

I’ll tell you something: the key to turning followers into loyal customers is to be social in every way!

Do not see your clients as simple channels to increase your billing. That is a fatal mistake.

What you need to do is take a personalized and authentic approach to earn the trust and love of your audience.

Use your networks to communicate with your communities in a genuine and entertaining way, to listen to your followers and to help them with their problems.

“Selling is doing a favor”

Remember this: “Selling is doing a favor.” This tip changed the way I look at sales, and I hope it will for you, too.

Look, if we sell real solutions; those that solve the real problems of our clients, or help them fulfill their dreams with the products or services that we offer them, we will certainly be doing them a great favor.

But this does not mean that we minimize their human side, or that the only thing that matters to us is selling.

We must arouse emotions that help them feel more secure, as well as evoke positive experiences in them with our sales processes. Therein lies the key to success!

2. Meet your ideal client

Instagram alone will not do magic. Let’s see, do not pretend to create an account, publish a sales post and expect the conversion to happen miraculously.

You must know your ideal client. Otherwise, there will be no Instagram Shopping, nor a worthwhile strategy to achieve success.

According to a report from the Influencer Marketing Hub , Millennials and Generation Z are the largest consumers of content on social networks.

The former do not hesitate to make smart purchases in these spaces, and they also use them to support their favorite brands.

Here I leave you this curious fact. The oldest millennials are nearing their 40th birthday.

This means that they are active workers with greater financial freedom to shop online.

For their part, Gen Z immerse themselves in social networks, such as Instagram or TikTok, to follow trends, but also to consult information before making social purchases!

Knowing the demographics of your followers will help you design more effective sales funnels. That is, funnels capable of converting more!

3. Don’t underestimate mobile technology

Statista forecast that mobile e-commerce retail sales in the United States would reach $430 billion this year.

Having a mobile-optimized company has ceased to be a luxury and has become an absolute necessity.

That is why more and more brands and companies are developing native applications, or using third-party mobile solutions to make their products available on mobile devices.

Social commerce can be a great ally for your sales if you don’t underestimate the power of mobile technology.

Statista also estimated global social media sales at US$992 billion in 2022.

Online shopping will continue to grow dramatically in the future. In fact, it is estimated that social commerce sales will reach 2.9 billion dollars in the year 2026. ( Statista ).

Convert more with social shopping

Social shopping is here to stay. Instagram Shopping is not an experiment, much less a fad.

It is actually a great tool to expand your business, strategically scale your sales and drive social conversions.

Do not join Instagram, or any other network to sell directly. Do it with a strategic and social vision that you can sustain in the long term.