In its bid to further develop its platform’s shopping features, Instagram has announced it is expanding Shopping in Stories and a new Shopping channel in Explore.
Instagram already sees itself as the “best place to connect with your friends and interests all in one place.” It’s become quite apparent that it also sees shopping is a big part of its platform and its community of users – and one that is constantly growing. With over 90 million accounts now tapping to reveal tags in shopping posts each month, it’s obvious that Instagram is becoming big on shopping.
To continue this trend, Instagram announced two updates this week, that make it easier to shop on its platform, “whether you stumble upon something you love or are simply in the mood to browse your favourite brands.”
Expanding Shopping in Stories
Instagram started to test Shopping in Stories earlier this year in June and is now rolling the feature out globally. The feature is now available to businesses across 46 countries.
With 400 million accounts on Stories every day and 1/3 of the most-viewed Stories coming from businesses, there is a clear business case for Instagram to continue to make Stories an excellent shopping medium.
Introducing Shopping in Explore
In addition to the expansion of Shopping in Stories, Instagram is also announcing a personalised Shopping channel in Explore, based on the topic channels feature Instagram launched in the summer. The Shopping channel will be dedicated to Shopping posts from brands you follow and brands you may like.
The Shopping channel in Explore will start to roll out this week “and will expand globally over the coming weeks.”
With the two updates, Instagram is making shopping more entertaining, through encouraging users to get inspired and connect with the brands they love and says it will “continue to explore the right features and experiences to make Instagram the best place to shop.”
You might also like
More from Instagram
Instagram Expands IGTV Ads To Select Creators In The UK And Australia
After launching IGTV ads in the US last May, Instagram is now expanding the feature to select creators in the …
Facebook Is Building An Instagram App For Kids Under 13
Facebook confirmed reports it is building an “Instagram for Kids” for users under the minimum age for its flagship app.
Instagram Limits Interactions Between Teens And Adults They Don’t Follow
Instagram is introducing new policies and features to limit interactions between teenagers on its platform and adults they don't follow.
Instagram Releases New Set Of Stickers Honoring Women In STEM On Pi Day
Just in time for Pi Day over the weekend, Instagram released a new set of women in STEM-themed stickers.
Facebook Tests Feature That Lets You Share Reels On Facebook
Facebook has confirmed the test of a feature that allows Instagram users to share reels on Facebook News Feed.
Instagram To Relaunch Its Lite App In 170 Countries With Support For Reels
Instagram Lite could make its big comeback with new features and slightly larger file size, and support for Reels.
N26 Highlights Banknote Gender Parity With New AR Effect
Mobile bank N26 has launched a new AR effect that highlights the low representation of women on banknotes.
An Instagram Bug Made Likes Disappear For Some Users
If you've suddenly seen Likes disappear from your posts on Instagram this week, you're not the only one.
Instagram Now Lets You Go Live With Up To 3 People
New Instagram Live Rooms let you go Live on the platform with up to three people at a time.
