If you’re using Instagram for your store, you need to get an Instagram business account. A business account does more than a standard profile such as giving you extra analytics, insights, and advertising options.
44% of people use Instagram to shop weekly. Having only introduced its shopping functionality a few years ago, that’s an encouraging number for retailers. Instagram lets you give your customers a whole new way to shop for your products, and it all starts with getting your business account set up.
But first…
Why do I need an Instagram business account?
Instagram business profiles can track post performance with Instagram Insights meaning you can see which posts perform best.
You also get access to features like Instagram Ads and Shoppable Posts, which allows you to:
Learn more about your audience
With Instagram Insights you can gather a lot of data about your audience. The simple but detailed dashboard gives you data on your followers like age group, location, and when they’re online the most.
Data like this can help you determine when you should post and to what demographic your content should be aimed at.
Sell directly to your followers
By integrating your store’s inventory with Instagram you can sell directly to your followers in their timeline. With shoppable posts, your audience can browse for and buy products within the Instagram app.
You can turn Instagram into an extension of your webstore, allowing you to drive sales and returning business from social media. WebSell customers can directly connect their inventory to their Instagram shop and keep everything automatically updated. Find out more about WebSell’s Instagram Integration.
Here’s WebSell customer Sioux Shop’s Instagram shop:
Create Instagram ads
With an Instagram business account you can also run ads from your Instagram profile. This lets you target potential new customers with ads for your products.
With detailed analytics and reporting, you can see who has clicked on your ads and which ones are performing best.
Direct the customer journey
Instagram business accounts can add links to their Instagram Stories to direct users to specific external pages if they have over 10,000 followers. This lets you use your account more effectively for lead and sales generation.
58% of users say they become more interested in a brand after seeing it in an Instagram Story. Brand Stories also have an 86% completion rate, meaning it’s worthwhile to start using your Stories effectively.
How to create an Instagram business account
To create an Instagram business account you can either switch from an existing personal profile or create a brand new business account.
Most businesses will want to create a new account from scratch. However, in many cases you may already have a decent social following for a personal profile that functions as a proxy for your business anyway. In this case, it makes perfect sense to convert to a business account.
Switching to a business account from personal
If you already have your personal account and want to change it to a business account, hit Settings in the top right corner of your profile. Click Account and then scroll to the bottom where you’ll see a blue link that says ‘Switch to Professional account’.
Tap on that blue link and you’ll be asked about your type of business and what contact information you’d like to add to your profile.
Creating a new Instagram business account
Creating a new business account on Instagram is very similar to creating a new personal Instagram account. You’ll just need to:
- Create a new Instagram account.
- Choose your username and password.
- Set the account up (all accounts are automatically created as a personal account).
- When your account is set up, switch it to a business account by going to Settings and tapping ‘Switch to Professional account’.
And that’s how to set up your Instagram business account. Now you’re ready to start selling your products on social media, all while getting access to valuable insights and analytics about your audience.
Integrate your webstore with Instagram
Did you know that WebSell retailers can connect their product catalog directly to Instagram? That means you can have a fully automatic webstore of products that lives on Instagram.
Learn more about WebSell’s Instagram integration and talk to our team to discuss pricing.
