After testing out some new shopping options back in September, Instagram is today widely rolling out new ways to purchase items across the platform ahead of the holidays.
Shared in a blog post, the company said it is expanding Instagram shopping options in three ways.
First is a Pinterest-style collection board that users can save items to.
Second is an update to shopping directly on business profiles.
Now when you come across a must-have item, save it to your Shopping collection to revisit it later. When you tap a product tag in Stories or Feed, tap the Save icon in the bottom right corner to save it to your Shopping collection. Just like existing collections, you can access your Shopping collection from your profile. It’s an easy way to keep your wish list up-to-date and store creative gift ideas for the holidays.
Last is ability to purchase items right from within videos.
We’re also testing a redesign of the Shop tab on business profiles so you can quickly view all the products featured in their shopping posts. When you visit a business profile, tap on the ‘Shop’ button to see their products, such as the item name, price, and the post featuring the item. It’s a great way to browse all the products from a brand you love on Instagram, in one place.
Instagram is reportedly also working on a standalone shopping app, but there hasn’t been any news on that in the last few months. Also, I bet Instagram shopping on iPad would be a great experience.
You can now shop in videos from your favorite brands. When you see a video in Feed from a brand you follow, tap the shopping icon in the bottom left corner to reveal the featured products and learn more about them.
Instagram for iOS is free download from the App Store.
