Instagram rumored to be moving further into ecommerce with a stand-alone shopping app

According to reports, users would be able to search for products and make purchases directly in the app. Instagram has declined to comment.

Chat with MarTechBot

Instagram Shopping Cart Commerce1 Ss 1920

Facebook-owned Instagram looks to be making its own footprint in the land of standalone apps. According to a report from The Verge, Instagram is currently working on an ecommerce shopping app that enables users to browse and purchase products directly from merchants.

It’s been more than a year since Instagram opened up shoppable organic posts to apparel, jewelry and beauty brands. And while the company won’t release a comment on the rumored shopping app currently in development, Instagram has made a number of moves this year demonstrating its push to go deeper into ecommerce.

In June, Instagram offered a shopping bag icon to a select number of retailers, allowing them to add an ecommerce element within their Stories on the app. The following month it expanded its Collection ads and Shopping Bag icon for Stories to all brands.

Instagram also began offering booking and payment features in May for businesses on the app, making it possible for users to do things like schedule salon appointments or purchase movie tickets via a business Instagram account.

Recruiting retailers and brands that already have solid Instagram followings to sign onto a separate, stand-alone shopping app may not be much of a challenge for Instagram — especially for brands already seeing value from their Instagram audiences.

According to The Verge’s sources, Instagram believes it is well positioned to make a major expansion into ecommerce.

Last November, Instagram reported more than 25 million marketers on the app switched their accounts to business profiles. In June, Instagram CEO Kevin Systrom announced the app had reached the 1 billion monthly active user mark. At the time, Instagram was launching IGTV — a stand-alone app for long-form video watching. Instagram also has Direct — a stand-alone messaging app.

The company has already tested the waters with its ability to move users to stand-alone apps, and it has a sufficient number of retailers and advertisers already pushing products on Instagram. Building an app for merchants wanting a more direct ecommerce line to their Instagram followers is a reasonable business model — and another opportunity for Facebook (Instagram’s parent company) to pull a bigger cut of the ecommerce pie.


Opinions expressed in this article are those of the guest author and not necessarily MarTech. Staff authors are listed here.


About the author

Amy Gesenhues
Contributor
Amy Gesenhues was a senior editor for Third Door Media, covering the latest news and updates for Marketing Land, Search Engine Land and MarTech Today. From 2009 to 2012, she was an award-winning syndicated columnist for a number of daily newspapers from New York to Texas. With more than ten years of marketing management experience, she has contributed to a variety of traditional and online publications, including MarketingProfs, SoftwareCEO, and Sales and Marketing Management Magazine. Read more of Amy's articles.

Get the must-read newsletter for marketers.