Ultra.
You’ve created an amazing design, you’ve set up your Streamlabs Merch Store, and you have loaded it with cool products. Now, there’s just one thing missing from the equation—sales of your products. As much as we’d like to think that amazing products will sell themselves, the truth is you have to get comfortable promoting to get your products in front of the right people. One way to do that is by creating an Instagram Shop as another avenue to sell your products.
What Is an Instagram Shop?
Simply put, an Instagram Shop allows you to sell your followers and potential customers directly through the Instagram app via content you share on the platform. With an Instagram Shop, products can be tagged directly on your posts (up to five products can be tagged in your Feed, Stories, Reels, and Live). Additionally, if you run ads on the platform, you can tag products in those posts as well. Followers and potential customers can also discover your products through the Shop tab from the home screen of the Instagram app.
Before setting up your Instagram shop, make sure to read the Commerce Eligibility Requirements to ensure that your business and products qualify. Also, your Instagram account must be set up as a professional (business or creator) account in order to set up an Instagram Shop.
Adding Products with Commerce Manager
Though setting up shop may take some time to make sure you’re doing it correctly, it isn’t an extremely hard process. We’ll walk you through the steps below.
- Head to Meta Commerce Manager and make sure you’re logged into the account associated with the Instagram account you’re setting up a shop for.
- Scroll to the bottom of the page and select +Add Catalog under the Catalogs section of the screen.
- Select your Catalog Type. If you’re setting up an Instagram Shop to sell your Streamlabs Merch, select Ecommerce. If you’re selling something else, read carefully through the options and choose the one that makes sense for your business. Once you’ve selected your catalog type, click Done.
- Configure your settings by choosing how to upload your products. Your choices are to Upload Product Info—manually, in bulk, or with your Meta Pixel (if you’re already advertising products using Facebook Ads). Choose this option to set up products from your Streamlabs Merch Store or Connect a Partner Platform—automatically import your products using a platform like Shopify, BigCommerce, etc.
- Next, select the catalog owner from the drop-down and name your catalog. This would be your Instagram profile.
- Select, Create.
- After creating your catalog, you’ll be presented with a finish page. Select View Catalog.
- From the left Navigation Bar of your Commerce Manager Dashboard, select Data Sources under the Catalog section.
- Choose how you’d like to add in your products. If you have a small number of products to input, we recommend using the Manual option. If you have an assortment of products, choose Data Feed to upload a CSV file.
- If you choose the Manual option, simply fill out the on-page form with the correct product images, product name (title), product descriptions, product page link (website link), price, sale price (if applicable), and the Facebook product category.
If you choose the Data Feed option, you’ll need to upload a spreadsheet with this information. You’ll be asked, “Are you ready to upload your spreadsheet or file?” If you need a feed template, select. No, I need a feed template. Once you get the CSV template, fill it out and then upload it. - Once all information is filled in, select upload products if using the Manual method.
If you’re taking the Data Feed/CSV route, select next, then confirm the information. This will bring you back to the data sources window. Once the file is uploaded, you’ll receive a notification confirming the number of products that have been uploaded.
Activating Your Instagram Shop
Once you have your products added to your catalog, it’s time to officially open your shop.
- Grab your phone, open the Instagram app, and head to your Instagram profile.
- Next, select the hamburger menu (three horizontal lines) at the top right corner of your screen and select Settings.
- From the Settings window, scroll down to Creator or Business (depending on your profile type).
- Next, select Set Up a Shop or Shopping.
- Follow the onboarding instructions. Once you get to the connect a catalog page, select the catalog (in your case, it would be the one that we created earlier with your Streamlabs Merch).
- Once you’ve added your catalog, your shop should appear on your Instagram profile.
Alternatively, you can set up your shop by completing the onboarding process from your Commerce Manager Dashboard, under the label Commerce Accounts. The required information will be the same as what’s requested through the Instagram app.
And there you have it. You have officially set up your Instagram Shop featuring the merch from your Streamlabs merch store. You can now begin selling and promoting your merch directly to your Instagram followers!