Facebook Shop- the latest FREE tool for small business owners to sell online
On 19 May 2020, Facebook announced the rollout of the new product update called Facebook Shops.
Facebook Shops is a mobile-first shopping experience where businesses can easily create an online store on Facebook and Instagram for free. Shops let you choose which of your items you want to feature, merchandise with product collections, and tell your brand story with customizable fonts and colors. In Facebook Shops, you’ll be able to connect with customers through WhatsApp, Messenger or Instagram Direct to answer questions, offer support, and more.
According to the Small Business Report from Facebook. nearly a third have shut down. For the smallest businesses – those run by the self-employed or for personal income – the situation is worse. More than half are no longer operating.
Facebook Shops make it easy for businesses to set up a single online store for customers to access on both Facebook and Instagram. Creating a Facebook Shop is free and simple. Businesses can choose the products they want to feature from their catalog and then customize the look and feel of their shop with a cover image and accent colors that showcase their brand. This means any seller, no matter their size or budget, can bring their business online and connect with customers wherever and whenever it’s convenient for them.
People can find Facebook Shops on a business’ Facebook Page or Instagram profile, or discover them through stories or ads. From there, you can browse the full collection, save products you’re interested in and place an order — either on the business’ website or without leaving the app if the business has enabled checkout in the US
Facebook Shops is being rolled out as of 19th May 2020, and it will be more widely available in the coming months. You can learn more about how we built Shops with privacy in mind here and here.
In times to come more features across Facebook apps like Instagram Shop, live shopping, and more will be integrated with Facebook Shops to help customers discover products they’re interested in and make purchasing easier.
Instagram Shop: A New Place to Discover Products and Brands
This summer, starting in the US, Facebook is introducing Instagram Shop, a new way to discover and buy products you love in Instagram Explore. You can get inspired by collections from @shop, browse selections from your favorite brands and creators, filter by categories like beauty and home, and purchase the looks you love all in one place. And later this year, Facebook will be adding a new shop tab in the navigation bar, so you can get to Instagram Shop in just one tap.
Live Shopping Features
People have been using live video on Facebook apps to showcase products for years, from shoe stores announcing new sneakers to beauty influencers trying on different lipsticks. Now, they are making it easier to shop for products in real-time. Soon, sellers, brands, and creators will be able to tag products from their Facebook Shop or catalog before going live and those products will be shown at the bottom of the video so people can easily tap to learn more and purchase. Facebook is starting to test this with businesses on Facebook and Instagram and will roll it out more broadly in the coming months.
To learn how to set up Facebook Shop you can go here.
What does a small business Owner need to Know about this new feature?
The same shop across all platforms — Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Messenger, and Insta DMs.
AI systems create personalized recommendations for your customers: An “Open Ecosystem”: People can buy on an Instagram/Facebook Live. You can import your store from platforms like Shopify into your Facebook Store.
Where do automated conversations play a role?
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