Instagram is going to make money if it can get you to buy products via its platform. To aid shoppers who might want to buy something that they’ve come across on Instagram the Facebook-owned company is introducing shoppable photo tags. They will enable users to buy stuff on Instagram without having their scrolling being interrupted by a browser window.
Shoppable tags from 20 retail brands like Kate Spade and JackThreads are being rolled out today to users in the United States who are on an iOS device. Retailers will add these tags to these posts and users can tap on them to reveal more information about the product such as its description, price, and additional photos.
A “Shop Now” button will then materialize which only requires a tap to enable users to purchase what they want to right off of Instagram. The photo-sharing service isn’t going to take a cut of the purchases from sellers, it’s going to monetize this by allowing brands to make their shoppable posts visible to people who don’t even follow them.
Facebook’s VP of monetization James Quarles has said that the company is gradually going to expand shoppable tags to photo carousels, videos and that it’s going to go live in additional countries across the globe at some point down the road.