Compared to IGTV , which has been slow to take off, IG Shopping might experience more success. For many creators, IGTV became yet another place they needed to post content, and the unknowns of creating for a vertical video format didn't help. Meanwhile, IG Shopping would likely require minimal extra work from businesses who are already active on Instagram and could serve as an important marketplace to reach millennial and Gen Z customers. However, it would need to compete with other apps that have sprung up in recent years, such as LiketoKnow.i t, which has a strong user base of top influencers and enables their followers to shop looks via screenshots.<doc-sep>For its next trick, Instagram may be planning to launch a standalone app specifically for shopping. The Verge reported Sep. 5 that “IG Shopping” (which users will have to download separately from the main Instagram app) will allow people to browse items from businesses and merchants they follow, and buy them directly within the app. Instagram declined to comment. The Facebook-owned app’s move into social commerce—a space that involves directly purchasing things on social networks—is largely unsurprising. According to Facebook’s last earnings report, Instagram’s existing merchant community is robust, with over 25 million businesses already on the platform, and 80% of users already following at least one business account. Insta users have also likely seen that it’s been testing an in-app shopping feature since November 2016, which allows merchants to tag products so users can buy straight from a photo. It’s also testing the ability to buy things straight from Instagram Stories. Facebook has tried in vain to foster a social shopping presence with its struggling Marketplace, the Craigslist-like section of its main app. But with its robust community of indie and designer brands—and the influencers that wear them—it appears that Instagram may be better poised to build a competitive social commerce community. And it’s a lucrative trend to get in front of, with a report from digital research firm Avionos noting that 55% of today’s consumers have purchased something via social media. This isn’t the first companion app Instagram has released. Over the years, it’s introduced standalone tools for editing photos, like Boomerang, Hyperlapse and Layout, and more recently it launched IGTV, its foray into long-form video streaming. But we’ll have to see whether consumers are ready to abandon the ease of e-commerce retailers like Amazon for a brand new app.<doc-sep>Instagram is reportedly building a new app exclusively for shopping. The Verge says, according to its sources, the new app might be called IG Shopping. Users will be able to view products from brands they follow on the main Instagram app and make purchases directly within IG Shopping. Instagram has declined to comment on this new app, but The Verge says it has two sources that have corroborated this story. With that said, details are limited at this point. It’s not known when the app might launch, though it would no doubt be a boon to online retailers if it launched in time for the holiday shopping season. Brands already have the ability to indirectly sell products through Instagram by tagging photos with links to product pages. When users tap on a product tag it opens up a new page in Instagram’s in-app browser where the sale can then be completed. Instagram also rolled out a feature this past June which lets brands sell products in stories. Neither of these features offer the most seamless experience, however, as users still have to create separate accounts on each of the brands’ websites. It sounds like Instagram is looking to improve the e-commerce experience by letting users buy from multiple brands with one single IG Shopping account. Advertisement Continue Reading Below In turn, this could lead to more sales for brands on Instagram. Numbers show that Instagram has the user base to support an app like IG Shopping. According to Facebook’s most recent earnings call, over 25 million businesses have Instagram accounts, and four in five users follow at least one business.<doc-sep>If you're a late night Instagram scroller and have made purchases based on photos you saw in your feed, we have great news for you. According to sources at The Verge, Instagram will soon be debuting "IG Shopping," a standalone app dedicated solely to browsing and shopping all in one place. Although Instagram declined to comment on the reports, sources say that the social media company believes it can greatly expand into e-commerce. It's currently unknown when the app, which is reportedly still in development, could launch, according to The Verge. It's also possible it could be cancelled before it releases. Georgie Hunter Getty Images This content is imported from {embed-name}. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site. Since launching in 2010, Instagram has over 1 billion users, and according to Instagram, over 15 million of those users are registered as businesses. Those accounts will likely benefit most from these shopping upgrades. In 2016, Instagram debuted their first shoppable "tags," which "bring important product information to the consumer earlier in the journey, all without having to leave the Instagram app to search," said Instagram Business. NurPhoto Getty Images Instagram recently debuted another new feature, IGTV, June, in an effort to overtake the video content usually uploaded on YouTube. IGTV does have its own standalone app, but its videos are also available to view in-app on Instagram. "It’s built for how you actually use your phone, so videos are full screen and vertical. Also, unlike on Instagram, videos aren’t limited to one minute. Instead, each video can be up to an hour long," said co-founder and CEO Kevin Systrom upon the release of IGTV. "Instagram has always been a place to connect with the people who inspire, educate and entertain you every day," he added. "With your help, IGTV begins a new chapter of video on Instagram. We hope it brings you closer to the people and things you love." This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io<doc-sep>
Instagram is working on a new standalone app dedicated to shopping, The Verge has learned. The app — which may be called IG Shopping — will let users browse collections of goods from merchants that they follow and purchase them directly within the app, according to two people familiar with the matter. Instagram declined to comment. It could not be learned when the app might launch. Its development is still ongoing, and it could be canceled before it is released. But sources familiar with its development say Instagram believes it is well positioned to make a major expansion into e-commerce. More than 25 million businesses already have Instagram accounts, and 2 million of them are advertisers, Facebook Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg said on the company’s most recent earnings call. Four in five Instagram users follow at least one business. Creating a standalone app would allow the company to provide a dedicated home for an increasingly popular activity on Instagram while also expanding opportunities for revenue. Over time, Facebook could introduce more tools for merchants who are building their businesses on Instagram, directly challenging e-commerce platforms like Shopify, according to a person familiar with the company’s thinking. Most online businesses need an Instagram account already, the thinking goes; many of them would surely use paid business tools if they became available. Some companies already sell such tools to Instagram advertisers. Four Sixty, for example, lets businesses pay for help creating shoppable photo galleries, content moderation, post scheduling, and other services. Shopify’s app store contains dozens of plugins related to promoting and managing Instagram-based businesses. Instagram began testing a shopping feature in November in 2016, and rolled it out more broadly in March of last year. Companies can tag posts with individual products, allowing users to shop directly from photos. Instagram is currently testing a feature that lets users shop from Instagram stories. Shopping would not be the first Instagram feature to be spun out into a standalone app. The company has been testing Direct, a new messaging app, since last December. In June it introduced IGTV, a YouTube competitor that puts vertically shot videos into their own app.