Breaking News: Instagram Shop Tab Ads Are Here!

We have a social media update for you guys! Instagram is testing out ads on the Shop tab.

Have you seen this yet?

Now we’re not talking about ads on Instagram Shops. Those have been around for a while now, we’ve made posts about that and that’s different.

The ads we’re talking about here are ads that appear on the Shop tab within Instagram.

So stick around as we’re sharing everything there is to know so far about this new Instagram Shop tab ads update.

Let’s get started!

What Are Instagram Shop Tab Ads?

On August 9th, Instagram began testing out ads on the Shop tabs with a select few US brands.

Some of the initial brands Instagram is partnering with to test this out (that we know of) are:

Because the rest of us don’t have access yet, and since we haven’t seen an ad on the Shop tab yet in our scrolling…

…we don’t yet have a clear vision of how all of this will roll out.

But we can tell you what we do know.

The idea is that when you’re on the Shop tab scrolling through, ads will appear somewhere throughout this feed with shoppable items.

And this, with the sponsored text, is the only example we’ve seen from Instagram on how they will look in this feed.

The tiles will contain shoppable items like this.

They provide descriptions about the item, the price, and any options the users need to choose between (like sizing).

From there, the user can add the item to cart, buy now, or scroll down to shop other items from the same shop.

How Will You Be Able To Run These Ads?

We have a few things to say on this…

…but if you want to know the secrets on how to boost your social media advertising, then check out our new social media ads webinar here.

So now back to shop tab ads, though we don’t have access yet to see…

…we’re assuming the Shop tab will just become a new placement under the Instagram platform in Ads Manager that you can select to run ads on.

We haven’t yet heard which campaign objectives will be available though.

But the placement of Reels ads is the newest in Instagram advertising, and the objectives compatible with that are:

So we’ll be curious to see which campaign objectives are compatible with the Instagram shop tab.

Now unlike the new Reels ads, which have been officially launched, these Instagram Shop tab ads are still in testing.

So, don’t expect to see access to this placement in your Ads Manager for a little while.

But of course, we’ll keep you posted on our blog with any new updates.

How Is This Going To Affect Your Business?

If you’re an eCommerce store, this update is going to be huge.

If you’ve been following along with our new Instagram updates over the last year or so, you know that IG has been pushing all of its shopping features.

And this is just one more tool for eCommerce store owners to utilize.

Prior to this update, there was already a statistic out there that said 130 million Instagram users tap on shopping posts every month.

So users are already shopping on the platform.

We’ve said in other posts that we think Instagram has been slowly and successfully shifting the way people view Instagram.

We mean the head of Instagram, just over a month ago, said: “We are no longer just a photo-sharing app.”

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And it’s because they are really trying to push video and eCommerce, and it’s working!

So since people are already using Instagram to make purchases…

…the new Shop tab ads will just give business owners extra reach to tap into that, and put their products in front of more targeted buyers.

It’s also worth noting that we’re also not surprised at the timing of these new Instagram ads.

With the holiday season right around the corner, people are already Christmas shopping.

And we think Instagram knows what they’re doing by expanding their eCommerce tools right before we head into Q4.

So what do you guys think about this new feature?

Now if you don’t want to wait for this new Instagram Shop tab ads, and you want to take your Instagram ads to the next level now…

…then work with our Instagram advertising company today.

Contact us at 404-596-7925 to get started!