Outstanding Ecommerce Apps to Boost Your Instagram Sales

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Karen Lin

Instagram Tips | Nov 12, 2021

Want More Real Instagram Followers?

Nothing beats regularly posting content to keep your Instagram followers up-to-date on what’s going on with your business — your latest offers, available promos, and discounts, upcoming deals and products, etc. publishing your own content or sharing somebody else’s is also a great way to keep your followers engaged by giving them a source of good information, inspiration, and/or joy. 

Outstanding Ecommerce Apps to Boost Your Instagram Sales

Published content, however, also has its limitations. For businesses, one of the biggest constraints to growth is the unclickable nature of links posted alongside captions or in the comments. You can promote a new product through your content, for example, and you can even post a direct product link with the caption, but your followers won’t be able to click on it. If they’re really determined, they can copy and paste it to their browser; but this is just too much trouble for most users. 

A good alternative is to post the link in your bio — the only place where you can have an active external link. You can then direct your followers to the link in your bio via the caption of your published content. However, this means you’ll always have to update the link on your bio every time you want to promote something new on your feed. 

This might sound like a practical solution; but remember that while you keep changing the links in your bio to stay consistent with your latest content, your previous posts will still show the previous links — which have already been replaced in your bio. Obviously, this can create a lot of confusion for your followers, and you may end up losing potential sales! 

Fortunately, you have other options to successfully channel these potential customers towards the appropriate product page on your website or your website home page straight from your Instagram post!

Spreesy

With this app, followers who provide their email address when they comment on your post will automatically receive an email with the direct product link. 

Outstanding Ecommerce Apps to Boost Your Instagram Sales

How does Spreesy work?

Simply upload your image on Instagram and include #spreesy in the caption. Alongside the product/image description, you should also invite your followers to post a comment with their email addresses so they can receive a secure checkout link. 

Spreesy serves as a third-party marketplace; the links emailed to your potential customers will take them to Spreesy’s online store, where they can purchase your linked product/s. Available payment options are through credit card or PayPal. 

What do you need to do?

Download the app and sign up to create your account. You’ll use Spreesy to publish your images on Instagram. Using the service is free; however, they’ll earn a 3% commission for every sale made through them. 

What is required from your potential customers?

They won’t have to create a Spreesy account or register anywhere else. All they need to do is provide their email address when they comment on your post. As an additional perk, you may also add #subscribe to your caption so those who shared their email addresses will receive an email notification with a link each time you publish something new on your Instagram feed. 

Are there any disadvantages?

Some users may not want to share their email addresses in the comments section, which is typically open to the public. They can always delete it after they’ve completed their purchase, but this may seem like too much trouble. For businesses, directing your potential customers to Spreesy’s online store instead of to your own website may affect relevant Instagram metrics, particularly for sponsored posts. 

LikeToKnow.it

Outstanding Ecommerce Apps to Boost Your Instagram Sales

Vogue Magazine was one of the first brands to use this app on Instagram to monetize their posts. The app is widely popular among many influencers and bloggers. Your followers who have registered with the app and “like” any of your published images linked to the app will receive a checkout link via their email. 

How does LikeToKnow.it work?

When you post your image on Instagram, include #liketkit and the username @liketoknow.it in your caption. 

What do you need to do?

Whether you’re a blogger, influencer, or a business, you must first apply to become a member of RewardStyle — which is the company that manages the app. Take note that there is a selection process; acceptance to the platform will depend on the information you’ll have to provide during your application, including your website or blog’s launch date, post frequency per month, the type of content you publish, your number of followers (for Instagram) or unique users, page views, other social media platforms where you are present, your target audience, etc.

What is required from your potential customers?

Your followers/potential customers will have to sign up for a LikeToKnow.it accounts; they’ll be asked to provide their email address where they’d like to receive the links to your featured products. When they “like” any of your posts with #liketkit and @liketoknow.it in the caption, they’ll receive the direct product link via email, along with up to 6 clickable thumbnails of similar or related products. Clicking on any of the thumbnails will take them to your brand’s sales landing page.  

Are there any disadvantages?

Perhaps the number one drawback of this app is that brands have to meet certain criteria to become a member of RewardStyle and gain access to the LikeToKnow.it platform. If you’re new on Instagram, you’ll have to have a big enough follower base and a decent engagement rate to get approved. If you need help in this department, you should sign up with a reliable growth service such as Path Social. 

Again, as you will be posting your images via a third-party app and as your potential customers will be redirected back to the app, your engagement rates on Instagram will likely suffer. 

Wearisma

You can make your images on Instagram shoppable by using the hashtag #LiveYourLike in your captions. When your followers “like” the featured image, they’ll receive an email with the direct product link. 

Outstanding Ecommerce Apps to Boost Your Instagram Sales

How does Wearisma work?

Post your image with the hashtag #LiveYourLike in the caption. Don’t forget a call to action, such as “Sign up at @wearisma to buy!”

What do you have to do?

You will have to submit an application to use the platform; membership approval is not automatic, however. 

What is required from your potential customers?

They will have to register with Wearisma using their Instagram account and provide an email address. When they “like” your post with the Wearisma hashtag #LiveYourLike, they will receive the product link via email. All the featured products they “liked” on Instagram will also be added to their Wearisma wishlist. The app also offers discount codes that members can use when purchasing any Wearisma-affiliated brand. 

Are there any disadvantages?  

Membership and access to the platform are not automatic. Additionally, the app is not transparent when it comes to its terms and conditions, including the commissions they charge. 

Final Thoughts  

Making your published images on Instagram shoppable can make a huge difference in your sales numbers. There’s always the disadvantage of risking the downtrend of your engagement and other relevant metrics; but if increased revenue is your priority and if you already have a big enough following on Instagram, using any of these eCommerce apps can give you more advantages than disadvantages. 

If you’re still looking to grow your Instagram account organically, check out Path Social — the best path towards organic and lasting growth. 

And there you have it! And remember that in order to get great sales numbers, you will need to have a healthy Instagram following as well.  If you’re really serious about growing your Instagram and get on a fast-track path to becoming Instagram famous, you can also check out Simplygram.com, where you can sign up for a free trial of our Instagram growth service to help you get started.