With the rise in available online resources for selling products, becoming an entrepreneur is more possible than ever.
Let’s face it—Facebook isn’t just for being instant messaged at midnight by people from high school you hoped to never talk to again. And Instagram is more than pictures of food (although it was fine when it was just pictures of food, to be honest).
But now, you can use Facebook and Instagram to grow your own business, build your brand, and sell your products, all from your social media pages.
Who knew that aside from physical products to sell, social media would one day be all you needed to be your own boss?
Do I need Shopify to sell on Instagram and Facebook?
You can sell on Instagram and Facebook without using Shopify. Facebook has a new feature that allows you to advertise and sell projects without the use of an eCommerce platform. Once you have your Facebook catalog set up, you can begin selling your products on Facebook.
You can also create tagged posts on Instagram that link directly to the products in your Facebook catalog.
Is Shopify Required for Advertising on Facebook and Instagram?
While a lot of eCommerce sellers choose to use a third-party eCommerce platform like Shopify, this isn’t the only way to advertise your products.
Facebook now has an advertising feature built-in, which gives you the ability to post ads to your business Facebook as well as to your Instagram.
With Facebook Ad Manager, you can now:
Create Ad Campaigns
Ad Manager gives you a step-by-step process to make your ads.
From here, you can also choose your marketing objective, your target audience, and where to feature your ad.
Manage Multiple Ads
You can adjust the settings (such as budget, target market, etc.) to many ads at once.
This saves you time and headache when making changes to your account.
Keep an Eye on Your Ads
Facebook Ad Manager tracks data on each of your ads and allows you to view it. This way, you can tweak your campaigns to make sure you’re reaching a wider audience and getting as many views as possible.
And Much More!
Facebook Ad Manager also helps you choose your target market based on location, demographics (such as age, gender, job title), interests, behavior (like prior purchases and device usage), and connections.
This way, you’re not wasting your resources sending ads to the wrong viewers.
While you can advertise and sell your products using only Facebook and Instagram, some sellers choose to use an eCommerce platform. Shopify allows sellers to have a more streamlined process than if you’re just using Facebook and Instagram.
Shopify offers customizable websites so you can easily build your brand, even if you’re a rookie to web design. Shopify also manages your marketing, payments, and shipping options, so everything you need is found in one place.
However, there are monthly subscription costs to Shopify, which vary based on which Shopify package you choose. You can consider this your “rent,” if you think in terms that apply to have a physical store.
But if you want to cut extra costs, especially when you’ve only just begun to sell, it’s okay to stick with the resources available on Facebook and Instagram.
For more information on Shopify, visit our article, “Do I Own My Shopify Website & Data?”
Should I Be Promoting My Shopify Store on Facebook and Instagram?
Facebook and Instagram are excellent platforms to advertise your online store because they allow you to:
Generate Traffic from Engaged Users
Facebook has over 2 billion active monthly users, making it prime real estate for advertising.
Reach Target Demographics with Shared Interests
That little “Like” button doesn’t just offer moral support to your friends’ clever status updates and their puppy adoption announcement photos.
It’s also an excellent way for advertisements to be tailored to reach users who are most likely to respond to those ads based on their interests and preferences.
Grow Your Brand Recognition
When you use paid ads on social media, you can set them, so they lead viewers to your website.
This means brand exposure for your business, which means new followers, which means? That’s right — more potential revenue for your shop.
For more information on Shopify, visit our article, “Do I Need Shopify to Sell on Instagram and Facebook?”
What do I Need to Sell on Instagram and Facebook?
If you choose to sell on Facebook and Instagram without going through a third-party eCommerce platform (such as Shopify), you need:
- A Physical Product to Sell – Unfortunately, whether you’re using Shopify or not, these platforms are not set up for the sale of digital merchandise.
- A Facebook Page for your Shop – Use the Shopping template to set this up.
- A Valid Email Address – You’ll need this in order to startup your shop.
Can I Sell Directly on Facebook and Instagram Without a Website?
If you’re just getting started with your online store, the good news is that you can sell your products without first building a website from scratch. However, there are benefits to having an official webpage.
Selling solely from Facebook and Instagram means that your advertising is limited to those two platforms, so you may not be able to spread your brand as far as you’d like.
But it is a good way to get a new online shop up and running on a small budget.
Selling on Facebook
To start selling directly from Facebook, follow a few simple steps:
- Set up a Facebook Business page
- Add a Store section to your page
- Add your products – Facebook has a feature called “Facebook Catalog,” where you can upload all of your products for easy access. Plus, when you’re ready to advertise, you can link directly to the catalog to make shopping quick and easy
- Manage your products – This means that if you have any product specifications, like size and color, you can enter all of these details for your customers to browse
- Set up your payment options – Facebook is compatible with Credit, Debit, and PayPal
- Set up your shipping options
- Hit “Save.”
Your online shop is now live!
Selling on Instagram
To sell from Instagram, you need to start out by having your FacebookBusiness page up and running, as well as your Facebook Catalog.
So if you’ve already completed the steps above, you’re off to a good start.
The next step to selling on Instagram is to create shoppable posts. Not too long ago, the only way to attach a link on Instagram was to post it in the bio of your profile.
If you’re trying to boost online sales, this is a problem. If a customer has to take too many steps to find your website and view the product that caught their eye, you will probably lose the sale.
With shoppable posts, your customers can purchase your products with no searching, minimal clicks, and right from the Instagram app instead of being redirected.
To add shoppable posts on Instagram:
- Open your Instagram profile and select “Settings.”
- From here, select “Business Settings.”
- Then select “Shopping.”
- Next, choose your Facebook Catalog and hit “Done.”
Now you can tag products directly from your catalog into your posts.
Do Facebook and Shopify Have a Partnership for Advertising?
Shopify allows you to access and manage your online store on a single platform. You can create, manage, and track your Facebook ad campaigns right from your Shopify platform.
Shopify will pull your product information and combine it with popular Facebook ad templates, so you can create your ads quickly and easily, and keep them on-brand.
Shopify will help you identify and advertise to your optimal target market.
Finally, Shopify keeps track of your campaign analytics to help you target your ads more efficiently every time.
Final Thoughts
You may want to subscribe to an eCommerce platform in the near future.
But while you’re still trying to figure out your business budget and how to make your best return on investment without investing too much too soon, Facebook and Instagram have the tools you need at the ready.
After all, who hasn’t made impulse purchases from shoppable posts in their Instagram feed?
If you can’t say you haven’t, then you know firsthand that you’ve got a good place to start selling.

