Insta-gratification How Instagram is shaking up online shopping

What if there was a way to shop online, in the comfort of your own home, without ever having to leave your Instagram feed?

’m no stranger to online shopping; in fact, I prefer it. And I know what some of you may be thinking: ‘What about the fit and quality? Are my credit card details safe? Oh, and what if I want to return my goods?’

Online shopping can seem daunting, and these are all valid concerns. I hear you. But please indulge me in hearing out the potential benefits you may experience.

Think about it: gone are the days of sitting in traffic on the way to your closest mall, and in-store music played loud enough to induce anxiety and possible hearing impairment. And the best part? Saying goodbye to those mirrors; the ones that always manage to make you question any ounce of self-confidence you may have had. Yes, online shopping is my preferred method of spending my hard-earned cash.

I speak for myself, and I’m sure many of you, when I say I’m grateful for the merge between the Internet and consumerism, because now we have the pleasure of shopping whenever we want, wherever we want. Not convinced yet? Allow me to guide you through the malls of today. They’re right in front of us, meaning we don’t even have to leave the comfort of our own home and, as of this year, our favourite apps. You guessed it: I’m talking about shopping on Instagram.

The bigger the brand, the more established it is and the more presence it has on your feed. Most posts are now shoppable – you can’t unsee the small shopping-bag icon in the bottom left-hand corner – meaning we can tap to view products. Doing so usually redirects shoppers to an online store where they can shop. The problem is, we’d rather keep scrolling down our feed.

This year, Instagram has changed this by officially levelling up with in-app shopping. “Instead of having to navigate the clunky mobile web, you can now check out your shopping directly on Instagram,” says Ashley Yuki, the product management lead on the new feature. Supporting brands include Nike, MAC Cosmetics, H&M, adidas and Zara. The feature has only just launched abroad, giving us South Africans time to wrap our heads around it.

Do you like the idea of shopping via the ’Gram? Let’s delve into the Insta boutiques that keep popping up on our browsers.