Instagram is testing home feeds without a store tab, marking a shift in the way the platform handles ecommerce.
Some Instagram users (including some of us here on) The edge) have noticed in recent days that the Shopping tab, formerly on the bottom navigation bar, has been replaced with a Notifications tab. Shopping, meanwhile, has moved to a second menu, buried between options like settings and saved messages.
Meta spokesperson Anne Yeh confirmed the changes as part of a limited test.
“As part of our ongoing work to simplify your Instagram experience, we’re testing a few changes to the main navigation bar at the bottom of the app with a small number of people,” Yeh says.
Moving the tab is a conscious decision by Instagram as the company is moving away from store features. Earlier this month, The information reported Instagram is making a change in e-commerce, including eliminating the button that leads to the store page in March 2023, according to an internal memo. Instead, Instagram shopping will focus more on boosting Meta’s ad revenue, The information reported, and the platform will test a less personalized shopping page called “Tab Lite”.
In recent years, Instagram has added features such as the Store tab in an effort to make the platform a place where users buy the products they see in their feed without leaving the app. And while many users use Instagram as a way to discover new brands and products, it’s unclear how successful the store page once was.
Still, Meta has continued to roll out new features around shopping, including an update to messaging that allows business owners to handle customer service via DMs.
“Commerce will continue to be important to Instagram as we continue to make it easier for people to discover and shop through the app, from feeds, stories, reels and innovations such as live shopping and drops,” said Meta’s Yeh.
How to make money shopping is a question that other platforms have also tried to figure out, with varying degrees of success. TikTok has been experimenting with product pages and live shopping, the latter of which is wildly popular in China but reportedly failed to take off in Europe, leading the company to backtrack on expansion plans. Twitter, meanwhile, has introduced features like product release reminders and a shopping module for brands to showcase what they’re selling, though internal documents suggested updates were rolled out hastily and involved content moderation risks.
Janice has been with businesskinda for 5 years, writing copy for client websites, blog posts, EDMs and other mediums to engage readers and encourage action. By collaborating with clients, our SEO manager and the wider businesskinda team, Janice seeks to understand an audience before creating memorable, persuasive copy.