• by Colin Kirkland , March 23, 2022

Instagram announced on Tuesday that all users will now be able to tag products in all their posts, beginning with users in the U.S.

This eCommerce feature was previously accessible only to approved creators on the platform, but now everyone can include a direct product-link in their uploads.

The Meta-owned company says this eCommerce expansion will help people easily discover products from the people they already follow, along with businesses that are looking to grow their audience on the platform. 

In an email to TechCrunch, Instagram provided an example of what this update might look like: “Scored a new pair of earrings from a small business you love? Tag the product in your Feed post so your friends and followers can learn more about the earrings and shop them.”

Making product-tagging available to all users could give businesses a free boost, as business owners will receive a notification when someone tags their products, and will also be able to view all tagged content on their profile. 

To prevent negative tagging, or trolling, brands will be able to control who can tag their products, with the ability to remove tags of their items.

According to Instagram, over 1.6 million users already tag at least one brand on average each week. This update will likely increase this number, while also keeping pace with evolving consumer behaviors and inspiring more transactions within the app.

Instagram has spent the last two years advancing its eCommerce focus. In 2020, it launched a redesigned Shop tab, where users can browse and buy products from brands and creators. In 2021, the company introduced Drops, a feature inside the Shop tab that alerts users to the latest product releases, which can be purchased directly through the app.