For small E-commerce businesses, Instagram has become almost a standard. Etsy shops and surf shops alike have turned to the social media app to get their products in front of young users scrolling from photo to photo. But with selling on Instagram comes a new set of strategies.

If you’re looking to try adding social media to your sales strategy—or you’re looking to boost your numbers—we’ve outlined 5 steps to successful selling on Instagram. Consider this your quick-and-easy primer to help you get the sales your business deserves.

5 Steps to Successful Selling on Instagram

1. Define Your Target Demographic

Instagram content lives and dies by the algorithm, and understanding your target demographic will best allow you to tap into it. This is some direct response marketing 101, but it can work wonders for your sales in the long haul.

Age, gender, and income range make for a good start. But this is a great opportunity to go even further with Facebook’s robust targeting options. Don’t just focus on interests directly related to your product—for instance, camping gear. Look for related interests, like digital nomads, van living, or even wildlife.

2. Take Photos That Stand Out

The best marketing targeting in the world will not make up for poor images. It’s just not an option on Instagram. Without good photos, successful selling on Instagram will be a challenge.

Invest in photos that stand out. Curate a feed of high quality photography featuring your product and brand. This won’t just help your sales. This will help you grow and maintain followers.

3. Build Your Feed, Not Just Your Shop

Speaking of growing and maintaining followers… If you plan to sell on Instagram, you can’t rely on your shop alone. The bigger your audience, the more opportunities you have to place your brand and product in front of people on a repeat basis.

For an E-commerce brand, the sale is the ultimate goal of most of your marketing. But on Instagram, the funnel may start at your feed. Curating an interesting profile and utilizing features like Reels and Stories will ensure users have more to look at than just what’s on sale.

4. Use Your Posts to A/B Test

Social media, and Instagram in particular, offers a unique option when it comes to testing out new messaging. Here’s why. Pairing photography and new messaging or CTAs is a lot easier when you have 3-7 posts going out each week.

Some will get lost in the feed, and others won’t. But try out different and new messaging. If you’ve done your work curating your audience to your target demo, you can use your post performance to help guide changes on your site or on your E-commerce listings—on and off Instagram.

5. Give Yourself an Ad Budget

If you’re starting out selling on Instagram, you may need a jolt to kick things off. Even if you’ve announced your new shop on Instagram, you can still benefit from an ad budget.

To build your Instagram shop or following, try putting some money behind your efforts. From a general followers campaign to promoting certain posts or products, test out an ad budget and give your E-commerce strategy a leg up.

Selling on Instagram: As Easy as You Make It

When you’re new to it, selling on Instagram can seem a little intimidating. But by applying your E-commerce knowledge to a new platform, you can boost your sales numbers and grow your followers in a whole new way.