13th January 2023
POV: Instagram Removes Shop Tab
Background:
Instagram has announced a home screen refresh, rolling out in February, that will remove the Shop tab and reinstate the Compose button at the centre of the bottom navigation bar.
Details and Implications:
Instagram is scaling back its plans to make Instagram a shopping destination and put more focus back on content creation. The company has announced plans to simplify its in-app navigation after a series of confusing and controversial layout changes were made to prioritise features like Instagram Shop and Reels over Compose. Many users felt this detracted from the overall user experience and forced them to use the app’s new products.
The Instagram Shop tab was introduced along with the Reels tab in 2020 during the pandemic, as there was the belief that more people would be willing to buy online and that the Shop tab would be a great opportunity for small businesses to reach new customers. While this is true, the Shop Tab hasn’t become as popular with users as had been hoped.
The latest refresh, coming in February, will see the Shop tab removed entirely and the Compose button returning front and centre of the navigation bar at the bottom of the app. This means that the Reels button will lose its prime spot and move to the right of the Compose button. The company said the update would make it easier for people to “share and connect with their friends and interests”.
The update isn’t entirely unexpected. Tests late last year saw the Instagram Shop tab removed from some users’ home screens and in September, The Information reported that Instagram was shifting its efforts from e-commerce back to the advertising business.
However, shopping features will not be removed entirely from Instagram. The company has been clear that it will continue to invest in the shopping experience within the Instagram app for people and businesses. Instagram’s Adam Mosseri explained that shopping will still exist in your feed: “You’ll still be able to set up and run your shop on Instagram as we continue to invest in shopping experiences that provide the most value for people and businesses across feed, stories, reels, ads and more.”
Summary:
In-stream shopping, particularly live shopping, is hugely popular in China and other parts of Asia, but the trend hasn’t caught on with Western audiences so far. Instagram isn’t completely closing the door on in-app shopping but at the moment, the interest from its users is not there and this latest design refresh to restore focus on content creation reflects this.