Instagram is expanding its e-commerce platform for creators, making it easier for them to sell their branded merchandise and creating what Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg calls a “creator middle class.”
Certain users could sell products directly on Instagram for a little while now, but this expansion will bring full “creator shops” and a “branded content marketplace,” according to Engadget.
That marketplace feature would help influencers and high-profile Instagram users with potential sponsors, giving them more opportunities to monetize themselves and their sponsors, thus creating that “creator middle class” Zuckerberg referenced.
Content creators on Instagram will soon be able to earn money by recommending products on the platform's marketplace.@instagramhttps://t.co/gGClf0S5yD
— Tech2 (@tech2eets) April 28, 2021
“We’re not building this from the perspective of us trying to make a lot of money,” Zuckerberg said during the live stream announcement.
Rival social media platforms like TikTok have gone all in on helping their creators monetize their content through merchandise. And that popularity has translated into real-world collaborations, too, such as Dunkin’s co-branded merchandise drop with TikTok superstar Charli D’Amelio.
It seems like Zuckerberg and the rest of the Instagram brass knows that if they don’t give their creators a platform that they feel adequately benefits them, they can easily take their business elsewhere.
What that means is that the competition, too, will continue to try to out-do one another to be the most merchandise-friendly platform as influencers become more than just the sources of a chuckle or a recipe. That’s a good thing for content creators and the companies that provide their merchandise.
