Once upon a time, you could only tag products in your Instagram posts if you were a business or possessed a creator account. But Meta (formerly Facebook) really, really wants to turn the platform into a one-stop-shop. One they can scrape commission off the top of. In the interest of a future with better advertising (for Meta to exploit), the social network is throwing the ability to tag products to everyone.

As long as ‘everyone’ lives in the US, at least for now. We fully expect Instagram’s change to go global eventually. In the future, everyone will be an unpaid product promotion specialist. That’s just where the world is heading if Meta has anything to say about it.

Instagram’s instant ad-reach

Tagging a product is exactly like tagging any other person or account on the platform. First, you’ll tag the brand concerned, and then there’s an option to “Tag products”. Select that option, tap the product in your image, and then choose the relevant product to add. Boom. Instant advertising (that you won’t be getting paid for).

And that’s confirmed. Meta spokesperson Anne Yeh, speaking to The Verge, said that influencers — established or wannabe — won’t make any money from tagging brands’ products. There is a new affiliate program in testing that will allow influencers to “…receive commission payments based on the total sales you drive for a brand.” Because that’s not exploitative at all.

The new Instagram feature is rolling out over the next few months. Businesses will also have some influence over the process, though. They are notified when users tag their items, while brands can also opt to turn product tagging off entirely. That applies to everyone on the platform — there doesn’t seem to be any way to selectively choose who gets to give them free advertising.

Source: The Verge