If you run an e-commerce site and have a Facebook Page, you can combine the two and start selling your products directly through Facebook. Read on to learn about the advantages and disadvantages of doing so and how you can set it up for your business.
How do I sell on Facebook?
Facebook supports having a shop on your Facebook Page. This will import products from your e-commerce shop, allowing you to immediately populate your Facebook page with all your products and all their data from your e-commerce site. Your products, along with images, prices and more will all be pulled across and be made available to sell on Facebook.
Pros
You can also change your default page template to a shop template under your Facebook Page settings. This will alter the design of your page to increase product visibility and better accommodate your business page as a storefront.
Cons
Your e-commerce software must be compatible with Facebook for this to work. If you are using well-established e-commerce software such as Magento, Shopify or Woocommerce, there are either built-in options or plugins available to make it work. If not, you will have to get in touch with a software developer to assist you.
Why should I sell on Facebook?
Facebook makes it easy to sell your products directly on Facebook, but it’s important to consider whether this is a good idea for your business or not.
Pros
It allows you to establish another online storefront on a very popular website. Business owners will know how much time and effort goes into marketing and promoting your website. Facebook helps get your products onto peoples’ screens and get you noticed.
Cons
On the downside, you lose some level of control over your business. You can still control things like product prices and descriptions, but part of the customer journey will now be routed through Facebook. Any advanced tracking or desired steps in your customer journey will now be split.
Conclusion
If you don’t already have an established e-commerce site, a Facebook shop can be a very cheap and cost-effective way to set one up without requiring much technical knowledge. Once your business is established, however, it’s likely that you will want some level of business presence outside of just Facebook itself for your customers to visit.
