Influencers — and just about anyone else — can soon make their Instagram accounts shoppable

• Since 2018, Instagram has let approved brands and businesses sell products right from their profiles with shoppable posts and checkout features.
• Instagram announced Tuesday it was loosening the restrictions on who is eligible for Instagram Shopping.
• Starting July 9, any Instagram user with a business account (rather than a personal account) — including influencers and small sellers — can apply to Instagram Shopping.
• To be eligible, users have to comply with other criteria: That includes having a connected Facebook page, selling physical goods, and tagging products from a single website they sell from and personally own.

Millions 0f Instagram users will soon be eligible to make their posts shoppable and turn their accounts into small businesses.

Instagram $4 it will open up its Shopping features to a wider group, allowing everyone from influencers and small Etsy shop owners to sell products right off of their profile pages. Starting July 9, as long as you have a business account — rather than a personal account — you may be able to apply to use Instagram Shopping.

It's worth noting you have to apply, and be accepted, to take advantage of these Instagram Shopping features. Beyond having a business account (which you can switch your account to for free), $4 "primarily" sell physical goods, and users must connect their account to a Facebook Page and $4. Under the new requirements, eligible accounts must link out to products on a website they both sell from and own.

Today's expansion of the shoppable capabilities to more users could mean Instagram is trying to become a lucrative direct-to-consumer launchpad for influencers selling merchandise, one-person businesses starting out of their home, and even MLM sellers. If it's successful, Instagram could become a player in the industry, rivaling platforms like Etsy, Fanjoy, and Redbubble that independent sellers use.

This is the latest step Instagram is taking to turn its platform into a go-to place for brands, businesses, and influencers to make money. In $4, more than one-third of surveyed Instagram users said they had bought something directly from a shoppable ad on the platform. Brands have clamored to Instagram in recent years to take advantage of new e-commerce features on the platform that boasts well north of 1 billion users, as well as a $4.

Instagram $4 it was testing its shopping features with influencers and creators, allowing a select few to be able to link out to products in Stories and posts on their feeds and use the Checkout feature to purchase products directly within the app.

Instagram $4 as a way for users to browse, purchase, and order products from brands, exclusively, all without leaving the platform. This May, $4, which allows brands to build virtual storefronts into their accounts for an easier shopping experience.