The end of Facebook and Instagram stores in Portugal - for now

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Instagram Shopping

On April 27, 2023, the Target has announced a change in its Social Commerce. The aim is to prevent redirects to external sites, thus prohibiting the creation of stores that don't have a checkout system within the social networks themselves. That said, they will also deactivate stores that do not comply with this point. However, there will still be countries that can continue to use this tool.

With the exception of Germany, Denmark, Spain, France, Italy, Norway, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Sweden, Switzerland and Ukraine, as of August 10, 2023, businesses with a store on Facebook or Instagram will no longer be able to use the store tool on Facebook and Instagram, unless it has an active check out option (as is the case in the USA).

These businesses will see their access to stores, identification of products in publications (reels or stories) and creation of personalized or similar audiences restricted. However, the product catalog can still be used for advertisements, as a solution that allows new/habitual customers to discover the products of a particular brand.

These restrictions will apply if the profile responsible for the Merchant Account is located in Portugal (which is probably the case for most pages in Portugal).

Still, any business that has a store with Facebook/Instagram checkout activated in the US will still be able to access their store, regardless of the location of the merchant account.

Facebook Marketplace

In addition, starting this summer, the Stores will offer an enhanced experience for people located in Europe with the aim of broadening product discovery. Some functionalities, such as the Wish List, Online Shop and Collections, will no longer be available to users in these locations, in order to simplify and optimize the shopping experience.

However, regardless of the region, Meta encourages companies to use a combination of free and paid resources to find potential customers and boost sales:

- Reels: short video content that appears in the feed of people who don't yet follow a particular brand.

- Messages: Establish direct contact with the client / potential client through ads that redirect them directly to Whatsapp, Messenger or Instagram.

- Personalized ads: Maximize budget efficiency through the strategic use of personalized ads, establishing connections with customers based on interests.

If you own a Page that will no longer have a store option on Instagram or Facebook, it's essential to rethink and restructure your business strategy. We know this change can be challenging, but we're ready to offer you all the support you need!

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