After a period of uncertainty, it's finally here! Facebook and Instagram Shopping are officially back in Belgium. For many retailers, the summer of 2023 still felt like a cold shower. At the time, Meta (the parent company of Facebook and Instagram) suddenly shut down all Shops in our country because Belgian web shops could not meet the in-app checkout requirement. The result? Companies could no longer tag products in their posts, Stories or Reels. The popular product tags that were once a powerful sales tool disappeared overnight. Only ads with product tags remained.
Meta (the parent company of Facebook and Instagram) suddenly disabled all Shops in our country in 2023 because Belgian webshops could not comply with the requirement that customers had to checkout their purchases entirely within Facebook and Instagram's apps, rather than on the webshop itself. The result? Companies could no longer tag products in their posts, Stories or Reels. The popular product tags that were once a powerful sales tool disappeared overnight. Only ads with product tags remained.
Fast forward to 2025: Meta reversed its restrictions on Shops in many markets for 2023 and is moving away from requiring checkout in the app. That means that as a Belgian retailer, you can re-activate a Shop through the Meta Commerce Manager and tag your products in your content again. An important nuance: product tags are again available today in Instagram feedposts, Stories and Facebook posts, as well as in ads, of course. The only component missing for now are the organic Reels tags that Meta does not yet work with in Belgium.
For retailers, this is a huge opportunity. The features you may have been using since 2018 disappeared in 2023, but now, two years later, they have largely been restored. It's an opportunity to relaunch your social commerce and lead your customers on their favorite platforms directly to your products.
Instagram Shopping is your virtual showcase in the feed. As a retailer, you tag products directly in your photos, Stories and Reels. Users tap on the tag, immediately see the price and product information, and can then proceed to your shop with one click. This blurs the line between scrolling and buying, your inspiration becomes instant sales. In addition, your profile gets a Shop tab, where visitors can browse through all your products without ever leaving the app. Set it up? A matter of linking your catalog, tagging products and done. In a few steps, you'll be ready for sales the moment you post that great post.
Like Instagram, Facebook has also created the ability to offer a shopping experience within the platform. With Facebook Shopping, you turn your business profile into a digital shopping outlet. You link your products in the Meta Commerce Manager and see them appear on your company profile, with photos, description and price. Visitors stay within Facebook to discover your offer and click through to your site to checkout. You reach a wider audience, especially slightly older audiences who continue to visit Facebook faithfully. And the best part? You manage one product catalog for both sales on Instagram and Facebook.
Social shopping is taking off in Belgium. Recent data shows that more than one in three Belgians make online purchases via social media, with even 54% of young people (Gen Z) already shopping via Facebook, Instagram or TikTok. In just one year, this number increased by a whopping 24%. Growing evidence that this buying channel is powerful and has momentum according to a recent publication by Gondola.
Furthermore, we see that 76.4% of Belgians use social media which translates into about 9 million profiles that dwell in apps daily.(DataReportal - Global DigitalInsightsD-Asset) This means that most of your market is online and open to purchase temptations.
In summary:
1 in 3 Belgians already buy through social channels, with increase especially among younger consumers.
9 million Belgians are active on social media, ready to shop.
As a retailer, you can no longer ignore social commerce today: it is the direct way to sell more, expand your audience and build a stronger connection with your target group.
Make sure your products are visible as much as possible by systematically tagging them in your feed posts, Stories and ads. Every time you show a product without a tag, you are missing an opportunity. By tagging consistently, you increase your discoverability in the Instagram Explore section and make it much easier for customers to go from inspiration to purchase. Remember: a click on a product tag is often the first step toward conversion.
Videos attract more attention than photos and linger longer. In short Reels or Stories, show how your product is used in everyday life. Think "how-to" demos, unboxings or customer case studies. Optimize your videos for mobile and keep them short and sweet. Add subtitles for users watching without sound, and always end with a clear call-to-action.
Customers believe customers. Encourage your community to share photos and videos featuring your products and repost that content on your own channel. This creates trust and increases your social proof. Tip: launch a branded hashtag or offer a small incentive for those who share their experience. Enhance their posts by adding product tags to them so followers can click through immediately.
Not only big influencers do well. Micro-influencers with several thousand followers often have a closer relationship with their audience. Their recommendations feel more authentic and often yield higher conversion rates. Look for profiles that fit your niche perfectly and have them integrate products into their content with shopping tags.
Stories are ideal for quick and playful engagement. Use polls, quizzes or countdown stickers to actively engage customers. Combine this with product stickers so that your Stories not only inspire, but also convert. In addition, create Highlights on your profile with a "Shop" category so that your best Stories remain permanently visible.
Hashtags and descriptions are more than just fun additions, they are your findability. Use search terms that customers actually type in when they are looking for your product. Consider niche hashtags (#endurance) alongside broad categories (#fashion). Also, make sure your product descriptions in the catalog are SEO-proof: clear titles, relevant keywords and complete info.
Want to reach new customers outside your own circle of followers? Then ads with product tags are indispensable. Thanks to Meta's targeting capabilities, you can target exactly the audience that is likely to be interested in your offer. Combine visually strong content with clear product tags and measure the results via Ads Manager. This allows you to scale up and optimize your campaigns step by step.
👉With these tips, you will increase the visibility of your products on Instagram and lower the threshold for customers to make a purchase. The most important thing is to always think from the customer experience: make shopping as fun and easy as possible. Then you as an entrepreneur will reap the rewards in the form of higher sales and happier customers.
Tilroy connects your physical store and webshop with social sales channels such as Facebook and Instagram through a product feed. This way, you manage your stock centrally, synchronize products automatically to your Meta catalog, and make it easy to deploy Shopping without duplication. The result? More sales and a seamless experience for your customers.