Issue 72  10 August 2022

Instagram will shut down its affiliate commerce program on 31 August 2022

Meta seems to be having a hard time selling people on social commerce. In addition to Facebook shutting down its live shopping feature on Oct. 1, Instagram has notified creators that it will be eliminating its affiliate commerce program on Aug. 31, according to creator industry executives. A Meta spokesperson confirmed the shutdown.

“We want to make Instagram the best place for creators to earn a living by partnering with brands. To do this, we are focusing on Instagram’s Creator Marketplace – a singular destination where brands and creators can more easily build content partnerships – and ending the current test of Instagram onsite affiliate,” said the Meta spokesperson in a statement.

Instagram officially started testing an affiliate program for creators in July 2021 and expanded it to its short-form vertical video product Reels in March. The program enabled participating creators to append product tags to Instagram posts and receive a commission when people tap to view a product tagged in a post and then purchase it within Instagram. Commission rates varied by merchant.

digiday.com  

Snap Stock Plunges 25% After Posting $422 Million Q2 Loss

Snap (owner of Snapchat) posted a $422 million loss and “substantially” reduced rate of hiring in its Q2 earnings report released Thursday, prompting its share price to fall 26% in after-hours trading.

forbes.com