How to Sell on Facebook Shops & Facebook Marketplace in 2022

As social commerce gains popularity for online shoppers, it will be an advantage for retailers to learn how to sell on Facebook on top of having an online store. Selling on Facebook can be done through Facebook Shops and Facebook Marketplace.

Facebook Shops helps small businesses set up a single online store for their customers to access on both Facebook and Instagram. With this new feature, you can also sell products through the chat features of WhatsApp, Messenger, and Instagram and tag products during Facebook and Instagram live streams, which will take customers to a product ordering page.
Marketplace, meanwhile, is a place on Facebook where people discover, buy, and sell items. Individuals and businesses can use this feature. If you have a Facebook business page and a Facebook Shop with checkout, you can sell as a business on Marketplace (currently limited to US merchants).

How to Set Up a Facebook Shop

To sell products on Facebook, you first need a dedicated Facebook page for your business (not your personal page). Next, either connect your ecommerce platform to Facebook or build your Facebook Shop manually. Finally, you’ll want to market your products and your Facebook Shop through ads, contests, and boosted posts to maximize sales.

Start selling products through a Facebook Shop in six steps:

1. Set Up Accounts & Check Compliance

Before you begin setting up your Facebook Shop, make sure that:

Your business sells physical goods that comply with Facebook’s merchant agreement and commerce policies.
You consider setting up a business account on Instagram that is connected to a Facebook Page you manage because you may need this to help sell items, and both apps work well together to sell to customers. Learn how to set up a business account on Instagram.
You are a Business Manager admin.
Your Facebook Page and Instagram business account (if you set one up) are connected to the same Business Manager account.
You have managing permissions for your Facebook Page.

Note: If you already have a shop on Facebook or Instagram, it will automatically convert to the new Shops experience. You can also set up Instagram Shopping in a similar way but on a different platform.

2. Create a Facebook Business Page

To set up a Facebook Shop, you’ll need to create a free Facebook Page for your business. You can’t create a Facebook Shop from a personal Facebook account because it’s available only on Pages.

Creating a Facebook Page is easy; click on the dotted Menu icon at the top of your Facebook account and select Page.

Having a Page offers many marketing advantages over personal accounts, including:

Providing a way for your customers to find your business and follow your professional posts
Giving you a huge array of free marketing opportunities
Offering a wide variety of budget-friendly advertising tools
Letting you sell your products directly to a huge audience of more than 2.9 billion Facebook users right from your Facebook page

3. Set Up Your Commerce Manager

Whether you have an existing online store on a different platform or plan to use Facebook Shops exclusively, you need to set up your Commerce Manager. This is where you will initially set up your Facebook Shop or connect your ecommerce platform.

You can choose to create your Facebook Shop exclusively in the Shop feature or connect your existing online store.
(Source: Facebook)

Follow the steps below:

Log in to the Commerce Manager.
Click Get Started under Get started with Shops.
You have three checkout methods where you want your customers to complete their purchase: your website, direct or checkout on Facebook or Instagram, and messaging.
- When you choose the checkout on another website option, customers can browse your shop on Facebook. When they check out, they will be directed to your website from an item’s detail page. Choose this option if you already have an existing online store. You would need to integrate your store into Facebook (this will be discussed in the next section).
- When you opt for checkout with messaging, you can direct buyers to message your business on Messenger or WhatsApp to complete their payment. With this option, you will need to set up your own way to process payments and fulfill orders. If you want to fulfill orders on WhatsApp, you will need a WhatsApp business account in the same Business Manager account as your shop and set it up as the primary contact method for your Shop.

Screenshot of Item Detail Page on Mobile

When customers click the button on an item’s detail page, it will trigger a direct message with your business, where you and the customer can arrange payment. (Source: Facebook)

When you select checkout with Facebook or Instagram, customers won’t be directed to another website and can check out directly. This feature is currently limited to sellers in the US and requires you to have a Commerce Account. If you choose this option, selling fees apply, and payouts are issued in eight to 10 business days.
- You are required to present the following information to set up checkout on Facebook or Instagram:
  - Business category and type
  - A business address in the US
  - US bank account details for collecting payouts
  - A State Tax Registration Number for every state where the business operates, for tax purposes
  - A Federal Tax Identification Number that matches the business representative’s name for financial reporting
  - A business representative’s personal or business identity information to verify the authenticity of the business
  - Shipping options, return policy, and a customer service email to set up customer service

Select the Business Page that you want to add your shop to.
Fill in the requested information under Account details.
Under Where people can view your shop, select whether you’d like your shop to be based on your Instagram business profile, your Facebook Page, or both.
Under Add a catalog, select an existing product catalog or create a new one. If you don’t have a catalog yet, you won’t see this step. Facebook will create a catalog for you automatically and you can see it in the Commerce Manager called “Items for (name and ID of your Page).” You can add your items later when you’ve finished setting up your shop.
Check your shop details, review the Merchant Agreement and click Create Your Shop.

4. Evaluate Your Options for Selling on Facebook

Now that you have created your shop, you need to evaluate your options for selling on Facebook. You can choose between two options for selling your products on Facebook: via the fully integrated Facebook Shop or by connecting your existing online store to Facebook and syncing your products.

Click the tabs for pros and cons of each option:

Using Facebook Shop Exclusively
Syncing an Online Store/Ecommerce Platform

You can enter products for sale directly to your Facebook Shop for free. Facebook has clear instructions that walk you through every step. If you sell just a few items or only want to sell through a Facebook Shop, this might be all you need.

One downside is that you have to manually manage orders, which can be time-consuming if you move a lot of products. Another con is that you can only sell your products on Facebook, so you’ll have no other sales outlets. The ecommerce platform option gives you many more selling opportunities, plus a suite of time-saving order management tools.

Top ecommerce platforms like Shopify and BigCommerce let you list and sell products in a Facebook Shop, plus many other places if you wish. What these platforms offer over the Facebook-only option is a full suite of product listings as well as automated order and shipping management tools designed to save you time.

Time-saving benefits aside, the biggest plus is that you can sell just about anywhere using an ecommerce platform, such as with your own website, Amazon, eBay, Pinterest, and blog posts. Even if you don’t want to start your own website or sell on places like eBay or Amazon at first, the option is there if and when the time comes.

If selling online is a priority, you need to extend your reach beyond the Facebook audience—and ecommerce platforms let you do just that. They also make every ecommerce task as quick and automated as possible, from product entry to shipping updates. Plus, if you ship, or hope to ship, more than 10 orders per day, you should consider this time-saving option.

The downside is cost. In most cases, you’ll need a monthly paid account with an ecommerce provider. However, there are free options with providers like Ecwid.

Not sure which ecommerce software is right for you? Read about our best ecommerce software picks.

5. Add Products to Your Catalog

Once you’ve set up your Commerce Manager account and connected your Facebook Page, you can start adding products to your catalog.

A Facebook catalog is where all your product information (such as product titles, images, prices, descriptions, etc.) and inventory can be found.
You can manage your catalog using the Catalog Manager tool. You can access it by clicking the Inventory tab in Commerce Manager.
You can only set up a catalog for physical goods. Products like apps, software, and services aren’t eligible.

There are multiple ways to add products to your catalog. The method you choose depends on several factors—your inventory size and type and how frequently it changes.

Catalog Setup Methods

	Via Manual Upload	Via Data Feed File	Via Facebook Pixel	Via Syncing with Ecommerce Platform
Inventory Size	Small, doesn’t change often	Medium to large, changes often	Medium to large, changes often	Small to large inventories, changes often and have multiple selling locations
Inventory Type	Products, flights, destinations (hotels), vehicles	All inventory types	Products only	Products only
Effort to Set Up	Low	Medium	High	Medium to high, depending on ecommerce platform
Recommended If	Your inventory is small and doesn't change often	You want to set up scheduled uploads hourly, daily, or weekly	Your inventory is large or changes often or you already have a pixel installed on your ecommerce website	You have multiple selling locations and inventory sync is crucial
Best For	Small business with few products	Direct-to-consumer (DTC) retail selling	Businesses that run dynamic ads on Facebook	Businesses that already have an existing online store

Click through the tabs below for more detailed information on catalog setup methods:

Make sure to enter as much information as possible in the product fields to set up your store items.

Log in to Commerce Manager.
Click on Catalog.
Click on Add products.
Select Add manually.
Enter product information in the corresponding fields.
Add categorization details about the product, such as its condition, brand, and tax category.
Add delivery options and return policy information.
Add options for any variants, such as colors or sizes.
Once you’ve finished, click Add product.

For more information, read Facebook’s step-by-step guide on adding products to a catalog manually.

A data feed enables bulk uploading of items using a spreadsheet file. You can upload a file once or set up a schedule to update your catalog automatically on a regular basis.

If you need a template, follow Facebook’s guide on how to download a data feed template.

Go to Commerce Manager and select your catalog.
Open the Catalog tab and go to Data Sources.
Select Add Items. If a dropdown appears, select Add Multiple Items.
Select Data Feed followed by Next.
Under Is your spreadsheet or file ready select Yes and then Next.
Choose how to upload your file (from computer, URL, or Google Sheets)
Select Save Feed and Upload.

This guide covers uploading items in bulk for the first time. If you need to update your data feed, read Facebook’s guide to updating an existing feed file.

Facebook Pixel is an analytics tool that enables you to measure the effectiveness of your advertising by understanding the actions people take on your website. When installed, you can run ads and make sure it is shown to the right people. You can target new customers or people who have visited a specific page or taken a desired action on your website.

To connect a pixel to your catalog to add items from your website:

Go to Commerce Manager and select your catalog.
Open the Catalog tab and select Data Sources.
Select Add Items. If a dropdown appears, select Add Multiple Items.
Select Pixel, then select Next.
Select the pixel you want to connect and then Next.
Select Add Trusted Websites and enter the website domains you trust to use as sources for your item information. Don’t include the http:// or www (example: pitbull-andy.com). Select Save and then Next.
Select your default currency (USD). Select Next.

Your connected pixel now appears in Data Sources. It may take up to 24 hours to be ready.

For more information, read Facebook’s step-by-step guide on adding products with a Pixel.

If you already sell online, then you will be glad to know that Facebook has partner platforms that can sync with your Facebook Shop. If you host your products on a partner platform like Shopify, BigCommerce, and WooCommerce, you can import them to a Facebook catalog and continue managing your products on your partner platform. Your updates will sync to Facebook on a regular basis.

With these partner platforms, you can easily integrate your Facebook shop to sync items.

Facebook has different steps for each provider. Follow the steps on your partner’s website to connect your account with Facebook. You’ll be directed to complete the setup based on the platform you use. If you have an existing store that’s not on an ecommerce platform listed above, contact your platform’s support team to ask if they have a Facebook integration, or check its Help Center.

After your Shop section appears, you probably won’t see your products immediately. Facebook reviews all new Shops to make sure images and content meet Facebook Shop guidelines. Essentially, the guidelines state that you need images and accurate descriptions for each product.

It can take 24 to 48 hours for your Shop to be approved and populate the Shop section. Once approved, as you add new products, they should appear within 20 minutes or so. If not, you can re-synchronize your listings from your store dashboard to send new items to Facebook.

6. Market Your Products for Facebook Shop Success

Your Facebook Shop products are primed and ready for promotion to your Facebook followers and countless potential customers. With your products already housed on Facebook, you can easily and quickly select certain products or groups of products to promote via Facebook posts and ads. Then, you can market your products organically and through paid advertising.

Create Great Product Listings

Starting an online store can take some time, but it’s relatively easy to do. You’ll need to not only brand your store, but also market it. Most search engines pull in your product descriptions when a user searches for a particular product. This means you’ll also need to create accurate, detailed descriptions.

To create your product listings, you’ll need to assemble four key components:

Good product images: A fancy camera or professional photography is not necessary to have great product photos. You may only need your mobile phone.
Detailed product descriptions: Don’t be shy when describing your products. Good descriptions should be chock-full of details that sell your product, plus any sizing, measurements, weights, or other necessary details.
Product size and weight information: These numbers can be entered with your product information in most ecommerce systems, so you can print accurate shipping labels. It’s optional but can be useful.
Product numbers or inventory stock keeping unit (SKU) numbers: You’ll use SKU numbers or product codes to track products in your online store.

Run Ads, Promos & Campaigns

There are many ways, both free and paid, that you can market your Facebook Shop products to followers and larger audiences, including:

Featuring products and specials via boosted posts—which are regular posts that, for a small fee, can reach a large, targeted audience
Running Facebook ad campaigns with featured products
Distributing offers and hosting contests to engage your audience and attract new viewers to your page and Facebook Shop products

Read more about marketing your small business on Facebook for free. And then, consider Facebook’s paid advertising opportunities to give your business maximum exposure for a relatively small investment.

How to Sell on Facebook Marketplace

After you have a Facebook Shop, boost your store visibility by adding Marketplace as a sales channel. According to Facebook data, more than one in three US Facebook users buy and sell on Marketplace each month. Facebook Marketplace used to be a peer-to-peer shopping marketplace, but has expanded to include merchant selling.

Marketplace’s main draw is that you can increase your store’s reach in your local community. You can also get buyers on Facebook where they’re already browsing products, and use Facebook’s real-time messaging to answer inquiries and give useful information such as price and product description. Lastly, you can target more people with mobile-friendly listings.

Easily add Marketplace as a sales channel by following the steps outlined below. Note that some steps may vary depending on the ecommerce platform you are using. We recommend that you check your partner platform or connector for instructions as well.

1. Enable Checkout on Facebook for Your Shop

Before you begin, set up a checkout on Facebook for your shop. If you have a Shopify store, set up a checkout on Facebook on Shopify first so that customers can complete purchases directly from Marketplace.

Note: Store inventory and order management will still be managed through Shopify but payouts will be processed and sent from Facebook.

2. Add Marketplace as a Sales Channel for Your Facebook Shop

Go to your Commerce Manager.
Select your shop.
In the left-hand menu, click Settings.
Click Business Assets.
Select Enable Marketplace.

And you are all set! Listings get approved and usually start to show up in Marketplace within 24 hours. As with Facebook Shop products, all listings must comply with Facebook’s Commerce Policies and Community Standards.

3. Advertise Your Store or Products on Marketplace

Once you add Marketplace as a sales channel, consider advertising to reach more people, even if you don’t plan to post directly on Marketplace. Simply listing an item for sale isn’t as effective as creating a paid ad to appear when people shop on Marketplace. Marketplace ads are seen when people use the Facebook app on their phones to shop on Marketplace.

To create an ad for Marketplace:

Go to Ads Manager and choose your ad objective. Click Continue.
Choose your Destination.
Choose your Audience and define your targeting.
Choose Automatic Placements or Edit Placements.
- Facebook recommends automatic placement ads because if approved and compatible with your settings, your ad will appear on Marketplace and all other compatible placements on Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, and Audience Network.
Set your Budget and Schedule.
Choose your ad’s creative format. Follow the recommended video and image specifications.
After setting up your ad, click on Place Order.

You can also boost your Marketplace listings.

Bottom Line

Selling products directly to your Facebook audience is easy using the Shop feature included with every free Facebook business page. Online store platforms that integrate seamlessly with Facebook offer the easiest Facebook Shop solution, especially if you’re new to ecommerce. From there, Facebook provides many free and paid marketing opportunities to promote your Shop. With a solid ecommerce platform and a good marketing plan, you’ll see your Facebook audience grow and, more importantly, start making sales.

Using an ecommerce platform is recommended for businesses selling products on a Facebook Shop and is all but necessary for businesses selling on multiple channels, such as Facebook, Amazon, Google, and through their own websites. Shopify and BigCommerce are Facebook partner platforms that are included in our top picks for the best ecommerce platforms. You can find out which tool is a better fit for your business in our BigCommerce vs Shopify review.