Facebook Shop and Marketplace - how to use it?

Facebook has been experimenting with shopping on the platform for years: the Marketplace, launched in 2016, gave users the opportunity to sell their own items and products.

But what is the difference between Facebook Shop and Marketplace? When and which to use?

What is Facebook Marketplace?

Facebook Marketplace is a feature where you can sell/buy products and goods. It is a typical give and take solution where you can contact the advertiser directly. The payment is not done through the site, it is negotiated between the buyer and the advertiser.

How does Facebook Marketplace work?

The Marketplace is easily accessible from the menu bar or from the top menu.

You can manually upload the products you want to sell, one by one. It is advisable to upload several photos of the product you want to sell, accompanied by a short product description.

What is Facebook Shop?

As the name suggests, Facebook Shop is a webshop-like way to sell your own products. It offers a sophisticated, customisable webshop-like look that can be easily linked to a business Instagram account. Products, product descriptions and prices will be available on the Shop, allowing you to easily redirect customers to your website or an external online store (e.g. Etsy).

How does the catalogue work?

The catalogue is what "pulls" the products into the Shop. It's the product database for Facebook - if you create it, you can easily upload products from here to the Shop or even the Marketplace.

Also the catalogue is necessary to be able to use dynamic ads. It will automatically create an ad based on the product, and place it automatically based on the rules we specify (e.g.: visited the product page, or showed interest in the product group).

What should I look out for with Facebook Shop?

To make it easy for visitors to find their way around your products, you can create product categories and groups.

• In the Shop you can only sell tangible products, not services.
• The uploaded products can be tagged in different Facebook posts at any time, so our simple posts can also be used for commercial purposes.
• When uploading products, it is recommended to use photos with a white background.
• The product description should contain relevant information, be understandable, easy to read and highlight the product features.
• An unlimited number of products can be uploaded.
• Analytical data can also be accessed.

Facebook Shop can also be seen as a secondary, supporting sales channel that provides a native shopping experience on the social media platform, simply by redirecting visitors to our website. Although we do not yet offer a Facebook checkout feature, customers in many countries can already place their orders without leaving the platform.

The Nitro team has extensive experience in data-driven sales and marketing. Take a look at our expanded digital portfolio, let's explore the potential of your business together!