The Ultimate Quick Start Guide to Crushing It with Sauce Social Commerce

Alright, let’s cut the fluff. You want to ramp up fast and dominate social commerce with Sauce? Here’s the no-nonsense to-do list that’ll take you from zero to sales. Every task here is a must-do. Skip it, and you’re leaving money on the table. Let’s go.

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1. Connect and Sync Your Instagram

If you’re not synced with Instagram, you’re already behind. Instagram isn’t a photo-sharing app - it’s a commerce engine. Every month, 130 million users tap on shopping posts. If you’re not in that mix, you’re missing out. Connecting your Instagram with Sauce isn’t just about showing off pretty pictures. Sauce pulls in all your photos, videos, and - most importantly - your product tags. It makes your posts shoppable, turning your Instagram feed into a Social Proof, Shop the Look galleries, Hero Product Videos and Sauce TV hubs right in your store. This is how you convert casual scrollers into paying customers. Get synced, get shoppable, and get ahead.

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2. Confirm Your Email

No email confirmation? Good luck getting updates, customer pings, or security alerts. Email might not be sexy, but it’s effective for us to make sure you're happy with Sauce and in the game. Lock it in so you don’t miss out.

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3. Connect Your Store

If your store isn’t connected, you’re missing the whole point of Sauce. Link it up and pull your products into your social posts. With 70% of your customer base potentially discovering new products on your site or on your Instagram Shop via the App, you’d be crazy not to streamline that shopping journey.

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4. Add Shoppable Product Tags

We live in the age of instant gratification—attention spans are short, and patience is nonexistent. If your products aren’t tagged and shoppable, you’re just adding friction. And here’s the deal: friction kills sales. Fact: 65% of Instagram users hit a brand’s website after seeing a product post. But why make them jump through hoops? Let them buy directly from the post.

And once they’re on your site, if you’re not tagging your User-Generated Content (UGC), you’re missing out on showing them real-world proof that your products are being used and loved. UGC is the trust builder, the proof of concept. Tag it, and you give customers more reasons to explore, discover, and—most importantly—buy. This isn’t just a nice-to-have; it’s the fast track to building trust and boosting conversions. Which leads us to the next to-do...

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5. Leverage User-Generated Content

UGC is liquid gold. It’s raw, it’s authentic, and here’s the kicker—it converts 5x better than your polished brand content. Why? Because people trust other people more than they trust you. It’s that simple. Customers are your best salespeople, so let them do the work.

Here’s the play: go to Media Library > New > UGC, sort by the posts with the highest engagement—these are your winners. Engagement is the ultimate litmus test; if it’s resonating with your audience, it’ll resonate with shoppers. Hit ‘Add Media’, tag the relevant products, and boom—your customers are doing the selling for you. It’s social proof on autopilot.

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6. Embed a Shoppable Gallery... on your Homepage

You want to turn your website into a sales machine? Embed a shoppable gallery synced with your Instagram feed. Brands doing this are seeing a 29% bump in web conversions. Think of it as the digital version of impulse buying—show people what they didn’t even know they wanted.

Here’s how to play it: start with your homepage. But don’t bury it in the footer—slap it up near the Hero Banner, where it grabs attention. Use this gallery to showcase your products on real people, bring in some social proof, and show off your community. Humanise that first interaction on your site. You’re bridging the gap between Instagram’s high-energy engagement and the more rational behaviour on your site. Done right, you’ll reduce drop-off, keep people exploring, and turn clicks into conversions. This is where the magic happens.

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7. Embed Product Page Gallery

Visuals sell. Embedding a gallery on your product pages gives customers social proof and shows them your products in the wild. It works - 82% of shoppers want to see UGC before making a decision. More content equals more confidence, equals more sales.

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8. Install Tracking Code

Data is the new oil, and if you’re not tracking, you’re operating in the dark. Sauce’s tracking code lets you pinpoint exactly where your traffic and sales are coming from. Here’s the kicker—businesses that lean into data-driven marketing are 6x more likely to crush their competition. You want to be in that camp.

If you’re on Shopify, congratulations—this step is already sorted for you. But if you’re rolling with Magento, Adobe Commerce, WooCommerce, Lightspeed, Squarespace, Salesforce, Centra, BigCommerce, or even a custom-built platform, no worries. Just copy-paste Sauce’s tracking code into the thank you page of your store, and boom—we’ll track your media, tell you what’s working, and show you those sweet conversion lifts.

Need a hand? Follow the steps provided, and if you hit a snag, buzz us—we’ve got your back.

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9. Add a Hero Video to Your Store

People don’t read anymore - they watch. And here’s why you care: a video on your landing page can boost conversions by up to 80%. Yeah, that’s an absurd ROI. So, get a killer hero video front and centre, showcasing your brand or flagship product.

Sauce’s Hero Video is built to float perfectly above your homepage, grabbing your customer’s attention right where it counts. And here’s the kicker: when your videos are tagged with multiple products, customers stay engaged longer and spend more. Don’t just take my word for it - the stats back it up. Try it, and watch the numbers climb.

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10. Add Hero Product Videos to PDPs

People are 64% more likely to buy after watching a product video. Let that sink in. No video on your product detail pages (PDPs)? You’re leaving money on the table. It’s that simple. Show the product in action, let it sell itself, and watch your conversions skyrocket.

Sauce’s Hero Product Videos are a different beast from their Hero Video cousins. These are designed specifically for your PDPs, dynamically pulling in videos that match the product your customer is checking out. It’s a set-it-and-forget-it situation—install once, and they’ll automatically show up across all your product pages.

If you’re on Shopify, you’re in for a treat—this is one of the easiest and most effective Sauce features to deploy. Just head to Customise Your Theme > App Embeds > Find Sauce Hero Product Videos and flip the switch. Done.

Rolling with Magento, Adobe Commerce, WooCommerce, Lightspeed, Squarespace, Salesforce, Centra, BigCommerce, or even a custom-built platform? No problem. Just copy-paste Sauce’s Hero Product Video embed code into your PDP template, and boom—you’re live.

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11. Book a Call with Us

Even the best need a coach. Book a call with the Sauce team, and we’ll help you tweak, optimise, and squeeze every drop of potential out of your store. That first face-to-face (or more likely, Zoom-to-Zoom) will fine-tune your integrations, and regular check-ins can boost your store’s performance by 10-20%. That’s not a number you can afford to ignore.

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12. Track Your Hashtags

Want to supercharge your UGC game? Sauce doesn’t just pull in media where your brand is tagged or @mentioned - it goes further, ingesting all the content where your brand gets a nod in the form of a #hashtag. This means more opportunities to capitalise on user-generated content, even when it’s flying under the radar. Head over to the UGC tab, and you’ll find everything in one place, giving you more content to work with and more chances to build trust with your audience.

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13. Upload Custom Photos

UGC might do the heavy lifting, but don’t sleep on your custom photos. They’re key to keeping your brand’s aesthetic on point. Consistency across your marketing channels can give your revenue a 23% boost. Control the narrative. Own your brand.

If you’ve got an archive of photoshoots and behind-the-scenes content gathering dust, now’s the time to put it to work. Upload that content to your store and slap shopping tags on it. It’s not just about Instagram and TikTok—use it where it counts: your own turf.

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Snooze or Dismiss When You’re Done

When you’ve smashed through this list, feel free to hit that snooze or dismiss button. But here’s the thing—if you skip any of these steps, you’re shooting yourself in the foot. Finish strong, and watch your social commerce take off.

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Bottom line: this isn’t just a checklist, it’s a playbook for social commerce domination. Each step here is designed to drive conversions, build engagement, and grow your brand’s footprint. Follow the steps. Make it happen.