# How to Sell on Instagram and WhatsApp Without Losing Orders in DMs Source: https://lotsstore.app/blog/how-to-sell-on-instagram-and-whatsapp-without-losing-orders Published: 2026-10-22T00:31:00.208833+00:00 Keep Instagram and WhatsApp for chatting, and move the order itself to a store link. Put one store link in your Instagram profile and your WhatsApp business profile, let customers pick the product, size and quantity there, and every order gets a number, a total and a place in one list, with stock counted for you. The chat still happens. It just starts with the order already written, so nothing gets lost in a screenshot or a scrolled-away message. Below are the steps I'd follow, with what Instagram and WhatsApp offer sellers today (checked on Meta's own help pages on 21 October 2026) and how to set it up in a LotsStore store. ## Why orders get lost in DMs Selling in DMs works until it doesn't. A customer asks for "the blue one in M", you check the photo, you check what's left, you send a payment detail, they send a screenshot, and three other people are asking the same thing in other chats. Nothing ties the message to the stock, the payment or the parcel, so you keep it all in your head. Instagram and WhatsApp have built tools for this, and they help. They don't replace a place where every order lives with its items, total, payment and status. ## What Instagram offers sellers (checked 21 October 2026) - **Up to 5 links in your profile.** Instagram's help center says you can add up to 5 websites to your profile: Edit profile, then Links, then Add external link. Anyone, on or off Instagram, can see them. - **Order requests from a post or story, without a shop.** A business account can add product details to a post (More options, then Add product details) or a "Get orders" sticker to a story. Customers then "request to order" in Instagram chat, where you accept or decline and track the order history. Useful, but the orders still live in your chats. - **Shopping tags need your own website.** To tag products as a business, Meta's commerce eligibility rules say your account "must contain product listings that are available for direct purchase from your website", and you give Meta "the single non-shortened domain through which you sell", which Meta may ask you to verify. In other words, product tags come after you have a store on your own domain, not before. ## What WhatsApp offers sellers (checked 21 October 2026) - **A catalog in the WhatsApp Business app.** From the Tools tab, tap Catalog, then Add new item. Each item can have up to 10 images or videos, a name, a country of origin (required) and optional price, sale price, description, website link and product code. - **Every item is reviewed first.** WhatsApp reviews each image and video against its Business Messaging Policy, and items are visible to customers only after they're approved. - **Prices only in some countries.** WhatsApp's help center notes that adding prices to a catalog "is only available in certain countries". - **A cart that comes back to the chat.** Customers can add catalog items to a cart, send it to their chat with you, and "discuss payment options" there. Payment and stock are still worked out in the conversation. ## The fix: one store link, orders in one place Here's how I'd set it up with LotsStore. Everything below is in the dashboard; you don't need anything else. ### 1. Open your store and add your products Create a store on a free yourstore.mylots.store address (connect your own domain whenever you're ready; HTTPS is set up for you). Add your products with their sizes or colours as variants, photos, prices and stock, or import the whole range from a spreadsheet (CSV). Stock is counted per variant, so "blue, size M" has its own number, and the low-stock view shows what's running out. ### 2. Choose how customers pay you On your store's Payments page, turn on the ways you want to get paid. Every one of them pays you directly, and LotsStore takes 0% of your sales. - **Card and wallet checkout** through your own Stripe account (in the countries Stripe supports) or your own Razorpay account (cards, UPI, netbanking and wallets, for businesses registered in India). Setup guides: [connect Stripe](https://lotsstore.app/help/connect-stripe) and [connect Razorpay](https://lotsstore.app/help/connect-razorpay). - **UPI to your UPI ID.** The customer pays the exact amount to your UPI ID and enters their transaction reference. You check it in your own bank or UPI app before the order goes ahead. You set how long the payment window stays open. - **Order on WhatsApp.** The customer places the order on your store first. LotsStore saves it as an order request, then opens WhatsApp with a message to you already written: the order number, each item and size, the total and a link to the order's status page. You agree payment in the chat. You set your WhatsApp number, instructions for customers, and how long an order request stays open. ### 3. Put the link where your customers already are - **Instagram:** add the store to your profile links. When someone comments or messages "price?", reply with that product's link instead of a screenshot. - **WhatsApp Business:** add the store as the website on your business profile. If you keep a WhatsApp catalog, put each product's store link in its website field, so a customer who browses the catalog can still order through the store. - **Replies you send often:** keep a short message with your store link ready to paste. ### 4. Work from one order list each day Every order, wherever it started, lands in Orders on your dashboard: 1. **Accept or reject each order.** You decide before it goes ahead. Rejecting an order paid online queues its refund. 2. **Check UPI payments** against your bank app before you accept. 3. **Ship with any carrier** and add the tracking number and link, so the customer can follow it. 4. **Refund** from the order page when you need to. The WhatsApp chat is still there for questions. The difference is that the order number is in the first message, so you both know exactly what you're talking about. ### 5. For agencies setting this up for clients If you set up stores for clients who sell on Instagram and WhatsApp, each client gets their own store, their own payment accounts, and their own WhatsApp number on the Payments page. Invite the client as admin, manager, staff or viewer on their store only. Pro covers 3 stores for $29 a month and Business 10 stores for $79; see [LotsStore for agencies](https://lotsstore.app/blog/lotscommerce-for-agencies). ### Manage it from ChatGPT or Claude, if you like LotsStore works with the AI agent you already use. Connect ChatGPT, Claude or another assistant on the [setup page](https://lotsstore.app/mcp) and ask things like "Which orders are waiting for me to accept?" or "We're out of the blue mug: set its stock to 0." Every change shows up in your dashboard. ## What it costs LotsStore is priced per store, never per sale: Starter is $12 a month for 1 store ($10 a month billed yearly), Pro $29 for 3 stores and Business $79 for 10. Every feature is on every plan, including WhatsApp and UPI orders, and products, orders, customers and teammates are unlimited. New accounts get 15,000 free credits, valid 90 days, no card: about a month of one store. Details on the [pricing page](https://lotsstore.app/pricing) and in [LotsStore pricing explained](https://lotsstore.app/blog/lotscommerce-pricing-explained). For how other platforms charge, see [ecommerce platforms with no transaction fees](https://lotsstore.app/blog/ecommerce-platforms-with-no-transaction-fees). ## FAQ ### Can I sell on Instagram without a website? Yes. A business account can add product details to posts and take "request to order" messages in Instagram chat, and you can add up to 5 links to your profile. But Instagram's shopping tags need product listings available for direct purchase on your own website domain (Meta's commerce eligibility rules, checked on 21 October 2026). A store link keeps every order in one place either way. ### Can customers pay inside WhatsApp? In the WhatsApp Business app, customers can add catalog items to a cart and send it to your chat, then discuss payment options with you, according to WhatsApp's help center (checked on 21 October 2026). With LotsStore, the customer places the order on your store first, so the WhatsApp message already has the order number, items and total. ### How do I stop overselling when orders come from chats? Take the order on a store that counts stock per variant. On LotsStore, each size or colour has its own stock, the low-stock view shows what's running out, and you accept each order before it goes ahead. ### How do UPI payments work on LotsStore? The customer pays the exact amount to your own UPI ID, then reports their transaction reference on your store. You check the payment in your own bank or UPI app, then accept the order. The money goes straight to you, and LotsStore takes 0% of your sales. ### Does LotsStore take a cut of Instagram or WhatsApp sales? No. LotsStore takes 0% of every sale, wherever the customer found you. You pay per store: $12 a month for 1 store, $29 for 3 or $79 for 10. Your payment provider charges its own fee on card payments. ## Sources Checked on 21 October 2026: [Instagram: add a website to your profile](https://help.instagram.com/362497417173378), [Instagram: add product details without a catalog or shop](https://help.instagram.com/337910740093030), [Instagram: commerce eligibility requirements](https://help.instagram.com/1627591223954487), [WhatsApp: how to create and maintain a catalog](https://faq.whatsapp.com/833697274483076), [WhatsApp: about shopping on WhatsApp](https://faq.whatsapp.com/1312962072846852), [LotsStore pricing](https://lotsstore.app/pricing), [Connect Stripe](https://lotsstore.app/help/connect-stripe), [Connect Razorpay](https://lotsstore.app/help/connect-razorpay).