When people open Instagram on their smartphones, they see an opportunity to post pictures of their weekend activities, check up on their favorite celebrities, and connect with the brands they love. However, have you thought about how to make money on Instagram?
Millions of people do just that. Want to take advantage of the hottest online money-making opportunity? Learn from the people who are using the platform to do exactly that.
Why Instagram?
Of the many social media platforms available, Instagram is uniquely positioned as a vehicle for income generation. It is hugely popular and offers numerous ways to make money with many attractive features.
But, ultimately, the reason boils down to its popularity. Since its inception in 2010, this free photo and video sharing app has become one of the top four social media platforms online. With 1 billion active monthly users, Instagram reaches almost 25% of internet users worldwide.
Instagram’s enormous audience reach isn’t its only strength. Its visual nature facilitates story-telling and helps develop a relationship with an audience. It’s also lower-touch and more accessible to engage with than written-form content. Additionally, Instagram hashtags make it easier to tap into a specific audience and capitalize on current trends.
Can You Make Good Money on Instagram?
While some influencers earn 6-figures on Instagram alone, according to Business Insider, a few thousand followers is enough to start generating money as a side hustle. Once you’ve amassed 100,000 followers, you can produce a flourishing full-time income.
You don’t need vast amounts of followers to start making money. How many you need to generate sales depends on two interconnected factors: the size of your following and the level of engagement your posts receive. Specific topics like travel, beauty, fashion, and personal finance are also lucrative.
How To Make Money on Instagram: 4 Effective Ways
Here are four avenues, and crucial advice, for making money on Instagram from three people currently doing it.
1. Sponsored Posts and Stories
Sponsorship is one of Instagram’s most common and lucrative strategies. Brands pay you to promote their products and services. However, posting them too frequently can frustrate your followers and cause them to lose your trust. Instead, focus on giving value freely in every post and only occasionally sell to your audience via a sponsored post.
“When approaching sponsored posts, make sure to highlight what problem the product or service helps solve for people,” said Victoria from Motherhood Life Balance. “That way, it comes across as tips or advice, rather than a hard sell.”
Likewise, make sure you believe in and use what you’re asking your followers to buy.
“We only promote products we’ve tried and would authentically recommend to our audience,” said Jessica Bishop, Founder of Budget Savvy Bride, a site that helps couples plan affordable weddings.
2. Affiliate Promotions
Affiliate marketing is when a content creator promotes a brand’s products or services to your audience and receives a commission every time they buy something through your referral link. An engaged audience, regardless of size, is essential to converting followers into purchasers.
For example, Budget Savvy Bride shares free tools, resources, printables, and unique alternatives to traditional wedding suppliers that help couples save money and still have a beautiful celebration.
“We’ve been successful on Instagram because we’ve become a trusted brand and voice in the space that gives couples access to exclusive discounts only available to our followers,” Bishop continued. “I really love the affiliate model because we get rewarded for helping to support and promote other businesses, including small ones and start-ups.”
3. Funnel Followers to Your Existing Business
Instagram can be an advertising dream come true for those with businesses outside of the app. For example, if you’re an e-commerce store owner, you can post photos, videos, and stories with your products. People on Instagram can be introduced to your products in the app and go to your store to buy them.
“While our revenue comes from other channels, Instagram is quickly becoming our best way to gain valuable exposure that leads to enthusiastic users of our app,” said Zac Hood, Founder of Travel Freely.
“Our Instagram account provides high-quality education and inspirational content around free travel with points and miles with affiliate links included. It provides indirect monetization by getting travel enthusiasts interested in our free app and authentic travel card recommendations,” Zac continued.
4. Turn-key Ways to Monetize Content
Just as you can monetize YouTube videos by allowing businesses to advertise on them, Instagram lets you do the same. Instagram TV ads pay out 55% of any advertising revenue generated from videos more than 2 minutes long to the creator.
Badges, like tips, also enable you to monetize any live videos produced. As you’re filming yourself, viewers can buy badges worth $0.99, $1.99, or $4.99 to thank you for the information you’ve shared.
Start Making Money on Instagram Sooner Than You Think
Don’t wait until you have 50,000 followers to take advantage of this money-making app. While it would be hard to make money on Instagram with fewer than 3,000 followers, remember that engagement trumps numbers.
Budget Savvy Bride’s business is strong with 38,000 followers, Motherhood Life Balance has 21,000, and Travel Freely in the lucrative personal finance space creates additional income with just 4,430 followers.
This article was produced and syndicated by Wealth of Geeks.