Once merely a site for sharing photos and videos among friends, Instagram has quickly established itself as an elite money-making platform for both small and large businesses alike. Anybody that puts in the work can make money on Instagram, from the artisan garage-based craftsman to large multinational corporations.
It should be noted that monetizing your Instagram is not some get rich quick scheme. There are some common pitfalls that must be avoided and steps that should be carefully followed in order to be successful in your endeavor. If you are interested in making money on Instagram, read below for some tips on how to start and what to do to continue to maximize your profits.
Become a Media Influencer
If you have already developed a significant following have a strong working knowledge of the Instagram app, you can become an influencer by allowing advertisers to sponsor your posts. Depending on the content and source material that you are posting on a daily basis, brands may even reach out to you directly. They may inquire about your background and ask how much you might charge per sponsored post. However, you shouldn’t sit back and simply hope that someone will contact you out of the blue.
If you want to become an influencer, you can start by reaching out to as many brands as possible and letting them know that you are interested in gaining sponsorship. If they agree that your following is significant enough and relevant to their advertising needs, they may just be willing to give you the opportunity to earn some cash through sponsorship. This is an excellent way to make some easy side money, but you have to remain diligent and stick with a consistent image. If a brand notices that your content is straying too far from their theme or becoming controversial, they could drop your sponsorship at any time.
Get Instagram for Business and Run Advertisements
Instagram for Business allows you to create a professional profile that can take advantage of ad space and analytics. If you run a personal business or work for a smaller company, this is a great opportunity to generate more revenue and gain a larger following. With over 25 million business profiles and 2 million advertisers on Instagram, there is plenty of room for your company to make a splash in the online scene, even without selling products.
Consider that over 60% of Instagram users have said that they have discovered new products through the platform. This is an extremely vast audience with which you may previously have had no contact. With over 200 million unique users visiting some sort of business profile on a daily basis, it seems like a no-brainer to start advertising your business on Instagram. There are different tiers of Instagram for Business, so you are sure to find one that fits your budget.
Open a Digital Store
You don’t have to work for someone else in order to make money on Instagram. In fact, you don’t even have to work for specific sponsors or brands to gain an influential following. If you open your own store selling unique, desirable goods such as art or innovative products, you may just be able to make plenty of money through the Instagram platform.
In order to best promote your store, you will want to make sure your photos are of professional quality or that they show something that will catch a user’s eye. Perhaps you produce handmade furniture. Well-lit and carefully placed photos of this furniture may be just what you need in order to sell this to interested parties. Or maybe you make customized t-shirts. A professional photo inside a well-placed ad can go a long way in helping you find new customers and build a dedicated following.
The more apt you become at Instagram, the more efficient you will be at selling your product. You’ll know just what markets to target and how to maximize your ad space to gain new followers. With the right demographics in your following, your photos and profile will be shared with more and more people who are likely to purchase your products. It is truly a fantastic way to start making money off of your own hard work and passion.
Become an Affiliate
Affiliates, like influencers, make money by working with certain partner brands. However, instead of simply promoting their sponsors and creating awareness, affiliates actually make sales of products and services for commissions. Sales are tracked through the use of promo codes, letting your partner company know when one of your clicks has turned into a sale.
Many online merchants offer affiliate programs through their Instagram profiles, but there also online marketplaces that allow you to act as an affiliate for multiple companies at once. Sites like ClickBank, Amazon, and RewardStyle all offer commissions if you show the ability to convert clicks into sales.
Most people don’t make living off of affiliate commissions, but it certainly possible to make some significant passive income. However, there is a small percentage of people that have turned being an affiliate into a full-time job. This is something that requires a lot of work and technical know-how, but it certainly shows that it is possible.
Sell Your Photos
If you are an experienced photographer with a sizeable following, you can sell your photos to multiple companies in exchange for money. Keep in mind that you are not just selling the photograph, but also the rights and licenses that will be associated with the photo. If you have some professional quality nature pictures, for example, National Geographic might pay you for the right to use them and post them to their own Instagram account.
You can also set up an online shop to make prints of your photos. There are many sites that can help you put your pictures on canvases, posters, or phone cases, and this is a great way to make more money than simply selling a digital item. People are willing to pay for quality photos that they can hold.