Can you make money on Instagram? According to social media management platform Hootsuite, with over a billion active users at any given time, there are plenty of opportunities to earn.
With more than 70% of users being 35 years old or younger, Instagram is an app for a generation used to shopping online, and there are plenty of options for users to do that through the app.
Whether you have a business you’d like to promote or are looking for a side income, there are many ways to make money on Instagram. Let’s take a look at some of them.
Post sponsored content
Social media influencers are everywhere these days, and that includes Instagram. And while you might be more familiar with big-name stars with millions of followers as social influencers, the truth is that you don’t have to be that big to attract brands.
If you have a decent number of followers and a high engagement rate (meaning people engage with you, liking and commenting on your posts), your chances of making money on Instagram are rather good.
Sponsored content is simple to produce. Simply talk about a product, take a picture with it, and post a tag connecting users to the brand. The bigger your Instagram presence, the bigger the brands you’ll attract and the more money you’ll make. Naturally, you’ll need to start small, but it’s a good way to earn some cash.
Join forces with a specific company to become a brand ambassador
While sponsored posts are usually a one-shot thing, brand ambassadors promote a company on a regular basis.
Brand ambassadors don’t always get paid in actual money. They might instead receive free products from a company in exchange for a review and promotion. Of course, if you have a massive following, you might get both products and payment for your postings.
Earn affiliate commissions through sales
Affiliate marketers make money when one of their followers clicks on a posted link and buys a product. There’s little work associated with affiliate marketing and no expense.
You don’t have to fulfil orders or do anything except talk about a product you love and post a link (with a special code crediting you for sales) to get a fee for each sale.
Sell your own products
If you’re crafty or have a product (real or virtual) to sell, Instagram could help you earn good money from it. For products, you’ll do better with stuff that photographs well. Think bags, clothing and dog products.
But you can also sell virtual products, such as downloads of patterns or ebooks. Or if you have expertise in something, you could sell advice or consulting sessions.
Help brands to sell more
If you’d rather work behind the scenes, you can make money on Instagram by helping other brands promote their products. That means you don’t use your own Instagram account or your face.
Instead, you can use any marketing skills you already have to teach the brands how to promote their own products. Or you can do it directly for them by writing or designing their posts to reach the proper audience.