(ThyBlackMan.com) Instagram is increasing in popularity like no other social media network out there. In June 2018 it reached 1 billion monthly active users so it is no wonder that more and more companies are trying to advertise there.
A lot of people have already monetized their Instagram account and some of them are even making a decent living just from Instagram money alone. So you should try to do that. If you can reach and influence people, you are surely going to succeed.
How Many Followers Do You Need to Earn Money
You might have heard that you need a lot of followers to make money on Instagram and wondered how to gain instagram followers. However, it is not completely true, because not everything depends on the follower count. If you want a short answer, you do not need as many followers as you think.
There are many factors that play a role in your Instagram conversion rates. But you need to know the three main things that play part in the game. First of all, the money you will earn depends on your niche and to what category of products you fit in. Every niche has different pay rates.
Secondly, it is important to have engaged followers, 1 million fake followers will do nothing to you if they are not engaged with your content. So if you are thinking of taking the easy route and buying Instagram followers, you need to ensure they’re active ones, not fake ones. The content they engage with though depends solely on you, because you need to choose what kind of revenue channels you are interested in.
Of course, if you want to earn $5000 per post, you will need to have a large amount of engaged followers. However, even those Instagram accounts with small but really involved follower base can start making money.
Possible Ways of Monetization
There are many ways on how you can monetize your Instagram account. Most of the things come to your unique brand, your audience engagement and how much work you are willing to put into it. Here are possible ways of how to make money on Instagram.
Offer Sponsored Posts to Companies You Like
Companies are willing to pay a lot of money for Instagram influencers to advertise their products. If you have a pretty big and engaged follower base, you can certainly work with those companies. Most of the time it is not the only size and reach of your account but also your audience’s trust and engagement with your content.
If you do not know how much, you should charge per sponsored post on your Instagram. You should contact fellow creators who already share posts like these and ask them for an advice or you can charge the sum that looks right to you. However, most of the so-called influencers charge from $200 to $400 per one post.
Do not be afraid to contact companies by yourself and offer your services, do not wait till they come to you. Try not to advertise bad quality or controversial products because it can ruin your reputation.
Use Affiliate Marketing and Earn Commissions
Affiliate marketing is a pretty good way to monetize your Instagram account. In affiliate marketing, you are trying to make sales and earn commissions from a made sell as in sponsored posts you only generated awareness for the brand.
This kind of a monetization is mostly done through trackable links or unique promo codes. If a person buys the item through your link or promo code, you get a certain percentage of commissions paid to you. Sadly, you cannot put links on your Instagram posts, so you should put them on your Instagram bio or story highlights.
Almost every online store has some kind of affiliate marketing program. You can contact individually and ask for them to create you a promo code or signed to their already existing ones to get links. Most popular affiliate programs used are RewardStyle, ClickBank, Amazon’s Affiliate Program and Gearbest’s Affiliate Program.
Sell Your Photos Online
Instagram is by its core a photo sharing app. If people like your Instagram photos, you should try to put your photos on online marketplaces such as 500px or Twenty20. Also, you can use the Instagram account as your photo showcase room and sell them as prints.
You would be amazed at how many photographers advertise their work on Instagram and generate income from selling them as prints for people. If you already have a demand (engaged audience), you should try to sell your photos as prints for them. You can use Printful or TeeLaunch to get your photos turned into posters, mugs and other products.
Create Your Own Online Shop
Working with other brands and companies is not the only way you can monetize your Instagram if you are not a photographer. You can create your own online shop and sell your own stuff. It might be a good extension of your brand, you could sell physical goods, online services or digital items.
If you are an entertainer of some kind, you can create your own merchandise as a lot of YouTubers do and sell it to people. You might need to invest some money, but with an involved audience, it ought to pay off. You can try to use Shopify to create your online shop, it is probably the easiest way to do such a thing.
Staff Writer; Greg Carter