Social media has long since become a great place to make money on the Internet. You can promote your personal brand or business, or simply share your life with the world and get paid for it! Instagram has already solidified its position as a highly profitable social media platform. In this article we’re looking into the ways of making money on Instagram.
Social media is great for killing time! However, there are ways to kill time productively. Example? Look at Instagram users making millions by simply posting on their accounts! Why not be like them? By the way, you don’t have to be a blogger to earn money on the platform. There are different ways, and you will likely find something that suits you.
Who goes on Instagram?
Before we get to the ways of making money, let’s first figure out who is actually using Instagram?
According to the official stats, Instagram reached 1,200,000,000 users in 2020. This figure represents accounts that are active at least once a month. Large cities account for almost 52% of all Instagram users.
Almost 60% of Instagram users are women, 40% are men. The age distribution is as follows: the “prized” age range of 18-34 comprises almost 67% of the audience. Teenagers of 13-17 occupy just 12.3%, with 67% of them women. As we go up in age, more men get on board: the 25-34 bracket is where the percentage of males on the platform reaches its maximum of 41%.
Users choose this social media for its beautiful and eye-catching content (this category of profiles is especially popular). Instagram users love with their eyes — visually pleasing images are much more important than thoughtful tirades in the description, so if you’re eyeing this platform as a promotional tool, get ready to produce some objectively gorgeous content!
How to become an Instagram blogger?
Obviously, the more followers you have, the higher your revenue is. Just a wish is not enough to become a popular creator — you need to pick a niche and fight for your audience.
It’s not as hard to find your niche as you may think at first! Choose something you want to tell the world about — your private life, hobby, education… You can always find something unique and interesting!
The key to success is staying passionate about what you do on your account. You should be happy about doing it for no money at all. The money will come when you are doing what you love.
Let’s look at the follower count of Cristiano Ronaldo. Some 200 million followers are watching his feed. This is enormous success. He’s also a charitable person and a great father who makes time for his family even when he’s playing important football matches. He puts it all up online on his account and that gets him millions of eyeballs!
The Instagram diva, one of the most famous celebrity moms, a successful businesswoman and the youngest billionaire Kylie Jenner has managed to build a business empire thanks to her popularity on social media. Her first lipstick line titled Kylie Lip Kits was sold out in just 30 seconds! Kylie made her first billion dollars at 21, surpassing Mark Zuckerberg on the list of youngest billionaires.
Ariana Grande regularly shares her thoughts and emotions with over 180 million followers. She’s a successful singer-songwriter and producer. She earns millions, but she never fails to show her followers how versatile her talent really is.
Personal trainer Kayla Itsines boasts 12 million followers, and it’s not incidental — she has developed her own workout program that helps lose weight and get fit. Kayla has led by example and routinely shows that anyone can achieve great results. Her account has also landed her on the list of the richest Australians.
Another Instagram celebrity — an ex-entrepreneur in the field of IT turned real estate agent Fredrik Eklund with 1.2m followers. His account tells the story of how he lost his business in the 90-s, moved to New York and became the number one broker in the city. Instagram helps Fredrik strengthen brand loyalty and boost his earnings.
Another example is Anne — a confectioner, food blogger and photographer with an audience of 180k followers. Anne shows how breakfasts can be fun, inspires her followers to surround themselves with beauty and keep up a good mood. This approach speaks to many!
Another interesting page that you may have heard of: Tuna the dog. Ever since the puppy became part of Courtney Dasher’s family, Tuna has been melting the hearts of Instagram goers with his spookish, but surprisingly cute muzzle thanks to the dog’s signature overbite. Tuna’s page is followed by over 2 million users. The owner has managed to cash in on advertising. She has also opened up a merchandise shop with Tuna-branded t-shirts, mugs and phone cases.
So how to make money on Instagram?
We won’t be covering the path of selling merchandise on Instagram, and instead look into how creators can earn money on the platform:
Placing ads in posts and stories
This means direct or native advertising. The price on post and story ads are different, depending on the reach and follower count.
Promoting your own educational courses (fitness, cooking, sales, etc)
When you’re a successful blogger, you can tap into your audience and promote your own online programs. Who needs advertising when you have an army of loyal followers? It’s a win-win!
Providing paid mentorship.
A popular Instagram account offers the ability to promote yourself as an expert in your field and sell pay-by-the-hour 1 on 1 coaching.
Partnerships
This kind of promotion on Instagram implies paying the partnered channel a sales percentage from the promoted products/services. The resulting earnings may vary from a few dollars to a few thousand.
Brand ambassadors
A subcategory of ad partnership. In this case the blogger is paid for continued participation with the brand. This implies mentioning the product on a regular basis, visiting brand events, etc.
Competitions and giveaways
The host of a giveaway promotes other bloggers, big or small. The goal is simple: sharing the audience with those who have paid to partake in the giveaway. The price depends on the potential audience gain.
And what if you want to earn money on Instagram, but don’t want to bother with creating your own page? There are ways:
- Promotion and management of others’ accounts.
- Writing copy and scripts for stories.
- Video editing for stories.
- Improving creators’ engagement rate through likes, comments and follows.
- Sales/online store on Instagram.
- Art/photo sales to creators.
- Direct messages advertising.
- Ad targeting optimization.
As you can see, Instagram offers a plethora of options for earning money, if you’re willing to make the first step in this direction. Now is the best time for that. If you’re an entrepreneur, share your experiences, successes and failures with an audience on Instagram. Thousands of potential customers as well as potential partners are out there for you on this platform.
Publication author
