Three Ways That We Make Money on Instagram!

1. By Selling Products or Services That We’ve Created

The primary way that we, and many other online brands, make money on Instagram, is by selling products of services that we’ve created.

We’re digital marketers. That is the corner of the marketing industry that we have learned, studied, mastered - and our position as Instagram influencers who have first-hand experience in growing an audience enables us to credibly package and teach our tips of the trade, to help fellow online brands scale their businesses.

For us, this started organically. As our Instagram following blossomed, we’d receive more and more DMs, reach outs, and questions from our audience, wanting to know how they too could grow their following. We had discovered something that was highly desirable to people - the key to audience growth, and we soon realized that this was something that we could monetize. In our Instagram Masterclass, we equip people with the tools so that they can learn how to grow their follower audience to 10K in 90 days, just like we did! 

We put effort into creating beautiful resources to package up our knowledge, and we began to monetize our online courses and classes. Initially, we started with two digital programs, our Creator Academy and The Van Layout Guide. As we (and the world of digital marketing) evolved and grew, we realized that we’d need to be constantly updating and elevating our material, hence the launch of our Brand Builders Workshop, our Masterclass, and more. 

If you are looking to develop your own product or service to sell through your Instagram account, we’d encourage you to take the time to ponder what the top 3 questions that your audience wants to answer?

What are the areas of your particular market or niche that people are most curious about? 

That information is valuable, and, when packaged correctly, is a product that can be sold.

2. Through Affiliate Marketing

Affiliate Marketing is a brilliant way to make money on Instagram while you sleep! Through strategic promotional partnerships, you leverage your audience by directing them to specific brands and make a commission on the sales price. Many major corporations such as Amazon have an affiliate program that you can join and promote on your social channel, blog links, and website. 

The key to affiliate marketing is to partner with brands that make sense for your audience. You want to build affiliate relationships in a way that makes sense, both for your business and for the demographic that you are targeting.

3. Through Paid Partnerships

Paid promotional partnerships are a brilliant way to make money on Instagram, by directly advertising products in your feed. The key is to collaborate with brands that suit your style, your aesthetic, your core values, and your business goals. If you are going to be putting your personal name behind a brand, you want to make sure that it is something you truly believe in! 

From our experience on the road, we found that brands were far more likely to reach out for paid partnerships that involved a product exchange rather than being a directly paid service. With that being said, the opportunity to receive FREE products from brands that we LOVE is never something I want to pass up on! 

We’ve learned how to navigate paid partnership offers and only say yes to ones that will truly benefit us (and our family).

4. Understand the Monetization Thresholds - And Grow Strategically

Different social platforms have different monetization thresholds. An example of this would be Youtube, where one can typically make $1 for every 1,000 views on your content. However, you need some numbers behind you in order to justify these benefits. The requirements for YouTube monetization are:

• 1,000 subscribers
• 4,000 watch hours

On Instagram and Twitter, the opportunity for branded partnerships are typically dependent on your follower count. Many brands are looking to build strategic partnerships with micro-influencers within their sphere or niche, that is, accounts with a follower count ranging between 1,000 - 100K.

5. Through Thoroughly Understanding the Platform

The best way to learn how to make money on Instagram is by thoroughly understanding the platform, and to ensure that you are implementing best value practices as you seek to grow your following. 

If you are in need of a deep dive into all things Instagram, then our Instagram Masterclass is for you. At the time of the writing of this blog enrollment is open, so why not check us out today and take the first steps to transform your online business!? We’ll be sharing industry secrets and our personal strategy behind the following areas:

• Measures for strategic growth including: 
• Ensuring your photo content is top quality. 
• Learning how to get the most out of hashtags. 
• Learning the best practices for posting. 
• Trade secrets about the Instagram app itself. 
• Lessons in engagement:
• Understanding who your current followers are.
• Strategically following others.
• Getting the most out of your Instagram Stories. 
• Specifics about how to make money on Instagram:
• Our personal secrets on how we make our bread and butter from Instagram. 
• Learning how to reach out to brands directly. 
• Everything you need to know about influencers and branding. 
• Baiting brands. 
• Promotion.
• Scripts and media kits. 

Learning how to make money on Instagram has been one of the most pivotal and important elements of our business. We owe so much to the app itself - not simply the ability to make money, but the gift it has been in helping us to build community and be able to connect directly to so many of you! We’re excited to see your brand take off and fly as you start to utilize these best practice tips and learn how to monetize your own account.

Interested in more tools that will make your business successful? We've got you covered! Check out our previous blog about the 3 tools every successful business has and so should you!