How to make money on Instagram: 5 proven tricks

Instagram has more than one billion active users. What was once a simple photo and video-sharing app has evolved into one of the most potent and versatile marketing tools on the internet. Further, it is no longer about just keeping up with friends. Social media and Instagram followers have become popular business tools. Some companies even accept an Instagram page in place of your portfolio.

There is an official Instagram business website. According to their census, sixty percent of people on Instagram use it to discover new products. Further, more than two-thirds of the visits to a public page on Instagram are from users who do not follow that page. This means that the potential for outreach is enormous.

These statistics clearly show that if you gain engagement on Instagram, then monetary opportunities are enormous. Thus, in this article, let us discuss five easy ways to encash these opportunities for a side hustle. With time, Instagram can also become your primary source of income. Let us dive in.

• Publish sponsored posts

Once your account has significant organic growth, you can partner up with brands and content creators for sponsored posts. Sponsored posts mean that you will be paid a certain amount of money for promoting someone else’s products or services on your account.

Brands are more likely to partner up with channels with a large following and whose posts receive major engagement and traction. Hence, you will not be able to find high-paying opportunities initially. But with time, if you have a loyal audience, sponsored posts can yield high amounts of income.

Note that you should always disclose it in the captions or with the “Paid partnership with ___” label on Instagram when you are sponsoring something. Otherwise, depending on your country’s cyber laws, you might face legal action. 

• Become a brand ambassador

Sponsored posts work well. However,  unless you have a hugely popular account, sponsoring opportunities will be few and far between. Further, brands also prefer long-term partnerships to ease their workflow.

The job of a brand ambassador is to promote the products or services of the brand regularly. A wonderful perk of this job is that you often get free samples for products that you need to promote.

Once again, you will start small, but with time, you can make as much as forty to fifty thousand dollars by signing a contract with some major brand. You just need to generate a loyal and active following.

• Become a freelance content creator – write captions

Theoretically, this is not a way to make money on Instagram. However, it connects to the platform. Hence, I have included it here. With the increasing popularity of social media marketing, even small businesses are increasing their investment in the industry.

If you are creative with a pen, you can find work as a social media content creator on websites like Upwork, Freelancer, Fiverr, etc. Beware that this is a highly competitive industry. Hence, your first gig will get you a teen number of dollars for a lot of work. However, with time, you can make as much as $50.00 an hour.

The tasks of social media content creators include finding relevant images, creating posters, writing captions, etc. This does not require too much effort but is time-consuming. Make sure that you can fit the job into your schedule before you commit.

• Sell digital and physical products

If you are a photographer, then Instagram is probably the first place you would have looked to sell your captures. However, the world does not stop there. An increasing number of artists have started to use Instagram to sell artwork and other types of content through Instagram.

Further, hand-made posters, phone covers, journals, wall hangings, etc. fetch a significant amount of money when sold through Instagram. In most cases, they are cheaper than branded products. Besides, there is no lack of creativity around the world and these hand-made products look, feel, and age better.

Though you will need to charge your customers for shipping but selling on Instagram has enormous potential and should not be underestimated.

• Find freelance clients

Another indirect way of making money on Instagram is to use it as a portfolio and attract potential customers to use your website or other social media channels. Networking opportunities on Instagram are enormous.

Like we previously mentioned, more than two-thirds of the visits to Instagram channels are from non-followers. Thus, you can create an Instagram handle and share your projects, samples, recommendations, and awards there. You can even include a link to this channel in your resume while applying for a job or freelance position. 

Further, you can ask every person you work for to post something about you on their Instagram channel and tag you in that post. Networking and connecting with people in this way will soon send hundreds of customers your way.

Conclusion

Instagram profiles receive maximum engagement compared to most major social media platforms. Thus, it is the perfect place to earn some extra money and can even be your main source of income. 

Do you think there are easier ways to monetize your time on Instagram? Let us know in the comments below.