How to earn money on Instagram

5 ways to make money on Instagram: 1. Get sponsored: Creating sponsored posts or stories is the primary way Instagram users can cash in on their account. For example, if your feed is focused on images of your dog on hikes, an outdoor gear company may want to pay you to post a photo that includes its product in the picture. How to get sponsored on Instagram: So how do you find a sponsor? In some cases, potential partners will reach out to you. But if you don’t want to wait to be approached, check out companies that can help you find and work with brands. Seek out a service: Which business you use depends on your needs. There are agencies you work with directly, like The Mobile Media Lab, and marketplaces that connect you with partners, like Infelicity. Other services can help you manage all your partner relationships, like Aspire. Be authentic: When searching for partners or deciding between different offers, aim for stuff you and those you influence would actually use. Followers of your pet are more likely to trust your opinion about a trail backpack for dogs than gourmet cat food. Don’t bother with products you don’t like. If your dog teared apart an “indestructible” toy in an instant or bites off every sweater you’ve put on her, there’s no reason to recommend these things to others. Find brands that fit as specific a niche as possible. Fans of your outdoorsy dog may look for many opinions on dog stuff in general but will really trust you to know which protective booties work best for the winter. Keep in mind that sponsored posts and stories on Instagram are held to the same standard of truth in advertising as any other form of marketing. Make sure to include a disclosure in each paid post and story. You’ll do this by setting, up branded content in your account settings, then tagging your business partner. 2. Promote your business: There are other ways to use Instagram to make money. You can set up a business account to grow your business. For example, if you have an Etsy shop where you sell your crafts or a food blog that generates advertising revenue, a professional-looking Instagram account could provide a promotional boost. (This is also a common way to make money on TikTok). You can link to your Etsy or website in your profile, or highlight one specific product in your bio section to direct more people to it. If your account is approved for Instagram Shopping features, you can tag products to promote your stuff directly. Set yourself up for success: Take well-lit photos of products you’re trying to sell or projects you’re promoting, and make them findable. Create your own hashtag and check out which ones competitors are using. Encourage your clients to post pictures with your stuff and tag you in them. You can also use Instagram’s insights feature to learn about your audience. You can see how many eyes are on your post, as well as statistics about people's age range and gender. The app’s resources also help you find and connect with new customers. Pay some money to promote posts that you want more people to see. You can also add a button to your profile that links to an email address or phone number, so interested parties can contact you easily. 3. Sell your castoffs: Maybe you don’t have a business to promote, but you often sell your old clothes and accessories on websites like Posh mark, Instagram can boost your pool of buyers. Present and photograph your clothes and other things in an appealing way, and include as much detail as possible in the caption. Brand, size, condition and age of each item are all good things to note. If you’re looking to sell one item in particular, link to it in your Instagram bio. If not, just link to your Posh mark or other seller profile. Many Instagram sellers use #shopmycloset to hawk their wares. 4. Earn badges through Live videos: You can earn money directly from your audience when you share real-time videos with Instagram’s Live feature. As you showcase your talents, products and so on, viewers can buy badges, which are essentially tips, to show support. Badges cost $0.99, $1.99 or $4.99. You’ll see heart symbols next to comments from people who’ve purchased them. Promote your upcoming live video sessions through posts or stories to get the word out beforehand. Then, try using the Q&A feature or give shout-outs to commenters while you’re broadcasting to boost engagement — and hopefully, badges. 5. Monetize your videos with ads: Another way to get paid: Allow brands to run ads during your videos. To set it up, head to your creator account settings and enable the monetization option for in-stream video ads. Then, post videos as usual. The amount you earn depends on how many views your video gets in the feed. You’ll receive 55% of the revenue generated per view, according to the Instagram for Business website. Payments are issued monthly. How you won’t get paid if your videos don’t meet the requirements. For example, videos need to be at least 2 minutes long to earn money. Instagram recommends aiming for 2 to 4 minutes in length.