How to Make Money on Instagram with Minimal Investment

In any form of business, the less overhead you have, the more profit you’ll make. With over 1 billion people using Instagram on a monthly basis, business owners have caught on to the potential views and revenue the free social network can generate for them. This article will explain how to make money on Instagram while maintaining a low client acquisition cost. It involves implementing a few simple actions into your social media strategy.

Business Account

If your Instagram profile is not already set as a business account, do not waste another second. Changing to the business mode adds benefits that you’ll want to take advantage of as a business owner.

• Calls to Action – The first thing you’ll notice once you’ve switched to a business profile are the call-to-action buttons that appear just under your bio. This gives your Instagram followers the ability to call or email you with a quick tap. They can also receive directions to your business if you have a physical location you’d like to guide them to.

• Data Analytics – Another business profile perk is the availability of in-depth analytics. You’ll have live updates on your accounts views, engagement and much more. With this information, you can gain a better understanding of what social media strategies are working and which efforts need to be altered.

• Links in Your Stories – Typically, you’re unable to embed links into your Instagram stories. However, once you’ve converted to a business profile, this changes. You will have the opportunity to maximize your social media strategy by directing your Instagram followers to any page you’d like them to visit. Simply add your desired link to your stories and tell your followers to swipe up.

In case you’re unsure of how to flip the switch, here’s how you can set your account to a business profile:

• Start by signing in.
• Select the menu on the top right corner.
• Tap on Settings.
• Open the Account option.
• Select Switch to Business Profile at the bottom.

Hashtag Utilization

Although they can sometimes be used as punch lines in Instagram captions, there’s a lot more to hashtags than meets the eye. Learning how to make money on Instagram requires an understanding of how hashtags work and which ones to use.

Hashtags work similar to external links and keywords. They connect people to posts that mention words or phrases they are interested in. For example, if you sell ice cream sandwiches and want people that enjoy ice cream sandwiches to follow you, you’ll want to use variations of those words in your hashtags. #Icecreamsandwich, #icecreamsandwiches, #icecreamlovers and #icecreamshop are all great hashtags to use in this particular scenario.

You’ll notice when adding hashtags that the number of posts connected to each hashtag will automatically pop up as you type the hashtag keywords. It’s easy to be tempted into using hashtags that have over a million posts, but that’s not necessarily the wisest method. With over a million posts, yours can easily get drowned out and overlooked. The best tactic is to be more specific with your hashtags and aim for those that have tens or hundreds of thousands of posts. You’ll reach a large audience while still having the opportunity to stand out and capture new Instagram followers.

Additionally, you’ll want to keep two things in mind when using hashtags:

1. Do not crowd your Instagram caption by adding tons of hashtags to the bottom of it. Instead, allow your Instagram caption to shine on it’s own, then write a comment on your post with all of the hashtags you’d like to include.
2. Mix it up. Try not to use the exact same hashtags in every post. Hashtags are free to use, so why not try different ones that could potentially reach different people? As long as you use relevant keywords, you’ll still find users that fit your target market, but you’ll connect with them through different outlets.

Ad Campaign

Running an ad campaign sounds expensive, right? Think again. The great thing about Instagram ads is that you can set your own budget and time frame. You can also narrow your audience by selecting demographics that align with your target consumer.

Much like Instagram ads, Facebook ads cost are also affordable and customizable. If you have both an Instagram and Facebook account, you can double up on your social media strategy by synchronizing both accounts and their ads. You can organize and monitor both using Ads Manager, which is a simple tool that consolidates everything for you.

Influencer Connection

In conjunction with your Instagram and Facebook ads, you can work with social media influencers to promote your product.

What is a social media influencer? They are people who typically have lifestyle-driven accounts that have garnered an immense number of Instagram followers. They’ll usually have anywhere from several thousand followers to six figures! The potential for viewership, alone, is a great reason to work with a social media influencer.

So how do you convince a social media Influencer to work with you? There are two main routes you can choose from:

1. Offer them free products in exchange for a free post or review of your product. Make sure they understand that they should give positive thoughts on your product.
2. Pay them to post a few times about your company or products. The more followers they have, the more they will charge. So if you decide to go with this option, you may want to seek social media influencers that have Instagram followers in the 5-figure range.

Do all of these steps seem easy enough? Then don’t delay any further. Now that you know how to make money on Instagram, apply these approaches to your social media strategy and reach your revenue goals!