This is exactly how I make money on Instagram

Instagram has been the most important part of my income for a couple of years now as an entrepreneur and a blogger. I joined Instagram several years ago and have managed to gain over 25,000 followers on my account @veerabianca. Still a few years ago it was easier to grow an account and mine used to grow with over 100 followers a day organically. These days growing a larger Instagram account fast with quality content takes a bit more of an effort, but more on that topic later.

So how on earth do I make a living from Instagram? I’ve even heard a rumor that I would make money directly from the app paying me for every post, which is absolutely incorrect. So let me explain exactly how and how much money I make from Instagram.

1.Sponsored campaigns with tourism boards

As a travel blogger, most of my work is related to tourism businesses, such as destinations, hotels, and airlines. There are usually two types of trips; press trips where the inviting party covers all costs but do not pay a fee for content, giving you the freedom to cover the destination exactly how you want and post nothing or ten posts a day. But all parties benefit more from a well-planned campaign where the brand and the blogger both agree on the amount of content and the themes of content to be created (but do note that opinions can’t be bought).

Usually, Instagram posts are an important part of a sponsored campaign, where depending on the number of posts I charge anything between 100-500 euros per post.

2. Sponsored posts

At times companies only want to purchase 1 or 2 posts on your Instagram to market their product. Most of these on my account have been accessories and watches. It’s important that the influencer has the freedom to create the post in their own style and to only post about it if they honestly like the product. When I work with a watch brand, for example, the company needs to sponsor me their product and deliver it to my home and pay a fee of around 300 euros for the post on my account.

3. Brand ambassadorships with clothing brands

While I still focus on travel, I’ve tried to add more lifestyle and more of myself into my photos in the past year. This has led to followers asking me about my outfits, which has made me realise that Instagram might just be the absolute best platform for clothing brands to market their products. I used to think marketing fashion was only for Victoria’s Secret model size bloggers out there, but luckily realised my place in the market is to promote fabulous plus size fashion to my fellow curvy travellers. Clothing brands such as Forever 21 Plus work a lot with influencers and I’ve realised I make most of my shopping decisions based on what I see bloggers wearing on Instagram. Often these collaborations can be yearly contracts where you get delivered new collections each season and agree to post about them, for example, twice a week tagging the brand in your outfit photo. Some also pay according to purchases made through your account, which can be tracked through sales codes, such as ’veerabianca10’ to get -10% off at some named online store. 

4. Instagram marketing consulting for companies

Most of my income through Instagram actually doesn’t come directly from my own account, but from helping companies succeed with Instagram marketing. So on the side of this blog, I consult companies on how to get more out of their Instagram and also work with some companies on monthly contracts creating their content and maintaining their Instagram presence. From this, I make anything between 500-2000 euros per month.

5. Instagram training and lectures for companies and schools

On top of this all, I also do lectures and workshops for companies and schools. I’ve also done a few larger workshops and strategies for hotel chains hosting their staff with a half-day workshop on how to take photos, how to use hashtags and all of the jizzle related. These projects vary massively, so I make anything between 500-10,000 euros a month from Instagram workshops and lectures.

If you need any help with running your brands Instagram account, perhaps I can help: [email protected]

Are you already following me on Instagram?

So, to sum it up, my income from Instagram varies each month depending on projects. Currently, I make about 2000 euros from Instagram related work per month.

So you want to make money from your Instagram account too? 

The most important rule of any business is to not spend your day sitting at home waiting to be contacted. Sure when you’ve built enough networks and presence, companies start to approach you with good offers. But if you believe you have an Instagram account worth doing business around, don’t hesitate to contact companies yourself. You’ll easily spot brands that work with influencers from influencers you already follow – why not reach out to them with a direct message right away?

As Instagram has become such an important marketplace, there are also a lot of companies helping Instagram influencers find suitable clients. You can sign up for services such as Whalar to get more sponsored posts and campaigns for your account.