How to Monetise Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube

When the social media craze started, its main use was to socialise with individuals from different parts of the world. It is interesting how these platforms have transformed into serious business avenues. In fact, some social media influencers make more money than individuals in conventional professions like medicine, accountancy, and journalism. It is no wonder more people are striving to be renowned social media influencers. For this reason, this article will highlight some of the ways that you can monetise your social media platforms.

Key Statistics on the Use of Social Media

There are about 3.5 billion active users of social media. This figure equates to 45% of the global population; a percentage that is expected to consistently grow. Facebook is the most used platform with over 2.32 billion users every month. In term of the popularity of social media among different generations, millennials top the list at 90.4%. Generation X and Baby Boomers are at 77.5% and 48.2% respectively. On average, a social media user spends 3 hours in a day on one or several of these sites. Out of this population, 54% are on their gadgets researching about a product they wish to consume.

How Many Followers Do You Need to Nake Money on Social Media?

The number of people following you on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or any other social media account is not necessarily a determinant of your status as an influencer. Even with 1,000 followers, you could still monetise your online accounts and even surpass another individual with 10,000 supporters. The trick is to pick a specific category that you are truly passionate, authentic, and knowledgeable about it. Convince your current and potential audience that you are their go-to source of information when it comes to the best products to purchase or services.

While being a social media influencer does not necessarily require you to have a large following, building your brand and fan base is important for the following reasons:

• You will have a larger number of people to sell to.
• You will have a substantial fan base that you can use to identify the products or services they are interested in.
• Brands and advertisers in general will seek your services based on the fact that you can offer them a higher return on investment.

How to Monetise Your Social Media Platforms

Influencer Marketing

Influencer marketing is a form of social media marketing involving endorsements, product placement and reviews by social media users who have social influence. If you are a social media influencer, you can smention the brand or give a short description and review of the product.

Social media influencers carry a huge amount of social trust and credibility. As such, anything they recommend is the ideal product or service. As a social media influencer, you can take advantage of your credibility by partnering with established brands. Since recommendations are more effective that the ordinary ads, mentioning the products on your social media sites will increase traffic to the brand and subsequently heighten their sales. In return, you will be paid by the company.

It is common for one to feel hesitant to approach potential sponsors especially if you are yet to hit the 10,000 followers mark. It doesn’t hurt to try. As long as you are able to prove that your profile is valuable and that you are able to reach a substantial audience, you have something that a brand will find worthy.

Advertise Products and Services

If you have a huge following, you can place adverts, say on your Facebook profile as the photo below shows. As opposed to influencer marketing where product or service promotion without visitors knowing you are being paid by brands, this type of advertising clrearly states that the post is an advert.

Sell Your Own Products

You don’t have to sell other brands, you can develop your own and make money doing so on your social media platforms. All you need to do is to present items that are suited for your audience. Cooking with Jaz, a Kenyan social media influencer, is a great example of how you can make money through this route. She is an active blogger and also interacts with her fans constantly via YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook. In all these social media platforms, she has customized her content to fit her targeted audience – ordinary individuals with the desire to prepare exotic dishes.

Join the YouTube Partner Program

YouTube Partner Program (YPP) is a program in which popular Youtubers can earn from their videos from provided by YouTube. If you are eligible to join the program you will have access to Creator Support teams, the Copyright Match Tool and monetization features.

The minimum eligibility requirements include:

• Live in a country or region where the YouTube Partner Program is available.
• Have more than 4,000 valid public watch hours in the last 12 months.
• Have more than 1,000 subscribers.
• Have a linked AdSense account.

You need to be able to consistently create enganging and interesting content to make a subtantial amount of income. In this regard, you need to be determined, focused and creative.

Promote Your Expertise

Social media users with expertise in different fields can use their platforms of choice to sell themselves. If you use social media well, it can open consulting opportunities based on your expertise. Consulting is a growing industry and social media is an ideal medium to reach a wider audience.

Turn Social Media Posts Into a Book

You may have been using social media to make social commentary or share your expertise on a specialised topic. Based on the reaction you have received, you can turn those posts into a book for sale. You can sell it offline or online using platforms such as Sellfy and Gumroad. In case you don’t want to use traditional publishers for your book, you can use free self-publishing tools such as Lulu.

Use Affiliate Programs

Ever heard of someone requesting you to click on the link placed on their social media account? Well that is exactly what I am talking about; affiliate links. It works on the same principle as sponsored content. However, recommendations are more effective than sponsored ads. You basically work with the brand in question to showcase their products or services on your social media accounts. You are expected to inform potential customers of available discounts and to encourage them to head on to the company’s online and physical setups. As long as you have customized content and an apt niche, you are in a position to monetize your social media platforms through affiliate programs.

The key to making money through this approach is to find a suitable affiliate program. Most of them don’t charge anything to join and all you need is to present an application containing links to your social media accounts. Additionally, for people to consider you as their go-to person for product recommendations, you need to be authentic. Promote products that you would be comfortable using. It is important to be truthful about the endorsed items as you will need a loyal fan base to grow your brand as a social media influencer.

Conclusion

Influencer marketing is the real deal in today’s world. You should know that making money on social media is not all that easy. To be a successful social media influencer, you do not have to have an extremely large following. However, to earn money from these digital platforms, you have to have an engaging audience since this is what will attract brands to you. Indeed, there are various ways that one can use to monetize their social media platforms. Be efficient in several or all of those mentioned in this article and you will pride yourself in transforming your social media accounts into reliable sources of income.