If you’re looking to earn some extra pocket money, but can’t afford to spend on childcare, why not monetise your Instagram account? You can do it from the comfort of your home, and all you need is an eye for style, networking skills and a smartphone.
Affiliate Marketing
By posting and tagging quality images with products styled well on Instagram, you’re likely to help brands drive sales. This can be organised directly with brands, or through third party companies such as “Like To Know”. For best results, the products need to be relevant to your personality and Instagram feed. For example, if you aren’t into fitness, then posting about gym gear probably won’t work well.
Getting Started
Firstly, you’ll need to have a genuine and reasonably large following, so there’s the reason for a brand to want to work with you. Build your audience by commenting on similar accounts and using relevant hashtags to build authority within your category. Find your niche so that your audience knows what to expect and stays engaged.
Approaching Brands
Once you have established yourself as an influencer within a particular category, you can either approach brands directly by cold calling, apply for “brand rep” positions (usually advertised on Instagram), or join an influencer community where brands can approach you.
Popular Categories
Not sure what your niche is? Some popular categories include kids clothes (if you have children), women’s fashion (if you’re not camera-shy and have someone else to take photos for you), fitness and health, and décor.
How Much Money Can You Make?
The answer is: how long is a piece of string? The better your photos and the more engaged followers you have, the better your bargaining power. It also depends on the size of the brand you work with, small businesses may just provide a free product, while larger companies may offer products as well as payment.
Like anything in life, the more you put in, the more you’ll get out of it. So work on your photography skills, research what others in your category are doing and start thinking about brands you’d love to work with.
Dominique Perri is the co-founder and Head of Marketing for Baby Dino, an online department store for children’s fashion and interiors. With a Bachelor of Business degree from UTS and 7 years in media planning and buying roles, Dominique set out in search of a new challenge and launched Baby Dino. Her ability to take calculated risks and continually embrace her core values of integrity, growth and innovation have enabled Baby Dino to develop a loyal worldwide customer base and grow into one of Australia’s largest online stores for children’s fashion.
