One of the most exciting things about creating content for social media (aside from, you know, connecting with your audience, creating a community, building your brand, and all that good stuff)?
That’s right — making money from that content. If you’re already making Instagram Reels, there are many ways your videos can help you earn revenue, both as a business and as an individual creator.
But if you don’t know where to get started, we can help. In this article, we’ll teach you how both businesses and content creators can use Instagram Reels to generate revenue.
Let’s get started.
Can you earn money from Instagram Reels?
Short answer: Yes!
Long answer: While building an audience and making an income can take some time, it is possible to earn money from Instagram Reels. It’s just not quite as easy as it used to be.
In the past, Instagram touted its Reels Play bonus program as a way for Instagram users to make money from their Reels. Unfortunately, the platform sunsetted this program in March of 2023.
But that doesn’t mean you can no longer make money by creating and sharing Instagram Reels! You just have to get a little creative.
How to use Instagram Reels to make money as a business
There tend to be more in-platform monetization options for creators to earn money. Still, businesses can use Instagram Reels to increase the amount of revenue they bring in.
Promote products and services
It seems obvious, but we can’t let it go unsaid. Using your Instagram Reels to promote your products and services is one of the best ways to drive your audience to purchase or sign up.
To improve the chances of making a sale through Instagram Reels, keep these tips in mind:
- Use high-quality footage or animation
- Speak to your product or service’s solution
- Share why someone should make a purchase or sign up
- Provide a clear call-to-action where they can learn more
You can’t include links in Instagram captions and only a single link in your Instagram profile, so many businesses send viewers to their link in bio.
That precious real estate is limited, so use this link strategically.
This way, you can include links directly to each product or service you mention in your Reels, making it easy for viewers to make a purchase.
Create shoppable Reels
You can also take a more direct route and create shoppable Reels. If you have an ecommerce business with an online shop, you can use Meta’s Commerce Manager to create a catalog and launch a shop on your Facebook Page and Instagram profile.
You can use your Instagram shop to create collections, add discounts, share new arrivals, offer free shipping, and more. It’s like your own little online shop right inside the Instagram app.
You can even tag your products inside your Instagram Reels, making it easy for viewers to immediately make a purchase.
How to use Instagram Reels to make money as a creator
Opting for a creator account provides some built-in monetization features businesses aren’t eligible for. But those aren’t the only ways to use Reels to generate revenue.
Here are the top ways to earn money from Instagram Reels as a content creator or influencer.
Partner with brands
Many creators earn money by getting into influencer marketing, or partnering with brands. Creating Reels is a great way to do this. If you choose to do this, you can set your own rates and charge brands to create a Reel (or even a series of Reels) to promote a product or service.
If partnering with brands is something you want to do as part of your social media presence, working with an agent can be a great way to get started—especially once you’ve built up a solid following. If you’ve got over 100,000 followers like Madeline, working with a pro to manage your brand partnerships is a good idea.
But if you’re just getting started, try connecting with the brands you want to work with on social media. Follow them, interact with their content, then search for their social media manager or partnerships manager’s contact information. (You can always try DMing, but you risk getting lost in the Requests folder.)
You can also use a platform built specifically for connecting brands and influencers, like InfluenceHer Collective, Fohr, or Upfluence.
And while rates vary based on your following, influencers can make anywhere from $10 to $10,000 per Reel as part of a brand deal. (For more on calculating influencer pay, check out our blog on Instagram influencer rates.)
Become an affiliate
In affiliate marketing, creators partner with brands to promote products and earn a commission from purchases made by their viewers. It’s another great way for creators to monetize their following and earn money from Instagram Reels. And the more users who sign up using your link, the larger your commission.
Here are a few examples of how affiliate marketing can work.
Visme, a graphic design tool, has an active affiliate program and offers a generous 25% commission to each of its affiliates.
Just remember that while you can include your affiliate link in the caption of your Reel, those links aren’t clickable. Your best bet is still referring viewers to your link in bio. You can even use a tool like Hootbio to share multiple affiliate links.
Promote a subscription
Instagram subscriptions are only available for creator accounts, but they allow you to create extra content for people who pay to view it. It’s like a Patreon, but just for your Instagram followers.
You can choose what you want to include in your subscription, but some of the options include:
- Live streams
- Stories
- Subscriber badges
- Posts, Reels, and other exclusive content
- Social channels
- Broadcast channels
Decide how much subscriber-only content you want to offer, then head into your Instagram monetization settings and set up your subscription.
You can choose your price point based on the content you want to offer—starting at $0.99 per month and going up to $99.99 per month.
If you plan to offer coaching and high-value educational content, you might choose one of the higher-tier price points. And if you just want to create an environment where you can connect with super fans, you might choose a lower price point.
Once you bring in enough subscribers, your Instagram subscription can be a fantastic additional revenue stream. And making smart use of your Instagram Reels can be one of the best ways to promote your subscription offerings.
Create Reels that tease your subscription and the exclusive content and interactions you’ll provide. A “Subscribe” button will appear by all of your Reels as well as an additional call-to-action, as you see below:
The more Reels you create, the more your followers will see that Subscribe button. Think of each additional Reel as an opportunity to convert a new subscriber.
Accept virtual gifts
Virtual gifts are available to creator accounts and can be accessed by viewers in the comments area. Viewers can click on the gift box icon next to the comment box to access the gift interface:
Virtual gifts range from 10 to 300 stars. Instagram users can click the Add to balance button to purchase stars. Star packages are available in three increments:
- 45 stars: $0.99
- 140 stars: $2.99
- 300 stars: $5.99
When users send you virtual gifts, they aren’t just pretty trinkets. You can exchange those gifts for real currency at an exchange rate of $0.01 per star. Creators can get paid out whenever their gift balance reaches $25 or greater.
Just be sure to add a payout account if you want to use virtual gifts as a monetization strategy. If you don’t, you’ll risk losing your gifts.
Instagram’s policy states that after 5 months or a $500 payout, you’ll lose your ability to monetize with Instagram Gifts. After six months, you’ll forfeit your ability to redeem your payment.
Whether you’re an Instagram creator/influencer looking to increase your income or a business promoting your products and services, Instagram Reels can help you do it. Take advantage of monetization features available to both account types and start earning money.