Creative Ways To Make Money Using Social Media

With over 4.6 billion active users (a whopping 58.7% of the world’s population!) across various social media platforms, making money online is the real deal!

More than half of the global population have at least one social media site they leverage to connect to the world. 

Facebook alone commands 2.9 billion active users every month! YouTube has 2.2 billion users, Instagram has 2 billion, WhatsApp has 2 billion, Messenger has a 1.3billion, and WeChat has 1.26 billion users monthly. With these huge figures across diverse platforms, you can create a business strategy and generate real repeat income from your effort. 

So, how can you generate revenue via social media? How can you work with brands to amass revenue from your platforms and audience?

Find out creative ways to make money using social media below:

1. Leverage Influencer Marketing 

Influencer marketing is an approach to online marketing through product endorsement from

people who have huge social media followings and are capable of influencing their followers’ decisions to take certain actions. An Influencer could be an individual or organisation with an expert level in certain fields.

In 2014, celebrities largely played the influencer role on Instagram. But time has changed and a lot of previously unknown individuals and organizations have now tapped into it.

Standing out in 2014 on Instagram was easier than today. If you were lucky enough to be featured on Instagram’s featured page or your look was just distinctive enough, then your chances of being tapped as an influencer were high. After enough brand partnerships, some have turned social media influencer marketing into a full-time career.

2. Build a Paid Membership

Another creative way to make money on social media is to create exclusive content which canonly be accessed by paid members. Paid members are members who have paid a stipulated amount to receive access to such content.

Some of the most popular paid membership forms include paid online courses, support platforms, streaming webcam sites, and subscription accounts such as can be found on OnlyFans. To get started, there are certain important things to note.

Choose the most suitable platform for your content. OnlyFans makes this easy to do – see what the best OnlyFans accounts look like. You can also consider Facebook groups and other options. Set up your desired platform and membership features, add membership levels, set up access rules, create members-only content, add pricing, and how to sign up for the content.

3. Get on the Affiliate Marketing Train!

Affiliate marketing is a gold mine for most bloggers and online marketers. It saves you the stress of creating your products or service. You can simply sign up with a company and promote their products for a commission. However, it is important to ensure that the company you are affiliating with is trustworthy.

While some brands have their affiliate programs that can be applied for as an individual, others are connected with various affiliate networks that you’ll need to get approval from after signing up. You can apply with multiple affiliate networks to increase your chances of earning. 

4. Sell Your Creative Product

Unlike affiliate marketing where you’ll only get commissions based on the sales you drive, your creative products are completely yours and you can determine the amount you earn from them.

Digital products like ebooks and courses are neither expensive nor stressful to maintain, once you have got over the initial hurdle of creating them. The work majorly required is the initial one invested in its creation. You’ll also need to revise your ebook periodically to keep it relevant.

If you’re a good photographer, there are also sites for you to sell your pictures online, in both print or download formats. Don’t be shy, take advantage of multiple platforms to sell your product or services.

Copyright: Robin Worrall on Unsplash I License: CC0 Public Domain

5. Become a Social Media Manager

As social media has so many aspects to it, most brands today employ specialists to handle their accounts to help them increase engagement with their followers and ultimately drive more sales. It is important to understand how major platforms work since most companies use more than one social media channel.

To become a social media manager, you may need to take a course to boost your knowledge and give you an edge in the industry. Because, unlike before when social media managers are largely focused on creating content, managing posts, and replying to comments and DMs, today, companies want more. Now, companies expect social media managers to be able to develop strategies to increase followers, create and oversee campaigns, review analytics, and engage key stakeholders.

Making Money Using Social Media: Getting Started

So, which option should you begin with? Influencer marketing, paid membership, affiliate marketing, selling direct products or services, and social media management are all great ways to make money using social media. It depends on the option that you mostly find comfortable which is likely the one you are already using.

People that can convince others with their writing skills will find affiliate marketing a suitable option and virtually anyone ready to learn and go extra can start social media management. Whichever option you have, simply set your mind to it, and turn your efforts into real cash!