Whether social media is your primary platform or a channel to drive people back to your site, it is possible to monetize social media effectively to Make Money on Social Media and having an additional revenue stream.
We’re going to cover 11 ways you can accomplish this.
Let’s dive in.
Method #1: Video marketing
With videos becoming very popular with users, video marketing is a good way to monetize your social media.
You can either create videos of your product and start distributing that across all platforms. You can also tie up with an influencer and have them integrate your product into their content.
Method #2: Dropshipping
Dropshipping is popular with influencers because of how easy it is to sell a product. There are many ways you can go about it. You can try a platform like Amazon or dropshipping on etsy.
You can become a ‘reseller’ of a product, or you can create a product of your own and have a third party take care of the production and delivery.
Method #3: Print on Demand
In line with the dropshipping model, merch is another way influencers monetize their social media. Most often, influencers design a product and create a line that people can buy from. But instead of holding stock and making a loss, a lot of influencers turn to print on demand services.
You can upload your design on the print on demand services’ website and they take your custom design and print it directly on merchandise. Print on demand also follows the dropshipping model and it is only going to grow.
The dropshipping market capitalisation was $85 billion dollars in 2017 according to Printify.
Method #4: Sponsorships
A lot of makeup artists have their content sponsored by a beauty brand. You can emulate this business model no matter which industry you are in. Create an engaged follower base, and you can ask for sponsorships even if you are a micro-influencer.
Method #5: Direct sales
Most social platforms like Facebook and Instagram have also introduced a store within the platform, making it easy for brands to sell directly on the platform. Make these features a part of your social media strategy to start selling effectively. You should also boost and promote posts for added visibility.
Method #6: Brand collaboration
Quite similar to sponsorships, brand collaborations are tie-ups with brands. In these collaborations, creators create unique content for the brand with a subtle integration of their product in the content. Depending on the size of your following and engagement rates, this is the most lucrative way of monetizing social media.
Method #7: Live videos
A lot of platforms allow creators to go live and earn money through fan donations. TikTok and YouTube have this option, as do other platforms. Usually, these live videos are entertaining or for charity.
Method #8: Coaching
Becoming a coach on social media can open up new avenues. You can market your services on multiple platforms, offer your expertise in return for a customized quote based on the client. The flexibility this offers both in terms of money and time puts this method above the others.
Method #9: Digital products
If you have expertise in a field, you can create various digital products out of this knowledge. You can write an eBook – How to guide, fiction, self-help book, or anything else that makes sense for your industry. Since it is an eBook, you can keep it direct, so there is less time invested, and since it lives on your profile, you can generate passive income from it without having to actively market it.
Other digital products include schedules, online tools, reports, and tests.
Method #10: Service marketing
If you offer a product or service, you can also use social media to drive people to your website through engaging content. If someone is looking for your services, having the right content will help them discover you. But, on the other hand, if someone isn’t aware of your solution, social media helps to build brand awareness so that when they do need your product, they recall your brand.
Method #11: Online courses
Another way you can leverage social media is to offer courses directly on the platform. You can sell a course in the form of a digital product, as discussed above, or do a live session. You can use social media to drive people to your course and use clipping from your course to encourage the next batch of people. Doing so should help you monetize the content.
Final thoughts
There you have it. Some of the ways you can monetize social media to create an additional revenue stream or a full-time income. Remember that it takes time to perfect the integration of organic and paid social media and get these monetization channels to start working. So, stay consistent till you see measurable results.