How to Make Money on Instagram Without 10K Followers

Published on 02.07.2026 by Chizoba T

If you are not making money on social media, you are missing a lot in an era when there are multiple social media monetization options in 2026. And unlike what you might think, you don't need 10K followers to make money on the platform. This is because Instagram offers multiple ways to earn money even when you don't reach their monetization requirements. In this article, we look at the top ways to make money on Instagram as a beginner.

Top Ways to Make Money on Instagram as a Beginner

If you are a beginner on Instagram looking for ways to make money, here are some of the top options you should consider:

Influencer Marketing

One of the best ways to earn money on Instagram is to become a mega influencer, nano influencer, or micro influencer. As with other influencer partnerships, you are compensated in cash or with gifts. In return, you create and share content promoting the brand.

You can market the brand in various ways, such as sponsored posts and brand mentions of their products or services. You can also create reels marketing the brand’s product and include a link to their website or social media page, depending on the agreements. Unlike what many think, you don't need hundreds of thousands or millions of followers to work as an Instagram influencer.

In recent years, the popularity of microinfluencers has increased for influencers with a following of 1K to 10K. These micro-influencers often have high engagement rates. In fact, it's possible to find an influencer with 10K followers driving a higher engagement than another with 200K followers. 

Here are the steps to follow when becoming an Instagram influencer.

Determine Your Niche and Target Audience

To be successful as an influencer, you need to be super focused, so select a niche you are passionate about or have expertise in. It should also be something that interests your target audience. You can leverage Instagram analytics and research tools to find trending hashtags, topics, and competitors’ content. 

There are several tips you can use to determine your niche:

Create a Strong Personal Brand

A brand should be more than the logo and the colour palette. It should reflect your values, voice, and the promise you will deliver to followers. It should also reflect consistency and authenticity. Create a compelling bio, add a smart profile picture, and incorporate identifiable visual styles. 

Here are a few tips on creating an outstanding personal brand:

  • Make sure your bio is clear and value-driven, showing your product offering.
  • Have a consistent filter set and color scheme.
  • Add a brand voice.
  • Share your unique story in the comments.

Create High-Quality Content

Content is the backbone of a good influencer marketing strategy. Unless your target audience resonates with the content, it will be hard to drive engagement on the posts. You also need to be consistent so that your audience can look forward to the posts. Make sure you use a combination of post formats such as reels, static posts, and carousels.

Drive Engagement on Instagram

A good influencer strategy should be built on relationships rather than reach. Therefore, drive engagement by asking questions in the captions and leveraging Stories' interactive features, such as quizzes, polls, and Q&As, to drive conversations. You can make followers see you by sharing some user-generated content.

Use Instagram Analytics to Refine the Strategy

Having the right data can provide important insights into what is working and what isn't. You should, therefore, take time to monitor various metrics such as reach, shares, follower growth, and saves. You can then adjust your content strategy, hashtags, or posting time using the data you get.

Drive Traffic to Your Site

According to 80% of people who took part in a survey, Instagram helps them discover new products or services they can buy. Additionally, the more hours your brand spends on Instagram, the higher the chances of buying from your site. You can use Instagram indirectly to take traffic to your site and boost your sales, grow an email list or create a community of loyal followers. 

Instagram Marketing Services

If you have the skills to offer Instagram marketing, content creation, caption writing, or Instagram account management, this is also a good way to earn money on the platform. You can earn either as a freelancer offering these services, or you can position yourself as a consultant helping brands improve their Instagram marketing.

You can mention in your Instagram bio that you offer these services. You can also advertise your services on third-party platforms such as Upwork and Fiverr. Finally, you can also use online scheduling tools on your site to let people book directly there.

Sell Illustrations, Images, and Digital Files

Remember that visuals are the most popular content formats on Instagram, and whether you are a creative, photographer, or designer, you can monetize your talent. You can sell the photos to other businesses, especially for industries such as travel. Alternatively, you can sell your content, such as illustrations and prints. You can also use Instagram to market your photos on other platforms, such as stock photo sites.

Share Exclusive Content with the Audience

Humans are naturally curious people and have a strong desire to learn. This is why platforms that offer online courses, such as Udacity, Masterclass, and Coursera, have large customer bases. You can create an online course and market it on Instagram. You can also make money by offering some simple guides, whitepapers, templates, and e-books. 

Instagram Shop

An Instagram Shop acts like a traditional e-commerce store, with the only difference that everything is done on the app. They use the slogan "post, tag, and sell," which provides some good insights into how it works. After creating a shop, you can add details such as the product image, price, and merchandise description. When your followers discover your items on the platform, they can check out everything.

There are several steps you can follow when creating an Instagram shop. These are:

  1. Open a business account or convert your personal account to a business account.
  2. Connect a Facebook page.
  3. Add the product catalogues.
  4. Turn on shopping.

Affiliate Marketing

When conducting affiliate marketing on Instagram, you get paid per post, with the average commissions ranging from 5% to 30%. Your sales will be tracked using a unique promo code or a trackable UTM link. Another term for Instagram affiliates is brand ambassadors, and you can either reach out to brands for partnership opportunities or the brands may reach out to you.

The good thing with this monetization method is that the number of followers will not matter. Instead, brands want to work with followers they consider to be a perfect fit. However, when doing affiliate marketing on Instagram, you should keep in mind that you can only add the product link in the app and in stories. 

Become a Brand Ambassador

While they may sound the same, sponsored posts and brand ambassadors are two different things. While the sponsored posts are one-off gigs, the brand ambassadors often have long-term relationships. However, before you can become a brand ambassador, you will need a large following, high engagement, and to be a good fit for the brand.

Remember that as a brand ambassador, you will act as the company's representative, so you should be conscious and intentional about the content you post. While a brand ambassador position will require you to sacrifice your freedom, it can be a great way to make money on Instagram.

Tips to Make More Money with an Instagram Account

No matter the monetization method you choose, there are several tips to help you make money on Instagram. These include:

Grow Your Instagram Following

The number of followers is an important consideration for many brands. Without these numbers, it will be hard for brands to hire you, as they are looking for people with great reach and higher ROI. These figures are usually driven by your engagement and follower count.

Don't Go Too Hard on Selling

You should remember that Instagram is first a social media platform and not an e-commerce store. That means if you focus a lot on selling, you might end up alienating your followers and losing their trust. Be transparent with your audience when setting up shops or adding tags to your content. Such a level of transparency will ensure that your followers don't become disengaged and no longer trust your brand.

Instagram Collab

Instagram Collab Post is a new feature that lets creators team up with other creators and brands to co-author posts, helping them increase engagement without appearing intrusive. After you are accepted into the collaboration, your posts will be shared with followers in their profiles, increasing your organic reach.

In Conclusion

Instagram offers a new way for creators to make money. From opening an Instagram shop to affiliate marketing and acting as a brand ambassador, there are many ways to make money on the platform. Therefore, if you are getting started, our guide will prove helpful. We recommend you read our guide on building steady Instagram growth from zero.