Are you thinking about launching an Instagram affiliate marketing program for your company?
 it's a wise decision.
With over 1 billion active users on Instagram, establishing an affiliate program and collaborating with influencers might help you reach a large and lucrative audience.
Instagram affiliate marketing is one of the ways that influencers from various sectors are attempting to monetize their followers and social media impact. Instagram has become one of the most popular ways to sell affiliate products due to its global popularity and active and engaged audience.

Content

1. What is affiliate marketing?
2. How does Instagram affiliate marketing work?
3. What are the benefits of affiliate marketing?
4. Strategies to promote the affiliate products on Instagram
5. Use appropriate hashtags
6. Publish high quality content
7. Instagram stories
8. Instagram reels
9. What marketers need to know about Instagram stories
10. Link techniques for Instagram affiliate marketing
11. Add affiliate links to your bio
12. Include affiliate links in your stories
13. Use short links or vanity URLs in your image captions/descriptions
14. Try personalized coupon codes
15. Who has access to clickable links feature on Instagram stories?
16. How to add affiliate links to your Instagram stories
17. How to add links to your Instagram stories

 

What is affiliate marketing?

Affiliate marketing is a system that enables influencers to promote a brand's products or services and earn a commission on the clicks or sales they generate.

There are typically four main actors involved: the brand, the affiliate network, the influencers (also known as affiliate marketers), and the customer. You may have seen affiliate marketing come in the form of unique discount codes, where an influencer shares a code specific to them, which their followers can use to get discounts from brands.

However, influencers often use unique and trackable links provided by an affiliate network. Thanks to these links, it is possible to see exactly how many clicks and sales are made.

Affiliate links can be added anywhere on Instagram that links allow. Instagram stories, IGTV descriptions, and Instagram links in the bio are affiliate link hotspots for influencers.

The influencer usually receives a flat fee from the full sales value when selling via an affiliate link. This rate can vary by brand but is usually between 10 and 20%.

Affiliate links can be shared using Facebook, YouTube video descriptions, tiktok, twitter, and even influencers' websites - essentially anywhere on the web, a link could live.

 

How does Instagram affiliate marketing work?

Once you understand what affiliate marketing is, it's easier to understand how it works on Instagram. Put, this strategy involves brands paying commissions to people who successfully promote their products.

The parameters for a successful doctorate vary depending on the program. In general, however, the brand has made a new sale as a direct result of a partner's recommendation or recommendation.

If you're an active Instagram user, chances are you've come across an affiliate post (whether you noticed it or not).

It does this by establishing associations between a user who is the affiliate marketer and placing some presentation or advertisement for a company's products or services on the marketer's website, in the publication on social networks, or another location.

The affiliate marketer displays the product or service in their posts and earns a commission for every sale made that can be attributed to their post, for example, via a URL link that has been personalized with a unique affiliate code at the end of the post same in the description of the publication. When these affiliate promotions are done on Instagram, we call it Instagram affiliate marketing, but affiliate marketing is not limited to Instagram as a platform.

The advertised and advertised brand wins the inherent interest of the customer, and the profile of the influencer working as an affiliate is used to attract their audience to the advertised product. The influencer earns a portion of the sale for the advertised product. Therefore, it is mutually beneficial for the brand and the influencers to work together. Because of this, affiliate marketing is influencer marketing's new best friend.

Instagram is becoming a more popular affiliate marketing platform for a variety of reasons, including:

• People spend a lot of time on it and even use it to discover new businesses and goods.
• It's a smart approach to find and connect with others who share your interests.
• When product suggestions and promotions originate from peers and non-celebrity influencers, they are frequently seen as more relevant and trustworthy.

 

What are the benefits of affiliate marketing?

There are many benefits brands, and companies can get from affiliate marketing on Instagram.

For starters, affiliate marketing is a quick way to reach more potential customers. There are thousands, if not millions, of influencers to work with, each with its niches, curated communities, and platforms.

Put, partnering with them through affiliate marketing will help you reach more people faster.

Think of it this way: if you only run a campaign on your social media, it will likely only reach your followers. But when you work with influencers to run your campaign on their social media, you benefit from all of your audiences together.

Another important benefit of affiliate marketing is that it is more organic.

When an Instagram user sees a product or service published by a brand, it is assumed that the brand is trying to sell something. When they see an influencer (or a content creator) endorsing a product, the recommendation will be perceived as more authentic.

User-generated content drives 90% of shoppers to make a purchase.

So the brand being advertised increases customer interest and brand loyalty, and the influencer earns a percentage of their sales by sharing their honest recommendations. It is a victory.

 

Strategies to promote the affiliate products on Instagram

Live video session

If you want to make instant affiliate sales, you can schedule a live Instagram video session on a specific topic and advertise your affiliate links on the video.

Now you are wondering what the live video session should look like. Good question!

In the live video session, the first thing you need to do is interact with your audience and build trust. Then give them courage. While adding value, you can promote your affiliate links by demonstrating your affiliate product, explaining the benefits of using it, etc.

Since you are interacting directly with people in the live video session, there is a high possibility that they will buy your product. However, make sure that the live session doesn't look like a promotional video to your audience.

Use appropriate hashtags

As affiliate marketers, we want to increase the number of people who see our posts to improve sales, interactions, and brand recognition.

Make sure to utilize relevant hashtags in all of your posts to achieve this.

Publish high-quality content

When compared to ordinary content, high-quality content generates significantly more engagement. Quality is more important than quantity.

If your material is in the form of a video, you should capture the interest of your audience within the first five seconds. To accomplish this, you must master your introduction. So, rather than showcasing your logo design or presenting a tale, get right into the substance.

When it comes to picture material, it should be both professional and appealing. If you can make your picture post stand out from the pack, trust me, it will attract a lot of attention.

Instagram stories

Many companies have begun to use Instagram's fantastic feature. People, to be honest, spend a lot of time looking at what their followers are up to. We should as always, take advantage of this fantastic chance!

However, don't use all of your tales to sell items. People will pass over your tales as a result of this. So, if you're going to post ten pieces a day, only utilize one of them to promote the affiliate product.

This is how marketing should be done!

Instagram reels

Instagram reels is a new type of short-form video content that was just released. It's extremely well integrated with the Instagram ui.

In addition, most people won't read the long caption in Instagram clips. As a result, i strongly advise you to showcase the affiliate product with a prominent call to action (cta). The cta might be in text or audio format.

It should be noted that Instagram reel videos are in a 9:16 portrait format.

 

What marketers need to know about Instagram stories

Provided you have active followers on Instagram; it's a quick jump into stories. You have the option to create brief, upbeat, and snapchat-like content without the challenge of building a snapchat audience or starting a new channel.

In addition to the built-in audience, you also have the option for increased visibility. Your content on snapchat must be regularly promoted on other channels; otherwise, nobody will see it. Instagram has hashtags, geotags, and the discover section to increase the chances of being found. Snapchat content can go nowhere unless someone knows exactly what to look for.

If you wanted to experiment with snapchat-style content without taking the plunge, this is your chance.

But will it stick?

It's worth noting that stories is the complete opposite of Instagram's current value proposition. Every social network has its differentiating factor, and Instagram has always been a place to show off the most beautiful and curated version of your life. The stories are on the other end of that spectrum: short-lived, unpolished, and silly.

And from our perspective, stories is part of a larger shift towards ephemeral content, a format that snapchat has been hugely successful with so far. Instead of adjusting the colors and shades of each image laboriously, Instagram users now can accept and create ephemeral content. So there's not much at stake, especially when you consider that stories can't even be "likes."

Between the lack of public comments and time restrictions, Instagram stories relieve the pressure to share content. Regardless of which platform comes out top in the end, the popularity of ephemeral content will not decline anytime soon.

 

Link techniques for Instagram affiliate marketing

Because you can only utilize clickable links in a few locations on Instagram, it might not be easy to profit with affiliate marketing. There are a few strategies to get the most out of affiliate links on the platform:

1. Add affiliate links to your bio

We all know you can only have one link in your Instagram bio, so use it wisely.

Consider utilizing a single link that refers to many links instead of connecting to a blog post, website, or affiliate product. While there are a variety of creative methods to achieve this, the following are the two most popular:

Linktree

Linktree is easy to set up, and it's free, too (there's a premium option if you need it, but most people are more than happy with their free account). Linktree provides you with a short link to add to your bio, displaying your list of links for your followers to click on.

You can set up your account and show multiple links to your followers in minutes.

To get started, go to linktree and create a free account using your Instagram credentials. Click the "+ add new button / link" button on the left side of your linktree account and start adding your links.
You will find room for the URL (this is where you will add your affiliate link) and room for a link title. All your followers will see the link title, so make sure it gets their attention and prompts them to click.

Create your menu page on your website

You may construct a page on your website if you don't want to utilize a third-party service and want greater control over the design of your link page.

Build a new page on your website and put the links there — you may use text, buttons, photos, etc. If you're using WordPress, a plugin like elementor may help you create a truly gorgeous page.

2. Include affiliate links in your stories

If you have over 10,000 Instagram followers, you may use the swipe-up function to insert affiliate links in your stories. When followers decide to "swipe up" on your story, they will be sent to the product or service page via your affiliate link.

You won't be able to use the swipe-up feature unless you have more than 10,000 followers. You can, however, attempt one or both of the following options:

• Using a service like bit.ly or pretty links, you can add a shorter, easy-to-remember link in your article — here's how to get the most out of pretty links. This approach necessitates your followers remembering the URL, exiting Instagram, and typing it into their browser.
• You may remind story viewers to click the link in your bio for a simpler method to share links with your followers.

You might also follow the procedures to have your Instagram account verified. Regardless of how many followers you have, you will access the swipe-up function once your Instagram account is verified.

To get your account confirmed, go to your "settings," look for the option to "request verification," and complete the processes, including presenting appropriate identification. While not everyone who tries this will succeed, it's worth a try!

Save Instagram stories with affiliate links to your story highlights as a pro tip. People will be able to see them when the 24-hour story period has passed.

3. Use short links or vanity URLs in your image captions/descriptions

The only area on Instagram where you may put a clickable link is in your bio section. This means that any links you provide in your picture descriptions will not work. This isn't to say that you can't add links.

Why not include your affiliate link when uploading images of items or writing about tools you're an affiliate for?

Create abbreviated links with a service like bit.ly or pretty URLs, as I described before, so your followers don't have to memorize long, complex affiliate links.

4. Try personalized coupon codes

Some affiliate programs provide you with a one-of-a-kind coupon or discount code that your subscribers may utilize. There are two major advantages of utilizing these:

Because of the wonderful bargain you're giving; they persuade your viewers to buy the goods.

These promo codes are sometimes linked to your affiliate id, so your followers don't have to click a specific link to give you credit if they buy something.

 

How to add affiliate links to your Instagram stories

Despite being the world's second most popular social network, one of the most difficult problems for Instagram marketers has been attracting visitors from the platform. Marketers are limited to putting links in their bios since Instagram does not enable you to publish links with your images. This is, as you might expect, an uncomfortable step for consumers to do. While marketers may interact on the network, turning that engagement into site traffic is a significant challenge.

This issue has spread to Instagram stories, with most users still unable to utilize the clickable links function. But that might soon change since Instagram just expanded the usage of clickable links in stories to additional users.

Who has access to clickable links feature on Instagram stories?

This functionality was initially made available to verified business accounts on Instagram. Even now, this is the only information on Instagram's website about the clickable links function.
Instagram discreetly expanded this capability to other companies in may 2017. The functionality of clickable stories links is now accessible for Instagram company accounts with more than 10,000 followers.

Like many other innovations introduced by Instagram in the past, one may expect that this function will be made available to all users shortly. However, until then, only company accounts with over 10,000 followers (not personal profiles) will use this function.

How to add links to your Instagram stories

Adding links to your Instagram stories is as simple as it gets. Follow these steps:

Start your Instagram story

Take a photograph or video from within the Instagram stories app to start an Instagram tale, or swipe up on the story screen to import any image shot within the previous 24 hours.

Add the URL

To add a link to your article, go to the top of the page and click the chain link symbol. In a new window, you'll be requested to enter the link destination of your choosing. To save the link, type the URL and hit "done."

Use a URL shortened tool such as bitly to measure clicks from your Instagram stories.

The chain link icon will be highlighted once you've added your link to the narrative, indicating that your tale now has a link.

Continue to modify your tale, adding text, stickers, and filters as desired.

Add a call to action to your story

The link button in Instagram stories is not obvious to users, so your followers need to know that your Instagram stories are more. So the final, and perhaps most important step is to include a call-to-action (cta) in your story to drive users to your website. Some of the common calls to action are "show more" or "swipe up."

Round up

There are numerous ways to add affiliate links to your Instagram stories and attract the audience to convert. Here we provided actionable steps on what you need to do to make this happen. If you have any questions, feel free to contact the Revglue team.