These days, it seems that everyone wants to be an Instagram influencer. And with the average price of a sponsored post being $300 - it’s easy to see why!

However, this has led to increased competition amongst influencers looking to get sponsored on Instagram. As a result, many of you are wondering how to get paid on instagram. 

This article presents four ways in which you can get an edge on other influencers within your niche and, more importantly, start landing instagram sponsorships.

Define Your Niche And Your brand

Influencers who are aiming to get sponsored need to define their niche as soon as possible. In 2020, you can be an influencer for anything. Whether you’re a food fanatic, a fitness freak, or a fashionista - find your niche and stick to it.

In addition to your niche, you’re further categorized by the kind of photos you post, your style, your personality, the theme of your feed, and your daily life activities. Therefore, you also need to define your brand.

Here are some other questions you can ask yourself when defining your brand:

• What’s your goal?
• Does your Instagram feed have a cohesive theme?
• What kind of products or services do you want to promote?

Another good exercise is to ask yourself, “Which three adjectives would I like to be used by people describing my brand’s personality?”.

Post Consistently And Often

In order to build brand identity, you need to build brand trust. A big step towards building that trust is through consistently posting onto your feed. This is also necessary for favorable placement from Instagram’s algorithm.

You may be wondering, “What are the best times to update my Instagram feed?”

Well, the best times of the day to post are 8:00 AM to 9:00 AM and 2:00 AM. In order to grow your following, it’s vital that you post at least once a day. However, according to research, three posts per day is the magic number. You don’t want to be penalized by the algorithm and you don’t want to lose followers over an erratic posting scheduling.

That being said, the numbers above are just a guideline. They do not apply to all audiences. More specifically, they may not apply to your audience. We suggest using Instagram analytics to gauge when your audience is most active and schedule your posts then.

Grow Your Audience As Much As Possible

Now that you’ve got a solid brand identity and you have your posts scheduled at the best time for user engagement, what’s next? You’ve got to build up your followers!.

As an Instagram influencer, you can’t bring in sponsorship if no one follows your brand. Here are some ways to build your audience.

Use Hashtags

Hashtags make your content way more discoverable. You can post up to 30 hashtags per post, but 11 is considered the right amount. 

Use Geotagging

If you’re looking to build an audience in a specific location, geotagging can be extremely useful. Not only does it help you gain more followers, but it also appeals to an audience in a certain area or of a particular demographic.

Tag Brands in Your Posts

Are there certain brands that are aligned with your niche? Tag and mention them in your post! This opens you up to their audience and may lead to sponsorship opportunities in future.

Network

Comment, like, share, DM - whatever it takes. You need to consistently be networking with prominent Instagram accounts within your niche. This helps build relationships but also, most importantly, increases your number of followers

Outreach To Brands You Love

If you’ve done all of these steps, built up a following, and carved out a marketplace within your niche, it’s time to start reaching out to brands for sponsorship opportunities. 

You can begin by sending outreach emails to brands and letting them know you’re open to sponsorship opportunities. 

Furthermore, you can communicate your availability and your contact details through your Instagram bio. If you haven't already, switch to a business account on your Instagram. This will allow you to clearly display information to prospective sponsors.

Wrapping Up

Becoming an influencer is more competitive than ever before. Therefore, it’s essential you know how to get sponsored on instagram.  

It’s not a guarantee that this will happen overnight. However, by following these four steps, you give yourself the best chance of becoming a sponsored Instagram influencer!