If you’re like many people who are tired of the 9 to 5 grind, you may have dreamed of a life where you can earn passive income from social media while traveling or relaxing on a faraway beach.
But how legitimate are the claims of some social media influencers and content creators that an average person can earn passive income from platforms like TikTok and Instagram, if you follow their advice?
I’m here to argue that it is very possible to earn passive income from social media. However, it is not as simple and easy as some so-called gurus make it out to be. It takes time, effort, and often a little luck.
How going ‘viral’ can change your life
Today, almost every major company has at least some type of social media presence. Before coming to social media platforms, many companies were already successful businesses and many of today’s influencers already had some level of fame, notoriety, or influence in their niche.
Although not all.
Take an 83-year-old Calgary resident, for example. Bill Oulet, For example. Earlier this year, Bill became a viral sensation on TikTok, earning millions of views for his short-form comedic content. Its content is original, fun and authentic. He now he is known all over the world.
Going viral can take your small social media presence to the entire world overnight and can completely change your life by:
- Expose your content to a global audience
- Helping you attract the attention of big-name brands and celebrities
- Expose your small business to millions of customers
The best part is that going viral is essentially free, aside from the time and effort you put into creating the content. You can receive the same level of attention that multinational corporations like Coca-Cola spend billions on.
The difficult part is that it is almost impossible to predict what content goes viral. It’s almost like winning the lottery, meaning it’s not always an achievable goal that most people should aim for.
However, here’s the good news. You don’t have to go viral to create a passive income stream on social media.
How TikTok and Instagram influencers make money
If you’re reading this, you’ve probably seen so-called gurus selling online courses on how anyone can make a full-time living on social media. However, the thing about gurus is that they always make things seem easier than they are.
Just like entrepreneurship and starting your own business, it’s not easy to create a successful social media presence that you can profit from financially.
You’ll also have to learn to adapt and pivot when sudden changes occur, like Twitter’s purchase of Vine in 2012, or the possibility of a ban on TikTok in the United States and Canada.
However, if you are consistent, work hard, and willing to adapt to changes, there are several proven ways anyone can use to earn passive income as an influencer on platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and others.
1. affiliate marketing
Affiliate marketing is one of the oldest ways to make money online. Basically, you market and endorse another brand’s product through your page. Every time one of your followers follows your advice and purchases a product through your unique affiliate link, you earn a small commission on the sale.
Amazon currently has one of the largest affiliate programs in the world, making it one of the easiest places for social media startups to start making some extra money. Once you have a more established presence, you will probably find it more profitable to work with larger, more reputable brands.
2. Influencer marketing
Once you’ve built a large organic following, companies and brands can approach you and pay you to help them raise awareness. On a large scale, we’re talking about big-name celebrities and sports stars endorsing a makeup brand, a fast food chain, or a car brand.
However, you don’t need to have millions of followers to become an influencer.
Smaller and local companies often prefer to work with “microinfluencers”who have a strong loyal network of followers, often less than 20,000 followers. This can be a great way to generate a passive income stream by leveraging your knowledge of your own city.
3. Sell a product or service
If you have a side business or small business, increasing your social media presence can be one of the best ways to attract new customers.
In addition to directly promoting your content using TikTok or Instagram, consider creating fun and informative content that makes your brand more personal, such as:
- Behind the scenes (how you do or do what you do)
- Gifts of products/services
- Customer testimonials and reviews from your loyal customers
- Free tips and advice related to your product or service.
4. Donations and memberships
While most social media platforms discourage booing, you can still post links in your bio to other platforms like Patreon, GoFundMe, Discord, and others where you can accept donations or sell membership programs.
For example, I know a music producer and guitarist who offers a $5/month membership to access his tutorials on mixing music and learning to play the guitar. If you really consider yourself an expert in a certain niche, this can be a great way to leverage your skills and make money as an educator.
Being an influencer is not as passive as it seems
Like many things in life, having a career as an influencer is often considered glamorous. In reality, the average social media influencer isn’t here making six figures, traveling the world, and driving supercars.
It’s possible? Yeah.
Should you wait for it? No.
If you want to create a passive income stream on social media using one of the proven methods I described above, it will take time. You’ll have to learn videography and editing, spend your nights and days off creating content, and stick to a consistent publishing schedule.
It will take as much work as starting your own small business, and you may not see a financial reward for months or years while you build a following. But if you really love it and enjoy it, why not give it a try?
Not sure where to start? Entrepreneur and social media expert Gary Vaynerchuck has a great free guide that simplifies how to start creating content documenting your daily life.
Don’t Quit Your Day Job… Yet
Creating a source of income from TikTok or Instagram is an achievable goal. At first, however, it will not be passive. You will need to invest time and money into creating content and developing your brand.
Even after you are established, you will need to continue creating if you want to continue growing. If you work hard and are consistent, the reward is that you will be able to build a career that you truly enjoy and where you are not tied to set schedules.
However, all this will take time. I recommend that you stay in your current line of work to keep your bills paid. If you are really interested in building an online brand, start doing it in your free time, until you start seeing results. Once you no longer need your job to pay the bills, you can go all-in on your brand on social media.
However, not all influencers quit their jobs. Starting a social media brand can be a great way to diversify your income or help you expand your personal network while still working in your current line of work.
Christopher Liew is a CFA holder and former financial advisor. He writes personal finance advice for thousands of daily Canadian readers in his Awesome Wealth Website.
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