Here's How Instagram Models Really Make Their Money

As we enter the age of digitalization, there are a few apps that stand out because of their potential and growth. Instagram is not only one of those apps, but it is also a global platform in the 21st century for people to showcase their skills, talent, opinions, and even their personal life! The platform is used to share pictures and videos, and is also utilized to promote brands and people. A major part of this promotion depends on the role played by Instagram models.

It took a while for most people to believe it, but it's true, you can actually make good money through Instagram with the right resources and a good number of followers. There are many who would still dispute the notion of "Instagram models aren't real models," but they are and for good reason. 

The very first thing one might be confused about is the role of an Instagram model and what they do. Basically, an Instagram model is any person using this particular platform as their own runway and modeling scene — they have the freedom to showcase their skills of modeling and sense of style from any part of the world at any given moment without the hassle of looking for modeling agencies or constantly traveling for gigs. All their work is based on this particular social media platform, which is a far throw from traditional modeling. 

The process of making money on Instagram (via trendhero) as a model is a little confusing, but once you understand, it might even seem like a good career option! The important thing to remember when modeling on Instagram is that it takes a lot of patience, effort, and time because of how long it can take for someone to set up their page and gain followers. The process requires dedication and planning, from the time of the posts to the preparation of content — be it pictures, reels, or videos.

The way to go for making money on Instagram is sponsorship of different kinds — it might be a partnership with a brand, affiliate marketing, selling a license to your media content, creating a brand and selling, etc. All the ways mentioned are helpful, but they require a person who is talented, hardworking, and not just in it for the cha-ching. It's true that being an Instagram model sounds great, but it includes just as much effort as regular models on runways, maybe even more.

When it comes to actually making money, it takes plenty of effort and connecting with people — once you start, the range of possibilities is unlimited. The amount of money a model can make on Instagram depends on various factors, like the number of followers, level of engagement, model's location, and the quality of their content. Sometime's a model with 20,000 followers might earn more than a model with a million because of the level of engagement.

All the clothes, cute shoes and amazing bags you see on Instagram models begs the question — do all these models pay for the merchandise themselves? Chances are the answer is nope, they didn't buy any of it. Most of the stuff you see models wearing is for promotional purposes, and not all the stories about getting all that free stuff are true either. Maybe some of it but the other, it's just smart marketing. 

As an example, an influential Instagram model like Sommer Ray earns around $26,000 for a single sponsored post and she is widely famous as one of the best Instagram models (via Comparilist). But that certainly doesn't mean she really bought those insane number of shoes with her own money, right? Being an Instagram model has perks more than money and this is the biggest one — if you grow your page, you might even get gigs from some of the best brands in the world.

Ray is just one of the examples out of many successful Instagram models. So you don't need a perfect body or a designer wardrobe to be an Instagram model, it's all about outreach, hard work, and talent for someone to determine their career as an Instagram model.