From Likes 👍 to Dollars 💵: The Ultimate Guide to Making Money Through Social Media

In today’s world, social media is not just a platform for staying connected with your friends and family. It has also become a lucrative source of income for many individuals. With a significant amount of user base on platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and Twitter, social media has transformed into a goldmine for those who know how to monetize their online presence.

I recently attended “NAS Summit 2023” here in Dubai 🇦🇪 (even did a vlog linked below) and was awestruck with the possibilities. Although I have been creating content for last 2 years on YouTube and monetizing it properly for last 1 year – yet, the reassurance from the summit was much needed for my future path to financial independence.

Let’s discuss some of the popular ways to make money through social media – these are not just off the shelf ideas, but I practice most of these and you can too!

1 – The mother of all online platform for monetization – ADSENSE! It is the advertising program created by Google that allows website owners, bloggers & most popular of all YouTubers to monetize their online content by displaying ads on their websites / videos. AdSense works by matching ads to the content of your website / videos or blog, which helps to increase the relevance of the ads and the likelihood that visitors / viewers will click on them. I talked about YouTube more in this and this video.

2 – Sponsored content: This is the most popular way of earning money through social media. Brands pay social media influencers to promote their products or services to their followers. This type of promotion can be done in different formats such as Instagram posts, Instagram stories, YouTube videos, and more. The amount of money you can earn from sponsored content varies based on your follower count, engagement rate, and niche. For instance, an Instagram influencer with 50k followers can earn up to $500 for a single sponsored post. One of my recent sponsored video is linked here.

3 – Affiliate marketing: Another way to make money through social media is by promoting affiliate products. Affiliate marketing involves promoting other people’s products and earning a commission on each sale made through your unique affiliate link. This video is an example of how I am using amazon affiliates.

You can share affiliate links in your social media bio or incorporate them into your posts or videos. Platforms such as Amazon, ClickBank, and ShareASale offer a wide range of affiliate products to promote.

Just giving an example here, if you are based in the UAE – you must have heard about NOON, I just enrolled into their affiliate program and if you apply the code mentioned below, you will get 40% off from NOON 15 Mins for first 3 orders! (T&C applies)

REFERRAL CODE FOR “NOON 15 MINS”: WKPQ24RD

4 – Selling digital products: If you have expertise in a particular area, you can monetize your knowledge by creating digital products such as e-books, courses, webinars, and more. Social media can be an excellent platform to market and sell these products to your followers. You can share snippets of your digital products on your social media accounts to generate interest and drive sales.

5 – Donations and crowdfunding: Some social media platforms such as Twitch, Patreon, and Ko-fi offer features that allow followers to support their favorite creators through donations or crowdfunding. If you create content that your followers find valuable, they may be willing to support you financially. You can incentivize donations by offering exclusive content or merchandise to your supporters. I do have a YouTube channel membership, if you want to support unbiased content on my channel 😀

6 – Selling physical products: If you have a product or service to sell, social media can be an excellent platform to reach a wider audience. Platforms such as Instagram and Facebook (now YouTube as well) offer features that allow you to create a shop and sell products directly to your followers. You can also use social media to generate interest in your product and drive traffic to your website. Mr. Beast has taken selling of the physical products and services to next level.

7 – Consulting and coaching: If you have expertise in a particular area, you can offer consulting or coaching services to your followers. Social media can be an excellent platform to showcase your expertise and attract clients. You can create posts or videos that demonstrate your skills and knowledge and promote your services through your social media accounts. I do have such sessions – details mentioned below.

8 – Brand partnerships: Similar to sponsored content, brand partnerships involve collaborating with brands to create content that promotes their products or services. However, instead of a one-time payment, brand partnerships are long-term collaborations that can provide a stable source of income. To secure brand partnerships, you need to have a strong online presence, engage with your followers, and demonstrate your value as an influencer. Here’s an example of brand partnership with blog.

In conclusion, social media provides endless opportunities for individuals to make money online. However, it’s important to remember that building a successful social media presence takes time, effort, and dedication. To monetize your online presence, you need to consistently create high-quality content, engage with your followers, and stay up-to-date with the latest social media trends.

About Myself

I post 3 videos every week on my YouTube channel on the topics of productivity & personal finance specifically for expats & in general for wider Pakistani community. Besides this, I update this website / blog on weekly basis so do visit regularly for updates – To get value out of the content, please consider subscribing both the YouTube channel and the newsletter. 

I have recently started the English language YouTube channel as well, you can go ahead and subscribe to that as well. Here’s the link to latest video on the English Channel 

For 1-1 sessions on booking basis with the following core topics of discussion:

• Productivity
• Personal Finance 
• YouTube & Social Media

Price for the session can be confirmed by emailing your details at financewithwali@gmail.com & booking can be made with the link: https://calendly.com/wali2k/1-hour-1-1-session

Disclaimer: I am not a financial advisor and consider these sessions for knowledge sharing and discussion only.

Videos uploaded in last few days, in case you missed

My social media handles:

Twitter
Instagram
Facebook
Linkedin
Tiktok
Youtube (Main channel)
YouTube (English channel)

KEEP HUSTLING 😉