Photo by Karsten Winegeart / Unsplash

In a move to help creators make money from their content, Instagram has announced a suite of new features to enhance the ability to run a business on social media.

Acknowledging that the process of generating income through Instagram is a unique experience for each creator, Head of Instagram Adam Mosseri explained that these new tools are all about enhancing the platform with creators in mind.

He said, “We want Instagram to be the best place for creators to make a living online.”

These are the new Instagram updates you need to know about, and how creators can use them to their advantage.

1. The Instagram Creator Marketplace

Meta knows that branded content is a multi-billion industry, so it’s no surprise that they’re focusing on new features to make it easier for both brands and creators to connect.

Instagram’s Creator Marketplace, not dissimilar from the TikTok Creator Marketplace, will be a new, designated space in the app for brands and creators to find each other, develop opportunities to work together, and get paid for their content. The Marketplace will allow brands to send projects, deliverables, and payments to creators through a partnership messaging folder within Instagram DMs.

What does this mean for creators?

It will be quicker and easier to connect with brands, filter through projects and offers, and manage partnerships all in one place.

2. Improvements to Reels

Creators posting Reels probably already know that they can make their content eligible to show on Facebook already. But this new feature will give creators the ability to ‘proactively cross-post’ their Reels from Instagram to Facebook.

Mosseri describes this as a ‘small but important distinction,’ as rather than just posting the Reel onto Facebook, creators will now have access to Facebook’s suite of tools which includes overlay ads and the Facebook Reels Play Bonus program.

To begin with, creators based in the US must apply for the program. They will have to have posted at least five Reels and gained at least 100,000 views within the last 30 days, and meet Meta’s Partner Monetization Policies and Content Monetization Policies to be eligible for the program. Hopefully, this will be rolled out further and more easily accessible to a wider pool of creators in the near future.

What does this mean for creators?

Posting Reels across both Instagram and Facebook will give creators access to wider audiences, and the use of Facebook tools on Reels will boost opportunities to monetize on both platforms.

3. Expansion of NFTs

Since May this year, select eligible collectors and creators have had the ability to share their NFTs on Instagram. Since then the platform has been focused on helping creators to monetize their digital collections and support NFTs in reaching wider audiences – but this was only available in America.

Now, ‘around half a dozen’ more countries around the world will have access to this feature. Facebook has also recently announced that they’re testing Ethereum and Polygon NFTs, so we predict further Meta connections for NFT owners and creators in the near future.

What does this mean for creators?

Essentially, more opportunities to share and promote NFT collections and in turn monetize them.

4. No Fees for Creators

Instagram had already announced that it will not charge creators any fees for the income they generate through the platform until the end of 2022.

Now, in a bid to help creators utilize Instagram and its new tools for their benefit, and to give them a safety net during the global economic crisis (and, we suspect, so they don’t ditch the platform altogether in favor of TikTok) this no-fee period will be extended to the end of 2023.

What does this mean for creators?

Creators making money through paid events, fan subscriptions, badges, and other means have an extra year to keep generating income and exploring new Meta monetization programs, for free.

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