Instagram

Affiliate
Playbook
 Welcome to
Instagram affiliate!
You’ve already built a following by sharing what you love on Instagram.
It’s time to start getting paid for it! With Instagram af liate, it’s now easier than
ever to share the exact products you feature in your content, while earning
commission on any sales you drive from that content. Additionally, your followers
will appreciate the direct access to discover and purchase directly within the app.

Use this guide to onboard and start making money through af liate!

Chapter 1:
Monetization foundations
Chapter 2:
Onboarding
Chapter 3:
The affiliate experience
Chapter 4:
Resources
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Chapter 1:
Monetization Foundations

Partner Monetization Policies

Before onboarding with Instagram af liate, it’s important to be aware of

the guidelines an account must follow to be eligible for monetization.

First, creators must adhere to Instagram Partner Monetization

Policies in order to gain access to tools that enable monetization,
including (but not limited to) Instagram af liate.

Instagram Partner Monetization Policies are necessary to help create

a safe environment for the Instagram community. In order to use
Monetization tools on Instagram, you’ll need to:

Comply with our Comply with our

Community Guidelines
These rules apply to all content and
interactions on Instagram, including rules
against hate speech, calls for violence and
sexualized content. Any content posted that
violates our Community Guidelines, including
our policies regarding intellectual property,
authenticity and user safety, may cause
creators to lose their eligibility to use
Instagram af liate.
Content Monetization Policies
Monetized content must pass an additional
level of standards above and beyond our
Community Guidelines. These rules are called
Instagram Content Monetization Policies.
These include deeper restrictions on the
content itself and the formats in which it is
presented.

Develop an Established Presence Reside in an Eligible Country

Creators and publishers must have an In order to monetize your content, you must
authentic, established presence on Instagram. reside in an eligible country where the product
or feature is available. You may lose your
ability to monetize if you move to an ineligible
location or if Instagram changes product
eligibility.
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 Chapter 1:
Monetization Foundations

Tips for Maintaining Eligibility

Only share content that you created Don’t engage in any behavior that
and which you have the rights to use arti cially boosts views or engagement

Maintain an established presence for Don’t post content that could be

your account
Follow Instagram’s terms for making
and receiving payments
considered false, misleading or overly
sensational
Don’t share content in ways that
compromise quality for viral distribution

Con rm Your Eligibility

To check your eligibility for
Instagram’s monetization
tools:

1. Go to Account
Settings

2. Tap on “Creator” or
“Business” (depending
on your account type)

3. Tap on ‘Af liate’ to

learn more
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Chapter 1:
Monetization Foundations
Restricted Content

Some sensitive content can only be promoted with restrictions, such as

restricting who can see the post based on age or geographical location:

Alcohol Financial and insurance products

and services
Cosmetic procedures & weight loss
Family planning and contraception
Subscription services

Age and Location Restrictions

While creating an af liate post, you can add a minimum age for your viewers.
This can be set for people everywhere or in speci c countries. You won’t be
able to add a minimum age for a post after it’s been created. If you’d like to
add or change the minimum age after you’ve created it, delete the post and
create a new one.

You can also control the age of your Instagram content’s viewers by setting
up a minimum age for your account. Similar to individual posts, you can
choose to set up a default minimum age that will be applied everywhere, or
you can set up country-speci c minimum ages to follow local policies.

For speci c posts, you can also set location restrictions for any country, for
all age groups. For example, you can add a minimum age of 18 for people in
Turkey, and add France to your list of countries in Location Restrictions under
Settings. This will block anyone from any age group from viewing your post in
France, but those who are at least 18 years old in Turkey can see the post.

Learn more about managing age and location restrictions for your af liate
content here.
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Chapter 2:
Onboarding

The following steps will guide you through the af liate onboarding
process directly in the Instagram App.

Note: Before attempting to onboard, ensure you are on the

latest version of the Instagram App.

1. Open the Instagram app and enter the onboarding flow

From your Pro le, tap on ‘View Professional Dashboard’.

Tap on ‘Set up Af liate’.
Tap on ‘Get Started’.
Tap ‘Agree to Terms’.

Note: If this onboarding method does not work, you can

onboard via Account Settings in the previous page.
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Chapter 2:
Onboarding

2. Begin payment set-up

After reading and agreeing to the terms, and tapping “Done”, you will be prompted to input your
payment information. This will allow us to send you the money you earn via Instagram af liate.

If your business is already set-up, you can select it here.

Select your preferred payout method* and tap ‘Con rm Bank’.
Tap ‘Done’ to wrap up!
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Chapter 2:
Onboarding

If your business is not set up, you will tap ‘Add New Business Info’.
Select country and tap through to select business type.
Select the applicable business type and tap “Done”.

Tip! Payment setup varies depending on how your

brand is structured.

Please read through this guide thoroughly and

prepare the appropriate information ahead of
completing this step.
 Chapter 2:
Onboarding
3a. Entering payment information for Individuals 4. Select your preferred
payment method

After selecting your business type as “Individual,”

complete the form with your information.
Enter the individual’s Social Security Number.

3b. Entering payment information for Businesses

Enter your bank

information or select
‘Link your PayPal
account’.
Tap ‘Link Payout
Method’ to wrap up!

After selecting the applicable corporate structure for the

business, complete the form, including your business EIN.
Provide personal information for the business owner.
 Chapter 3:
The affiliate experience

Discover and Save Products

Once you’ve onboarded to af liate, it’s time to start exploring available shops and their products.

From your pro le, navigate

to Pro Home and tap on
‘Af liate’.

Then tap on ‘Af liate

Products’.

From here, you will be able

to see all shops that are
available for tagging on
af liate, as well as their
current commission rates.

When you tap into each

shop, you will see their
collections and products
that are available for
tagging.

Tap onto a product to save

it to your Wishlist.

Tip: Brands can adjust

their commission rates
over time, so be sure to
check back regularly to
see what rates your
favorite brands are
offering.
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Chapter 3:
The affiliate experience

Use Af liate Tags in Feed

When creating your post, follow these steps to add af liate tags.
For Feed posts, tap ‘Tag
Products’.
Tap on the image where you’d
like the tagged product to
appear.
In ‘Product Source’ you can
select from three areas:
- ‘Saved af liate products’
which is populated from your
Wishlist
- ‘Purchased af liate
products’ which is populated
with items you’ve purchased
through Checkout on
Instagram
- ‘Shops’ which allows you to
browse product catalogs from
the available shops.
Once you’ve selected your
product, you can review the
tag and tap ‘Done’.
Tip: Have some favorite
products that you
feature regularly in your
content? Be sure to add
them to your wishlist for
easier tagging access
when creating your
content.
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Chapter 3:
The affiliate experience

Use Af liate Product Tags in Stories

When creating your post, follow these steps to add af liate tags.

For Story posts, tap the

sticker icon .
Tap on the ‘Shopping’
sticker.
In ‘Product Source’ you
can select from three
areas:
- ‘Saved af liate products’
which is populated from
your Wishlist
- ‘Purchased af liate
products’ which is
populated with items you’ve
purchased through
Checkout on Instagram
- ‘Shops’ which allows you
to browse product catalogs
from the available shops.
Once you’ve selected your
product, you can edit the
product name if desired
and tap ‘Done’.

Tip: The ‘Shopping’

sticker also allows you to
tag your Shop and
Collections.
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Chapter 3:
The affiliate experience

Use Af liate Tags in Live Shopping

Before going Live, follow these steps to add af liate tags. Note: You cannot add products during a Live
Stream, so make sure all products are added before you go Live.
Navigate to Live: tap the
camera icon in the top left
of Feed or swipe right from
anywhere in Feed, then
scroll to Live at the bottom
of your screen. Once there,
tap the shopping bag icon.
In ‘Product Source’ you
can select from three
areas:
- Saved af liate products
- Purchased af liate
products
- Shops
Select the products you
wish to include in your Live
and tap ‘Done’.
Go Live: tap Live to begin
your live stream!
While you’re Live, you can
pin products to the bottom
of the screen for easier
shopping access.
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Chapter 3:
The affiliate experience

Use Af liate Tags in Reels

When creating your Reel, follow these steps to add af liate tags.

For Reels posts, tap ‘Tag

Products’.
In ‘Product Source’ you
can select from three
areas:
- ‘Saved af liate products’
- ‘Purchased af liate
products’
- ‘Shops’
Once you’ve selected your
product, you can review
the tag and tap ‘Done’.
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 Chapter 3:
The affiliate experience

Open a Shop
Create a one-stop-shop that directs your followers to explore your recommended products
straight from your pro le. There are three ways to set up your shop:

From your Pro le

From Professional
Dashboard
When publishing a
feed post or story
with af liate products
tagged
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Chapter 3:
The affiliate experience

Open a Shop
When creating your shop, you can browse from all available af liate brands and their products.

You will have the option

to add products to
your Shop based on
your recent af liate
activity or browse the
available brand shops
and choose from their
product selections.
When you’re ready to
take your Shop live, tap
‘Publish Shop’.
Visitors to your pro le
can tap ‘View Shop’ to
browse and purchase.

Tip: Need to close shop

for a bit? Not a problem!
From the ‘Edit’ menu,
simply tap on ‘Settings’
and toggle ‘Shop
Visibility’ off. You can
always go back and
toggle visibility back on.
It may take a few minutes
for the Shop to be visible
to buyers.
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Chapter 3:
The affiliate experience

Update Your Shop

Once your shop is live, you should regularly update it to better reflect your interests, the
seasons, and what your audience is most interested in shopping.

From your Shop, you can tap the ’ icon and select ‘Manage shop’.
Tap on ‘Products’ to make changes.
From here, you can:
- Add more products to your Shop
- Remove a product from your Shop
 Chapter 3:
The affiliate experience

Create a Collection
Use product collections to editorialize and organize your product recommendations around
themes and trends to tell a story.

From Shop settings, tap

‘Collections’ and then
‘Create Collection’.
Select af liate-eligible
products to feature from
your saved products,
purchased products, or
from af liate brands.
Add a title, a cover photo,
and a description for your
collection to tell a story
about your selected
products.
Once published, your
collection will be visible and
accessible at the top of
your Shop.

Tip: Showcase your

creativity with your
cover photo. Select from
a product image, an
existing feed post image
or a photo from your
camera roll. This is what
visitors to your shop will
see rst, so use this as a
tool to draw them in!
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Chapter 3:
The affiliate experience

Tag Af liate Shop & Collections in Stories

When creating your post, you can tag your shop or speci c collections within your shop.

For Story posts, tap the

sticker icon .
Tap on the ‘Shopping’
sticker, then ‘Product
Collection’.
Select the collection
you’d like to tag.
Once you’ve selected
your collection, tap
‘Done’.

Tip: You will earn

commission on sales you
drive when sharing your
own shop/collections.
You will not earn on
sharing shops/
collections from other
creators or brands.
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Chapter 3:
The affiliate experience

Share Af liate Shop & Collections in Stories

You can also share your collections or your shop directly to stories.

From your collection,

tap the share icon.
Tap ‘Add collection to
your story’.
You can tap on the
image to select
alternate tiles.

From your shop, tap

the menu icon at the
top.
Tap ‘Share this shop’.
You can tap on the
image to select
alternate tiles.

Tip: This is a great way

to increase engagement
with your shop and
collections as you update
them.
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Chapter 3:
The affiliate experience

Share Links to Your Af liate Shop & Collections

Grab a link to your shop or collections to share outside of Instagram.

From your collection,

tap the icon.
Tap ‘Copy link to
collection’.

From your shop, tap

the icon.
Tap ‘Copy link to shop’.

Tip: Create links to your

shop or evergreen
collections and cross-
post to your blog or
other outlets where your
audience engages with
your content.
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 Chapter 3:
The affiliate experience

How Your Followers Shop

When you post feed or story content with af liate product tags or open up your own shop, your
followers can easily tap on the product tags to learn more and purchase.

When a follower taps

on the product tag in
your post or in your
shop, they will be taken
to the product page
with more information.
From there, they can
add to cart.
Once they are ready to
checkout, they can go
to their cart, add their
payment and shipping
information and submit
their order.

Tip: All Instagram

af liate posts will include
a disclosure at the top of
the post that states it is
‘Eligible for Commission’.
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 Chapter 3:
The affiliate experience

Learn From Insights

Understanding how and what your followers shop is key to improving your af liate performance
and earnings. Creators with access to Instagram af liate can access key insights, such as
estimated commissions earned and number of products sold.

From Professional
Dashboard, access your
‘Af liate’ hub.
Under ‘Insights’ you can
tap on ‘Approximate
earnings’ to see your
overall performance.
- You can adjust the
timeframe by using the
menu at the top.
- Instagram will also show
you how your performance
for each category is
trending by highlighting the
percentage increase or
decline for that period.
You can also tap ‘Af liate
Content’ to review the
performance of all the
content you’ve posted.
- Use the menus at the top
of the page to toggle
between types of content,
types of performance, and
timeframe.
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 Chapter 3:
The affiliate experience

Getting Paid
When it comes to getting paid out on your af liate earnings, here are a few things to keep in
mind:

You will be paid out on closed commissions. A commission is considered open until the
brand’s return period has ended (30-90 days, on average), at which point, the commission
is closed and will be eligible for payment.

Payments are sent on the 20th of the month. You can expect to receive a payout on all
closed commissions on the 20th of each month. Payment will be processed based on the
payment method you set-up during onboarding. You can update your preferred payout
method at any time in your af liate settings.

You must hit the $30 minimum to qualify for payment. In order to receive payment, you
must have at least $30 in closed commissions. This resets after each payout, so
remember to link consistently in order to ensure regular payouts every month.

Tip: Have questions

about payment or how to
use af liate? Tap on
‘Support’ in the Af liate
hub to be taken to the
Instagram Help Center.
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Chapter 4:
Resources

Education Toolkit
One of the best ways to ensure your success with af liate is to make sure your audience knows
how to shop your posts! New followers are discovering you every day, so use these tips to keep
your audience educated and engaged:

Teach your followers about how to shop your
posts by saving a highlight story that they can
refer to.
Get your audience familiar with the shopping
experience by tagging regularly. We recommend
creating a shoppable post at least 5 times per
month on both Feed and Stories to drive an
increase in sales.

How to Shop

Add quick education to every 3-5 af liate posts.

Whether you use the caption of a feed post or fun
sticker in a Story, letting followers know they can
Did you know you can
tap on the product tags to shop is helpful! now shop my Stories?
When you see a product
tag, just tap to buy!”

Be transparent about the fact that af liate posts

kaiblue My new morning ritual! Did you know you can
are eligible for commission. This language is
now shop my posts directly within Instagram?
🛍 When you see the shopping bag icon on a post,
included at the top of every af liate post, but
just tap the photo and you’ll see the products that
I’ve tagged. Tap on the tag to learn more and
sharing more about how you earn can encourage
purchase!
your followers to tap and shop your af liate links
as a way to support you and the amazing content
you’re creating.
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 Chapter 4:
Resources

Af liate Best Practices

Educate on repeat. You get new followers every day, so be sure to include educational
messaging on how to shop your posts on a regular basis.

Tag smart - but often! Tagging products regularly in your posts helps deliver a level of
service to your followers, making it easy for them to shop the products you share. It
also teaches them what to expect from your content. The more familiar they are with
how product tags work, the more likely they will become to tap through and shop!

Let data be your guide. Analyzing engagement is a great way to gauge what content
your followers like. With Instagram Af liate, you also have visibility into additional
products your followers purchase from your tags, too! Use these insights to help guide
your content strategy. Are they a bunch of beauty mavens? Do they prefer a bargain?
Learn more about their shopping behaviors and then use that information to help inform
future af liate posts.

Stay authentic. The potential to earn from your content is exciting, but don’t lose sight
of why your followers came to you in the rst place. Make sure that you are using
af liate links in an organic way, sharing the products you really love, while still coming
across as your authentic self.

Pin your shoppable stories. Are your followers are always asking about your favorite
items? Using Instagram af liate product tags in Stories and then saving them to a
dedicated highlight (ex: ‘How to Shop’) is a great way to make it easy for your followers
to access your favorite products at any time, while also giving you the opportunity to
earn on an ongoing basis.

Tip! Be sure to follow @creators and check out the Creator blog to stay on top of the latest
news and products from Instagram.
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 Chapter 4:
Resources

FAQ’s

Q: Where can I use Instagram af liate tags? Q: What happens if the purchase is made
A: Creators will be able to use af liate product offsite?
tags in their feed posts, Stories, Live and Reels. A: Creators will only earn commission for
Af liate tags can be used on carousels in feed, as purchases made on Instagram.
well as feed video.
Q: Can a brand remove my af liate tag?
Q: How many brand’s products can I tag in a A: Brands will not be able to remove content or
single post? tags that have been posted by Creators. However,
A: In a single feed post, you can tag multiple brands will be able to report a post that violates
brands and up to 5 af liate tags. On a 4-photo Instagram's Partner Monetization Policies or
carousel, you can include up to 20 tags total Commerce Policies, for review.
(including af liate tags, brand tags, and people
tags). On Stories, you can currently include up to Q: How do I nd what products I can tag from
ve af liate tags. different shops?
A: From the af liate menu, you can tap on ‘Shops
Q: What if I currently already use an existing You Can Tag’ which will take you to the full list of
af liate solution? Am I still able to use brands available on af liate. Each brand will be
Instagram af liate? listed, along with the number of available products
A: Yes, you are able to use multiple af liate as well as their commission rate. Once you tap into
networks at the same time. Please note, however, a shop, you can see the brand’s collections, as well
that commission is paid out by the af liate link that as all products available for tagging.
receives the last click. So, if a consumer clicks
through the Instagram product tag, you will Q: What is a shop?
receive a commission if they purchase through A: A shop is a tool for af liate creators that allows
Instagram. If a consumer uses one of your other you to create a merchandisable and shoppable
links and buys on a brand's site, you will be paid a destination that displays your product
commission by that af liate partner. recommendations. The shop is accessed via a
“View Shop” button on the creator’s pro le.
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 Chapter 4:
Resources
FAQ’s
Q: What are creator collections?
A: Once a creator has opened their creator
storefront, they will also be able to curate their
af liate products into Collections within their
storefront. These collections will be surfaced at
the top of their storefront.
Q: Can I save my collection without publishing
it?
A: At this time, you will not be able to save a draft
of your collection. This is a feature that we are
exploring to introduce soon.
Q: What if I don’t own any products from the
onboarded af liate brands?
A: The list of brands being onboarded is growing
by the week! In the meantime we encourage you
to “shop your closet” (or beauty cabinet!) and
explore the catalogs of multi-brand retailers that
are currently onboarded as they very likely carry
products you already know and love.
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Q: Is there a preference for curated content
vs. “real time”?
A: You know your audience best, so this is totally
your call! Educational language to your audience
will be important in driving sales, so the more
af liate content you produce the more likely they
are to get used to seeing it. Feel free to test out
both and see what resonates best with your
audience via insights!
Q: Can I use af liate tags on branded content
posts?
A: Yes! The af liate disclosure “Eligible for
Commission” is auto applied to a post when an
af liate tag is present. However, if a branded
content partner has compensated you for the
content, then you should use the “Paid
Partnership“ Label. Please note, you will only be
able to use an af liate tag on branded content
from the same brand. Therefore, this only applies
to branded content relationships with brands
listed under ‘Shops You Can Tag’ which can be
found under the af liate menu.