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In news that will surprise no one, Vogue has begun to monetizing its Instagram account. rewardStyle, one of the most popular companies offering affiliate links for publishers, has rolled out a method to monetize Instagram accounts and Vogue (as well as a slew of bloggers) is getting on board. The program, called LIKEtoKNOW, operates by instantly sending product links to users' inboxes when they like instagrams tagged with a www.liketk.it link.
Though the program is still in its infancy, Digiday reports that Vogue makes up to 20% commission on each item sold from its Instagram account. Digiday calculated that Vogue's inaugural LIKEtoKNOW instagram of a Steven Alan scarf made, at most, $290, which is hardly enough to pay for a Steven Alan dress, let alone become a major source of revenue for the magazine.
However, this is only the beginning. A rewardStyle spokeswoman told Digiday that the program is rapidly growing on all fronts, including social media. When Vogue instagrammed the scarf, LIKEtoKNOW's instagram account gained 5,000 followers that day alone, and its Twitter account sees an average of about 2,000 new followers each day.
Screenshot from LIKEtoKNOW.it
The article also pointed out that the new program is a good way for a brand "to monetize its presence on a platform whose value for brands is still unclear." Last year, L2 published a study that said social media platforms accounted for merely 2% of a brand's total online traffic, and most social media monetization programs are still fairly new on the market.
But the spokeswoman was adamant that Vogue was only the first in a new wave of magazines joining the program. "You'll see a number of big magazines utilizing Like to Know in the coming weeks," she told Digiday, reporting that magazines at both Condé Nast and Hearst have been "knocking down our doors."
· How Vogue is making (a little) money on Instagram [Racked]
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· Clicks, Likes, Cash: How YouTube Beauty Stars Threw the Industry for a Loop [Racked]
· Lululemon, Gap and Target Buy First Round of Pinterest Ads [Racked]
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