How to make money on Telegram
What is Telegram?
If you’ve used a mobile phone in the last 3 years, chances are you have heard of Telegram. Telegram is a cloud-based, cross-platform instant messaging platform that prides itself on speed, privacy and being an open platform.
Focusing on that mission has paid off massively for Telegram, as the app now has 500M+ monthly active users, double that of just three years ago. 55M of them are active every day and the app has now surpassed over 1B+ total downloads. It is now the 10th most used social media platform worldwide.
Telegram has three primary ways it allows its users to interact:
- Telegram Channels (explained below)
- Telegram Groups (explained below)
- DM’s (self-explanatory)
What is a Telegram Channel?
A Telegram channel is either a public or private group created for the purpose of sharing information one way, from the creator of the channel to it’s subscribers. Unlike a Telegram group, the subscribers are unable to post in a channel. Think of it as a way of broadcasting information to those that would be interested in it. Within the channel, the moderators can post text, images, videos, polls, links, etc. Channel admins are able to see statistics like how many subscribers there are, and how many subscribers viewed each post.
What is a Telegram Group?
A Telegram group is similar to a channel, except that anyone can post, not just administrators or moderators. Communication goes both ways in groups. Groups get a bit more difficult to moderate the more subscribers there are, but an intimate group that is passionate about a certain topic can be a great way for creators to monetize on Telegram.
The growth and popularity of Telegram has meant that, like any platform, creators are looking for ways to grow and monetize their followings. There are various ways to accomplish this on Telegram, and we will go into detail on each of them below:
1. Drive traffic to your website
If you own a blog, e-commerce store, online course, or almost any other website, you should be considering using Telegram as a way of increasing traffic to your site. Telegram opens you up to over 500M monthly active users who are discovering new channels and groups that are interesting to them constantly. First start by creating a channel or group (whichever fits your content best) and begin sharing interesting posts about topics related to your site. Once you have built up a good following, you can share links out to the content on your website which will hopefully convert to new sales or advertising revenue.
2. Sell products or services in your channel
Another great way to monetize your Telegram channel or group, is to sell your products or services right in the chat. There are a lot of advantages to selling on Telegram versus other social media platforms or through ads. First, engagement rate on Telegram is significantly higher, upwards of 30% on the best channels. You won’t find that type of engagement on almost any other platform, and it can mean doubling or tripling your sales. Second, subscribers of your channel or group typically have notifications on by default, meaning they are instantly alerted when you post something and that also increases engagement and inevitably sales. Consider providing special discounts just for your Telegram subscribers which will also encourage others to join your channel to get access to future discounts.
Beyond selling your own products or services, you can also become an affiliate marketer for other products or services your subscribers might enjoy. Consider signing up for a tool like ShareASale which will give you a percentage of every sale you make for products of your choosing in your channel.
3. Sell ads in your channel
Once your channel has enough subscribers, it can be worthwhile to consider selling advertising space to other businesses who want to reach your subscribers. There are a few ways to do this, but the most popular are to reach out to other channel owners (that are not competitive, ideally) and to use a service like Telegia. Telegia states that the average channel makes over $500 a month in ads using their platform, and they have a calculator that estimates how much you could expect to earn on their website.
4. Create a paid subscription with OpenMember
Probably the most lucrative way to monetize your following on Telegram is to charge a subscription fee to access your channels or groups, and this is exactly what OpenMember was built for. OpenMember allows Telegram channel and group owners to set customized pricing to access their content, and automatically invites members when they subscribe, then removes them when they stop paying. There are countless creators who now make a living off their Telegram subscribers because of OpenMember.
In addition to the customized pricing options, OpenMember provides real time analytics on number of subscribers, allows for subscriber management on their dashboard, and can be used across multiple channels or groups under one account. In the future OpenMember will also offer the ability to schedule posts, similar to a social media management tool, and also to move your Telegram subscribers to other platforms.
In Conclusion
There are now a number of ways for you to make money on Telegram, and the challenging part is choosing the right ones for your subscribers that keeps them engaged and does not detract from the quality of your channel. We recommend you spend the time looking at each option in depth, and running some tests to understand how your community will react.
There’s never been a better time to start your own business on Telegram, and we wish you the best of luck!
Originally published at https://www.openmember.co.
