Fact Check: Is the Instagram Reels Bonus Program Still Available in 2023?

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In January 2023, numerous content creators reported a significant 70% reduction in the Instagram Reels bonus, which has come as a startling development. The changes don’t end there, as Instagram has also raised the threshold for viewers on a reel to qualify for payment and bonuses. That makes a lot of users wonder, is it true that Instagram Reels Bonus Disappeared?

However, the question remains: What exactly is going on, and what are the reasons behind these changes? Keep reading to uncover more about this matter.

Knowing Instagram Reels Play Bonus

Meta (previously called Facebook) has committed itself to pay $1 billion for Instagram creators through 2022. This program aims to appreciate the creators for all their great works in making content.

As a result, the creators not only can gain popularity through their creative content but also earn money. However, this only happens when you have met the requirements Meta gives to its users.

Additionally, Meta has said that the payout ranged from $600 to as much as $35,000. To be able to get the payouts, of course, your content should hit a certain target view. To get paid $35,000, at least you need to get 58 million views.

This is indeed not easy, yet still, a lot possible to do. However, Meta seems made big changes to it. According to many testimonials from creators, the changes have quite burdened them though. Additionally, Meta has never explained why the payout system has changed.

How to Earn Reel Bonus

To be eligible to receive an Instagram Reel bonus, you’ll need to meet certain requirements from Instagram. Check the following list to see if you have fulfilled all of the points.

• Be at least 18 years old.
• Located in the US since the bonuses are only available for US creators.
• Have at least 1,000 Reels views over the past 30 days.
• Got an invitation from Instagram to join the program.

You’ll receive bonus earnings if you meet the requirements for each bonus. Approximate bonus earnings will appear on the bonus-specific progress page.

Instagram will determine the amount that you’ve earned at the end of the bonus period. The earnings from that bonus won’t be paid until the following month.

It’s worth noting that you’ll only be able to earn the Instagram Reel bonuses if you get the invitation from Instagram. You can check if you are eligible by doing these steps:

1. Head over to your profile.
2. Then, tap the View Professional Dashboard option at the top of your profile.

3. Scroll down a bit to find the Bonuses section.
4. After that, hit Get Started to see your status and available bonuses.

Additionally, if you want to get a larger amount of Instagram bonuses, one way is to incorporate ads into your Reels videos. However, to make money from ads, you’ll need to have built a following of at least 10,000, have created a minimum of 5 Reels videos, and have generated 600,000 minutes of viewership over the last 60 days.

How to Enable Bonuses on Instagram?

You can earn money directly from Instagram through bonuses. If you qualify to earn a bonus, you’ll be notified in the Instagram app to set up and enable bonus payouts.

To set up bonuses on the professional dashboard:

1. Go to the Instagram app.
2. Review and accept the Terms.
3. Select your country and business type (individual or business owner) and then click Next. You can also skip this step.
   Note: If you’re a business owner, the next page will ask you to confirm that you are the legal owner. Enter your legal and tax information.
4. Add a payout method, and then click Next. You can also skip this step.
5. Review the description of the available bonus (or bonuses if applicable), and then tap Activate bonus.
   Note: As more bonuses become available, you can also go back to the professional dashboard and select Bonuses to set up.
6. Tap Done.

After you’ve set up your bonus, you must select a bonus opportunity before sharing new content, in order for it to count towards your earnings.

If you skip the steps to fill in your business or payout info, you’ll need to provide this information later to receive your first payout.

You must add a payout account to receive a bonus payout. If you don’t add a payout account:

• Within five months or if you exceed earnings of USD 500, you’ll no longer be able to monetize with bonuses.
• Within six months, you’ll forfeit and waive all rights to receive your payment.

Instagram Reels Bonus Disappeared: How Could?

Many creators who are making money using Instagram Reels have spoken up regarding this issue. They claimed that their payouts have suddenly been cut by up to 70% in recent weeks. Other than that, Meta also changed the target view to get bonuses.

While previously you could get $35,000 while you’re reaching 58 million viewers of your videos, now you should get at least 359 million viewers for that amount of money.

Due to this issue, Meta explained to the Financial Times that the change wasn’t intended. Moreover, this issue happened as a result of refining the pricing model which may cause payouts to fluctuate. Therefore, according to the clarification from Meta itself, Meta doesn’t tend to change certain rules regarding Instagram Reels Play bonuses.

Is the Instagram Reels Bonus Program Still Available in the US?

Unfortunately, in March 2023, Reels Play bonus program is no longer active in the US. Meta announced on March 9, 2023, that it would be pausing the program, and will no longer be extending new or renewed deals. Existing deals will be honored until they expire.

Meta has not yet announced why it is pausing the Reels Play bonus program. However, it is possible that the company is looking to focus on other monetization initiatives for creators, such as its new Super Follow feature.

That being said, if you were participating in this program before, you will no longer receive payments for new views. However, you will still be able to earn money from other sources, such as brand sponsorships and product sales.

Conclusion

Instagram Reels Bonus program was a great opportunity for creators to not only gain popularity but also earn money. However, Meta decided not to continue this program in the US. Regardless of the changes, creators can still earn money through other sources such as brand sponsorships and product sales.

Creating Instagram Reels is a great way to grow your audience and engagement. However, it can be time-consuming to convert horizontal videos to vertical. Eklipse is an AI-powered tool that can help you do this in seconds, with just a few clicks.

Eklipse uses advanced AI to automatically resize and crop your videos to fit the vertical Instagram Reels format, while maintaining the original quality of your video.

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