How to Make Money on Instagram - 7 MUST-HAVE Apps

About this video

Presenter David, in partnership with Intuit, argues you do not need 100,000 followers to earn on Instagram — he claims to have made tens of thousands starting with barely 100 followers — and walks through seven apps confirmed in the transcript. CapCut for Reels: auto captions (he notes up to half of Instagram views happen with sound off), auto cut-out to remove backgrounds without a green screen, free stock images/video, transitions, and AI narration from a script; everything except auto cut-out is free, or an upgrade is $30 a month. Shopify connects an Instagram shop so followers can buy without leaving a post and gives you your own site and control, starting at $5 a month plus transaction fees. QuickBooks Online tracks sales, subscriptions, fees and taxes, links to bank and credit cards, handles sales tax Shopify will not, offers access to tax experts, works in over 170 countries, and starts at $17.50 a month for the first three months. Skool builds paid communities with gamified points, levels and unlockables, live events and courses, for a flat $99 a month with a 14-day free trial. Thinkific is a course-only alternative at $49 a month with quizzes and surveys (including AI-generated questions), drip lesson scheduling, and a built-in page builder. ManyChat replaces ’link in bio’ with a comment-a-word automation that DMs the link, works on story replies, and boosts engagement; it is free for up to 1,000 contacts, then $15 a month. Canva, free to start with Pro at $15 a month, covers brochures, ebooks, sell sheets and templates. His closing system combines them: build a guide in Canva, tease it with a CapCut reel, deliver it via a ManyChat auto-DM, and monetise through Shopify or Thinkific or email capture.

Key takeaways

• Creator’s claim: he made tens of thousands on Instagram starting with barely 100 followers, so follower count is not the barrier the tools are
• CapCut drives Reel growth with auto captions, auto cut-out, stock media and AI narration; all but auto cut-out is free, upgrade $30/month
• Shopify ($5/month plus fees) enables in-post Instagram shopping plus your own site, while QuickBooks Online ($17.50/month intro, 170+ countries) tracks profit and sales tax
• Skool ($99/month, 14-day trial) gamifies community with points, levels and unlockables; Thinkific ($49/month) offers courses with quizzes, drip scheduling and a page builder
• ManyChat (free to 1,000 contacts, then $15/month) turns a comment keyword into an auto-DM link, and Canva Pro ($15/month) supplies the marketing assets to complete the system

Episode details: published April 30, 2025 · 7:11 long. Summary written by Self Growth Videos from the episode itself. Business results and any income figures mentioned are Kevin Stratvert’s own claims, shared for education — they are not typical or guaranteed.

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