Instagram’s updating its policies around affiliate marketing, while it’s also renaming its Branded Content Ads to Partnership Ads instead, in order to better communicate its evolving approach on this front.

As explained in this new pop-up, with the new name change, Instagram will also now enable brands to promote more types of user content in the app, not just the posts that use the Paid Partnership label.

As per Instagram:

“Advertisers can now boost more types of organic Instagram content as partnership ads, including branded content with the paid partnership label, Instagram Collab posts, @mentions, people tags, product tags, and other content without the paid partnership label.”

That’ll provide a new range of ways for brands to monetize UGC, while also giving creators more opportunities to form business partnerships by expanding the pool of potential ad partners that can connect with them based on their posts.

The permission process for Partnership Ads remains the same – creators will be able to switch on the ‘Allow brand partner to boost’ option which will give businesses the capacity to use their posts for ads, if they choose. Brands will then be able to initiate the campaign process, with creators able to approve selected partnerships on whatever content the brand has chosen to use in a paid promotion.

In addition to this, there’s also account-level permissions, which enable brands to create Partnership Ads from a creator’s handle without a pre-existing post. That’s a more defined partnership, likely established through a broader agreement with the creator.

The updated process is part of Instagram’s renewed push on UGC, with the platform also testing out a new process that’ll help brands feature user photos and videos in their IG shop to better promote their products.

Instagram’s been working to establish more opportunities for creators, especially Reels stars, in order to keep them posting, with short-form video proving harder to monetize due to the inability to insert mid or pre-roll ads. This new update will provide expanded opportunities, while also giving businesses more ways to boost brand awareness through UGC.

Which can be effective – according to Instagram:

“Campaigns that combine partnership ads with business-as-usual (BAU) ads drove 53% higher click-through rates, 19% lower cost per actions, and 99% probability to outperform BAU ads alone.”

People, logically, trust other people’s real-world experience, and the capacity to use actual examples, based on IG posts, can be an effective promotional tool, especially as more DIY content gains traction in the app.

You can read more about Instagram’s updated Partnership Ads process here.