Here is a quick task for you - try writing the word "Influencer" on MS Word. Did you notice the red line which appeared below?
It's amazing how new, the concept of Influencing actually is (not more than 10 years old). The reason that red line appears is because it gets flagged as a typo. What's equally amazing is how far the world of influencing has progressed in just a short span of time (it's slated to be $10 Bn by 2020)
First things first - who are these influencers and what do they do? Well it turns out, it's very simple. These mythical creatures are perceived to be experts in their domain (could be products or service or anything really) and they also have an incredibly strong community of followers/ people who look up to them for their advice.
While 'influencing' started out mostly in fashion and beauty, there are successful influencers in almost every domain now. If you are here, you intend to get your social media game on and start out as an influencer. Well here are 20 incredibly useful tips from the people who have been there, done that.
1. Be Yourself
With close to 76k followers on Instagram, this lady is nothing short of a sensation. Lauren Mayhew has done it all. She has been an actress, a singer, a DJ, a celebrity host and even a ring announcer in WWE Smackdown (If you smellllll, what the Rock is cookin').
Her simple advice is to BE YOURSELF. It sounds simple but it is that difficult to do on social media with the entire world watching you. She says that influencing is a contact sport - you gain the trust of your followers because you are genuine (unlike celebrity endorsements) and the products you endorse are the stuff which you actually buy. Your fans can smell it a mile away when you try being someone else or promote something that's not you.
2. Be Consistent
We all have that friend who is your bestie one day and then doesn't seem to recognise you the day after. That's kinda weird and sucky. Same goes for your social media game. Your fans feel like they are getting to know you because you are letting them be a part of your world. If you simply disappear time and again, you'd probably see your follower count going down.
3. Embrace Micro Influence
Jamie Joslyn King aka The Slay Coach aka The Boss Babe is as badass as it gets. She is a Business Coach, Speaker, Founder of the non profit networking series Chardonnay and Slay. Her mission is to educate and empower women on how to turn their passions into businesses and ultimately into a highly profitable venture.
Her advice is simple. It's to embrace the micro influencing world. All of us know this but few realize or practise it. Making a big impact with a small amount of people is supremely powerful. Sometimes even more powerful than making a small impact within a large number of people. It's not always about having a large number of followers but how much engagement you achieve out of those followers. Micro influencers with less than 5k followers tend to have 4 to 5 times the engagement rate as that of bigger players.
4. Focus on Your Niches
The Riches are in the Niches, Bitches! That's what Jamie says to her clients. A lot many times, we spread ourselves too thin over whatever seems to be hot at that point of time. That's not how it works. Your fans will look up to you for your specific expertise and you better be able to bring your A game regarding that. There are 7+ Bn people in the world and the internet knows no boundaries.
5. Collaborate, Collaborate, Collaborate!
Torri Webster is a Toronto based media personality and actor who has made a mark in the entertainment industry in the last decade. She has over 293k Instagram followers and been associated with leading brands such as GUESS, Pepsi Co, Benefit Cosmetics, Ford, AT&T and a lot more.
She keeps it real when says collaboration is the key to everything. As an influencer, the aim is to grab as many eyeballs as possible. And often collaborating with other content creators lets you reach audiences you might not have access to otherwise (that's what Pyper does to be honest).
6. Credit Your Photographers (If You Aren't The One Taking The Photos)
This is some solid advice. Without our photographers or people who help us put that amazing content out there, we would be nowhere. So make sure you give credit where it's due. And often, they would also be tagging you in their posts which helps drive traffic upwards and increase your social media following.
7. Innovate or Die
Kimia Kalbasi's Instagram account titled Kimia's Kravings is one of the sweetest things out there in the internet. Her account is the ultimate guide on where to go, eat, drink and be merry. She has developed her own brand of sassy humour (read puns) and also provides daily doses of positivity through her vibrant content. She says if I can do it, so can you. This SF based "kontent kreator" is here to stay.
You will hear spectacular stories of giant behemoths of companies like Nokia, Toys R US, Xerox who lost all but everything because they couldn't keep up with the times. This applies even to influencers and to us in general. Get creative and get on with it! If you want to try out the new Instagram TV to provide your fans a daily show to turn to, just do it (pun intended). If you want to add polls in your stories, run with it. You will essentially figure out what works for you and what doesn't.
8. Have Fun!
Kimia says it's extremely important to be lovin' what you are doin'. This is not your average 9 to 6 job where you can slug it out even if you don't like it, just to pay your bills. Your audience will instantly see through if you actually don't enjoy being an influencer and you're just in it for the money. If you are always busy comparing what other influencers are doing and how much they are getting paid, it's time to rethink what you really want from this gig.
9. Set A Budget For Promotion
With over 44k followers on Instagram, Vanessa Gordon has created quite a space for herself in the food blogging world. This blogger and fitness trainer is based in Hamptons, New York. She started East End Taste in 2014 which focuses on everything related to food, dining, luxury travel and everything in between in the Hamptons.
Vanessa says that it's very easy to get carried away with promotions. So it's essential that you stick to a budget. Typically she promotes 40% of her content. With newer influencers jumping on the social media bandwagon everyday, it's a task to consistently grab everybody's eyeballs the way it was possible even a few years back. In addition, she says it's important to change from where you are promoting the content. She keeps on shuttling between Westchester, New York and even Miami because that's where the Hamptonites go for vacations in the winter.
10. Engage With Your Audience
Vanessa is a great fan of initiating and striking up conversations on social media. She advises to accompany each post (especially visual) with an insightful question which helps the audience relate to you as a person. This gets a conversation going really easily. Typically, you should reply to comments on your posts within 6 hours. When commenting on photos and content that you love, try and ask questions there as well to stand out and create meaningful conversations. That's how you will draw your followers towards you.
Takeaways
These are guidelines which might help you in your journey. Above all, these influencers have worked their assess off to reach where they are. There is no place here for half-assed work. So while you do have guidelines to understand from the best influencers out there, you are responsible for creating your own brand and hopefully we would be covering you here someday!
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