Have you always dreamed of becoming a social media influencer? You’re in good company. 86% of young people want the exact same thing.
But how do you become a social media influencer anyway? Does it start randomly? Do you need to have a rich family?
Well, sometimes, but there are a few steps that you can take to give yourself a leg up. Read on to learn how to become a social media influencer across multiple platforms.
1. Start With a Game Plan
As with any other venture, your first step should be creating a game plan. No one ever got famous overnight (unless they were an industry plant or incredibly lucky), so you have to put in that initial work.
It’s helpful if you write out your plan somewhere, even if it’s just in a journal.
Start your plan by setting goals. Why do you want to be an influencer? What do you plan on getting out of your “career” as an influencer? Will you be happy as a micro-influencer, or are you going to try to “make it big?”
Make sure that your goals are actionable. Setting up a timeline of when you would like to accomplish each goal (and what those accomplishments will look like) can be helpful.
This is also when you should start picking your platforms. Not all platforms are great for influencers or even specific skills.
For example, if you’re an artist, you’re better off picking a photo-based platform like Instagram.
If you know that you’re adept with video marketing, you can try using platforms like TikTok and YouTube alongside Instagram.
Avoid trying to use Facebook. It’s not a useful platform for influencers.
2. Know Your Niche
To be successful, you’re going to need a niche. It’s tempting to start your accounts with all of your special interests, but for most people, this is an ineffective strategy. Remember that people are going to visit your page (at least at first) because they’re interested in what you’re doing, not interested in you as a person.
Your niche should be somewhat tight when you get started, though you may be able to branch out later. Let’s take fashion influencers for example. Sure, you could be a general “fashion” influencer, but you should try to niche down into a category like:
- Thrift store fashion
- Budget fashion
- Street fashion
- Japanese fashion
- Handmade fashion
There are plenty of people on the internet who love each of those niches. If you keep providing content that appeals to them, they’ll follow you for more.
3. Develop Your Personal Brand
When you’re trying to be an influencer, you’re no longer an individual. You’re selling yourself as if you were a brand. How are you going to develop and boost that brand?
Make sure that you understand the brand image that you want your potential followers to see. In other words, create a persona that you’ll use every time you post.
Even when you’re not feeling up to it, try your best to maintain that persona.
You can also use your persona to further solidify your niche. Is your persona a frugal shopper who loves sewing? You’d be a great thrift store fashion influencer who loves modifying clothing.
Keep your brand consistent across all of your platforms.
You can further solidify your brand by keeping a consistent color scheme, voice, and video style (if applicable). If you’re an artist, try to post work that fits a color scheme or aesthetic (even if that means that you aren’t posting all of your work to your page).
4. Follow Other Influencers Within Your Niche
Many new creators make the mistake of trying to get followers without following anyone in the first place. This is counterproductive.
Some platforms register accounts that don’t follow anyone as bots. Even if you’re posting content, the platform could hide your content from your potential audience.
You also won’t get any related content in your algorithm if you’re not following creators and liking posts!
Bonus: following influencers can lead new followers to you (even if you never post a comment). Avoid trying to reach out to large influencers for a shout-out. This was once acceptable, but it’s now considered predatory and uncouth unless you have something valuable to offer them in return.
5. Create Interesting or Valuable Content
Is your content worth following you for? If not, why would you gain an audience? Make sure that you’re always striving to post great content.
It’s a good idea to create content ahead of time. Taking and editing photos and videos takes longer than you’d expect, and you’ll need plenty of time to perfect your craft.
Keep in mind that your early content might not be as valuable as you’d like it to be. You’re still learning. As long as you continue improving, more followers will find you.
6. Be Consistent
This is one of the toughest parts of trying to have social media influence. You need to be consistent, even when you’re not experiencing any growth.
It is, at times, going to be discouraging. Why would you continue making art, photos, and videos if no one is engaging with them? You won’t ever gain an audience if you give up before you gain any traction.
7. Engage With Your Audience
The top social media influencers interact with their audiences (at least sometimes). They may have a CTA in their post. reply to comments, or even re-post content from the people who follow them.
Engagement is what gets you more likes and comments. Instagram and TikTok likes and comments make it more likely for your account to reach the “explore” pages (which is how more people will be able to find you).
Are You Ready to Be a Social Media Influencer?
Let’s face it: becoming a social media influencer is tough. You have to have the perfect combination of skill and luck, and most people won’t make the cut. With that in mind, these steps can put you on the right track.
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