An influencer is a person with the ability to influence potential buyers of a product or service by promoting or recommending them mostly through social media. How does one knows that s/he has become an influencer? Almost everyone is an influencer; the difference is in the number of people one can influence. The influencer tiers are as follows:
- Mega-influencers with more than a million followers (think celebrities)
- Macro-influencers with 500K to 1 million followers
- Mid-tier influencers with 50K to 500K followers
- Micro-influencers with 10K to 50K followers
- Nano-influencers with 1K to 10K followers
When you have a large following on social media (and elsewhere) and get people to react, behave or even buy services and products that you recommend, then you are an influencer. Sadly, some people never realise when they have become influencers and in this post I want to sensitize everyone who happens to read this post that they can influence others for money.
Influencer is today the mainstream of digital marketing according to famenet.com. This is because the first stop on checking any service or product is the digital space, mostly the internet. That makes it the right spot for influencing potential buyers. If you would like to know more about digital marketing, you can study for a free course with Google Rise Up Programme.
If you are interested, you can get started by trying out the options I’ll share next. You can either register as a freelance influencer with reputable agency companies such as fiverr and upwork or go out and face the world on your own. If you opt for the agency companies, you must know that you will share your income with them according to their revenue sharing structure.
The influencer outlook
I do acknowledge that the purpose of becoming an influencer may differ in many respects but when it comes to digital marketing, it is to connect companies with buyers and the buyers should be a percentage of your followers.
What you should know as an influencer is that your services, even when you are not active, are necessary and therefore important in today’s business world. Those companies that need to amplify and strengthen their brand awareness take influencer services seriously. Since most often influencers are on social media where vibrancy is high, it becomes easier to reach the target audience through social media platforms such as TikTok, Facebook, twitter, Pintrest, etc.
It is possible to become an influencer of choice by one stable brand that may want to have a long term contract with you. For such companies, this form of marketing is better value for money, time saving and become profitable in a short space of time than all other forms of digital media promotions.
Personal initiative to becoming an paid influencer
As much as it is true that some people are blessed to have a character or even a look that will entice businesses to invite you for business. Most often than not, you would have to make means to be notices as an influencer than waiting for them to notice you so that they can engage you for a service.
You must make an effort to stand out from the crowd. Make efforts to market yourself by even showing off your follower numbers. When you do, be specific on the channel on which you are an influencer on. It could be that you are better positioned in one and not in the other. For example, you may have a huge and growing following on TikTok but struggling on YouTube. You may also be comfortable in one and not the other, just stick to the one you are comfortable on and one that works for you.
The process can follow the steps I will discuss next.
- Look around on social media for companies that want to hire an influencer. Engage them through their provided contact details. You may also pass on a provocative comment that will create interest in you.
- Categorise companies whose niche is closely related to how you present yourself online. For example, it may not work to your favour to market yourself to a religious organization when you are a circular comedian yet it would be easier for a television show presenter.
- Once you have been given a chance to present yourself and the service you would want to offer, it is time to discuss the conditions of service. This is the most critical and challenging times because you want the business but you must be careful not to under-price yourself. The terms you set can either make or break you because once you agree on unfavourable terms you, every delivery will be a nightmare to you.
- Work at sharpening your skills so that you can stand out from your competition. Whatever your niche, try learning more about it and practice the new skills on the go. Don’t be shy to share your opinion with your clients because it is what will make you likeable. You may have to invest in some equipment, software, etc. which will help promote your business.
The above points are in no ways exhaustive neither should it be implemented in the give order. Just never give up trying because things may take a longer time than you expect to start rolling. Know that you may lose some of your clients at any stage of your engagements.
The future is bright if you try. I want to close by encouraging you to keep checking this blog for more content that will keep you motivated to take the next step. Do register with us to get updates on a continuous basis.
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