How To Get Started As A Social Media Influencer

Becoming a social media influencer is nowhere near the easy ride many people think it is.

There’s a huge amount of work involved in being an influencer; partnering with brands, promoting products, and posting constantly take their toll on even the most well-prepared of individuals.

Of course, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t chase your dream if you’ve always wanted to become an influencer.

With just a little hard work, there’s no reason you can’t achieve this goal.

Here’s how you can get started in this potentially lucrative (and occasionally intimidating!) career.

Make Sure You’re Well-Funded

Embarking on a career as a social media influencer is a great idea, but it doesn’t always pay well in the beginning. It’s a good idea to make sure you’ve got adequate funding from other sources.

You could, for example, keep up your regular job in addition to trying to become an influencer. This can be difficult; finding the time to post around regular work hours isn’t easy, and you may find yourself lacking energy.

Alternatively, you could pursue a source of quick loans if you need some cash to tide you over until that big brand partnership break comes your way.

Maintain a profile on all different platforms

You can’t reasonably call yourself a social media influencer if you’re only on a single platform.

It’s fine to specialise; some people’s strengths lie in video creation, while others are much better with words, so different platforms will suit different influencers.

However, at the very least, you should be looking at which apps have the highest monthly active user count and creating profiles on those apps.

This means TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter are all must-haves for any self-respecting influencer. You should also be on the lookout for emerging apps you can adopt!

Post frequently

The number one differentiator between influencers and regular social media users is that influencers understand they have to treat posting like work.

If you like to relax and don’t like to keep up a consistent posting schedule, being an influencer may not be for you. If you’re still determined, however, the best thing to do is simply to post as often as possible (within reason, of course).

At least once or twice a day per platform is ideal if you can manage it. This will show potential followers and brand collaborators that you’re maintaining an active presence on social media.

Showcase Your Creativity

Being an influencer is all about individuality and creativity. If you can’t demonstrate that you have a unique outlook on things, then you may find it difficult to carve out your niche in a crowded market.

Think about all the things that make you special. What skills do you have that others might not possess? Is there any way you could leverage those skills in your new career?

For example, making tutorial videos is a good way to start, or you could perhaps think about creating videos that show off your talent in a unique and interesting light.

Find Your Niche

You can’t be all things to all people on social media. It’s important to discover what your niche is and stick to it as best you can.

For instance, if you’re going to start a gaming Twitch channel, you should think about what games you’re good at, as well as which ones are currently trending on the platform.

Try to find the cross-section between these two things and cater for that audience.

You’ll start to figure out who your target audience is from comments and feedback that flood in once you’ve been creating content for a while.

Be Proactive

Don’t wait for the brands to come to you.

Once you’ve got a decent portfolio of content and a couple of thousand followers, start being proactive in seeking out brands to collaborate with.

Find brands that match your core values and cater to your target demographic and DM them, asking if they’re looking for influencers to promote their products or services.

A lot of the time, you’ll find that the answer is yes; they may simply not know that you exist yet. Building up a background of collaboration with brands is critical if you want to be an influencer.

Build Networks With Other Influencers

Collaboration is key on social media, and nowhere is this more true than in your collaborations with other influencers.

Don’t look at other social media users as enemies; rather, see them as friendly rivals at worst and friends at best.

They can help you to build an audience, and you can help them to build theirs, so any partnership between you will almost certainly be mutually beneficial.

Just be sure to avoid any overt drama; while feuds and arguments may look good initially, it won’t be long before you start attracting a reputation as an argumentative, difficult influencer.

Make Your Content Great

The final tip we can give you is this: make excellent content. It sounds obvious, but content should be at the forefront of your strategy.

After all, you could have the greatest marketing strategy in the world, but if there’s nothing at the core of that strategy, people will quickly lose interest.

It’s important to ensure your “product” – that is, the content you create – is good enough that eventually, your social media profiles will begin to market themselves.

Craft content carefully, put thought into it, and use whatever tools are at your disposal for each platform.