Let’s be honest, social media influencers and content creators are the new celebrities. Not only do a lot of them have a higher number of followers than some of Bollywood, and even Hollywood’s A-listers, they get to pick and choose the projects they want to work on, or the brands they’d like to collaborate with. Naturally, influencer marketing has gained immense popularity. But this begs the questions: how can one become a social media influencer and is it the right move?
Read on to understand what works, what doesn’t, and how you can gradually find your place in the now saturated world of influencers.
Find a niche
Considering the fact that the influencer market is saturated, finding a niche that’s relatively unexplored will be your best bet. Think gaming, app testing, or music. No, there’s no dearth of talent available, but perhaps, focusing on merely sniper gameplay as opposed to the complete gameplay can be an avenue to explore. This means, plenty of research and scooping out the competition to see what you can do differently. There’s a lot of women in the beauty influencer space, but not too many in the gaming space so grab the opportunity as you see fit, if it makes sense for you. A niche will also help you better identify your target audience, and create an identity for yourself in the space.
Narrow down the channel you’ll use
Once you’ve identified your market, you’ll need to identify the channels you’ll use to post on. While there’s an art to choosing your platform, when it’s a niche market, it helps to start small depending on your area of focus. For example, with game play, YouTube makes for the perfect platform. It allows for longer videos and better user interface as it’s primarily an online video sharing platform. Yes, you will need supporting platforms for a wider reach, but YouTube should remain your main platform for uploads.
Have a content strategy
Having a content strategy in place is by far the most important aspect of building your brand. This will help you focus on what you put out, and in turn reach the right people. The fact remains, no matter where you want to build your audience, having quality content is what will get you noticed. This means, not just having great ideas, but a means to execute them. Think about a seemingly large investment right now, for an even larger pay out when you succeed.
Track everything
Remember, consistency and professionalism go a long way. Which means, you not only have to focus on volume, but the quality of the content. No, we don’t mean just the production value, but overall messaging. You want to leave your audience on a positive, happy note. This also means you may want to begin understanding analytics. This will help you track how each post or video is doing, what works better, how long a user engaged with your content, and where you’re getting most of your traffic from. This will in turn help you better plan and put out content that you know your audience will consume, guaranteeing return visitors that will eventually translate into followers and subscribers.
Network, network, network
Becoming a social media influencer means you have to constantly be ‘on’. You have to constantly put your best face forward, and make sure you leave a lasting impression. But how can you do that without connections or networking. This is where word-of-mouth marketing comes into play, and will organically grow your reach. Of course, you will also need to build a database of emails and potential clients, and make sure to send out weekly newsletters or feelers just so you and your brand are still fresh in their minds. It also helps to interact and collaborate with other influencers in your niche market.
What will ultimately sell is your own personal brand of influence, so no matter how difficult, just remember to be authentic, and be you.