Published
August 10, 2021
-
4 minutes
Influencing or working as an influencer is beyond the regular gigs that people take up in addition to their main jobs as a form of extra income. With brands spending millions on influencer marketing, the world of influencing has become an ecosystem of its own with people making their life’s career off it. Two words many can associate with the world of influencing are simple and dynamic. Simple in the sense that those who seem to have made it big in that line got some vital things right and the system affords them a career boost organically. Influencing can also be considered dynamic because as much as there are similar patterns across boards, there isn’t a one-size-fits-all all approach to it in the real sense.
Being an influencer has been proven to be lucrative, even in Nigeria. You can earn money from it as a form of side income or be a full-blown influencer. Beyond earning money, you also get access to being known. Now money and fame are two social currencies nobody jokes with. The good thing being famous does for Instagram influencers is that it also serves as their ticket to getting more gigs or work collaborations.
One thing you however have to note is that nobody suddenly becomes an influencer overnight. Some may want to argue this by stating people who through one video became viral and thus became influencers from there. However, when you check they must have been working behind the scenes for a while. The most basic thing you need to qualify as an Instagram influencer is an ample follower base. Building a substantial follower base takes time and this is what you ought to concern yourself with at the early stages. Never forget that doing this the right way from the start will grant you effective results in the long run.
Also, you have to understand that Instagram is quite different from every other social media platform and this is probably why influence on Instagram has and is still experiencing a great boost. While the platform is big on pictures, videos as well as all forms of content big on the visual.
So if becoming an Instagram influencer is a career path that interests you, you want to follow these steps. Remember also, that as much as these steps are deemed helpful and productive, applying them ought to be personal for you. Like it was mentioned above, there is really no one size fits all approach to becoming that big Instagram success.
Influencing is not a random field to delve into. It requires you to be intentional. Therefore, you have to be certain that is what you want to do so you can give it all you’ve got. You have to know the area in which you would like to specialize. Influencing involves creating content about a product or brand and sticking to it. Going for your passion or areas of interest can be really helpful. If for example fashion is what you are interested in, you can select that as your niche and begin to create great content to pass regularly and consistently. Also note that your niche could be more than one, no rule exists that states your niche has to be one and exclusive.
One thing that sets an influencer apart would be their Instagram profile. You can easily tell from a glance what they are about. The first step to creating a great Instagram is having a very fascinating bio. Your bio should ordinarily contain a summary of who you are, what you do and how you do it. This is where storytelling begins, so even if your niche is more than one, make sure to have them all represented so you can help those visiting determine whether to follow you or not.
Although Instagram is big on photos, it entails more than that. You have to be able to create interesting, informative and fun captions along with it. Remember that at the core of every post, you are telling a story.
Your feed is simply a summary or highlight of your content on your page. As an influencer, you have to see to it that you have the most appealing feed. Make use of good lighting when taking your pictures or videos. While you want to create the best, see that you don’t do too much too soon. Do not overwhelm anyone that may visit. Balance of content and alignment is most important.
Consistency is important in building a career as an Instagram influencer. You want to build a system and stick to it. If you have decided that your posts would be five times a week, design your content calendar to help you deliver on the system you have built. Remember that most times, it is not about how many times you put up content, it is really about how consistent you are at it.
The next thing you want to do is get in touch with the brands you would like to associate with or work for. When your page is formed and content starts to roll, you want to tag these brands on the relevant posts. The point is to make yourself visible to them. Also when creating content, see to it that you highlight the value you represent to them.
Instagram as well as other social platforms often operate with algorithms. Using the right hashtags can help you boost up your page organically. Go easy on the hashtags and ensure that they are precise to your niche.
By the time you begin to post regularly, gradually your following starts to grow and this is where the idea of a community comes in. Now you may have different people follow for different reasons but the one thing all of them would have in common is you and the niche you represent. You have to learn to manage your people in the best way. Know them by engaging the comments strategically. Ask questions by running polls. Always bear in mind that they are not just followers on the surface, they are first of all people.
