“Influencer” – this is the word we hear a lot nowadays. According to CNBC, 86% of young adults say they’d be willing to post social media content for money! An Influencer is someone who is an individual who has the ability or power to influence others to buy the products they promote.
Types of Influencers –
Influencers are usually categories based on the amount of followers they have. Divided on a broad basis, there are 4 categories of influencers.
Nano Influencers (200 – 1000 followers)
These are most of us, normal people, who may have never earned money from social media before but are open to the idea.
- The basic aim is to gain something from the gig, and not to build a following.
- These users are generally creating medium to good quality content, mostly personal.
- Generally, following on social media platforms like Instagram and Twitter is between 200-1000 people.
Micro-Influencers (500 to 10,000 followers)
Micro-influencers, as the name suggests, are beginners in the influencer and social media world.
- They usually collaborate with new and small brands, but the consistency of delivering content is high.
- Due to limited production, the quality of the content is medium to high and the influence on their followers is high as well.
- They usually have up to 10,000 followers on Instagram and other social media platforms and see good engagement on their posts.
Influencers (10,000+ followers)
Influencers are professionals who have built up a sizable following on social media platforms.
- The content is delivered at a steady rate in a fixed niche and the quality of content is impeccable.
- Due to their popularity, these people are usually approached by high-end brands and companies to promote their products.
- They often sign agreements, are managed by agencies, disclose posts as ‘paid promotions’ and even get to attend exclusive events.
Celebrity Influencers (1 million+ followers)
These influencers are at the peak of their popularity. They are literally celebrities and have widespread mainstream recognition as well.
Kylie Jenner, Logan Paul and Bhuvan Bam are considered Celebrity Influencers.
Basic Rules of Influencing
For any Influencer, there are a few basic factors they should keep in mind:
Captions
Captions are a very important aspect of your content as an influencer, and are often overlooked. Even if your post is of presentable quality, it won’t matter as much if the caption is irrelevant/unclear. The caption is the message you want to give to your viewers, so make sure you make your captions truly stand out!
Grooming
You must be well-groomed and presentable for your audience. Remember, your role is to set a good example for your audience. Create a personality or a style for yourself and stick to it!
- A good haircut is a must. If you wish to grow your hair out, keep them in shape!
- Clothing is really important. Make sure you’re dressed properly for the occasion!
Variety
As they say, “don’t put all your eggs in one basket”. The same is true for social media influencing. Don’t stick to one niche immediately. In the early days, feel free to explore different types of genres, themes and categories.. See what your audience is most receptive to and what suits you the best. Slowly, you will fit into a niche that your audience likes and you enjoy!
Here are a few steps to help you find your ideal genre:
Step 1: Pick a genre you relate to the most, on a personal level. What are you most passionate about? Food? Travel? Fitness? Take your pick. Your content will only be good when you are fully invested in it.
Step 2: Release trial content with your genre, and gauge the response from your audience. As we mentioned earlier, always listen to your audience.
Step 3: Step 1 and 2 are trial-and-error methods. You must keep dabbling into new genres until you find the one that you and your audience resonates with. Step 3 is to lock on to the genre and build your network/profile around it.
Consistency
Consistency is very important no matter what stage you are on. As an influencer, you must create and post content on a regular basis. Scheduling is very important – try and make a fixed schedule and adhere to it strictly.
Author: Ankita Mundhra