The last few years have seen a huge boom in people becoming or wanting to become an influencer. Thank you, Tik Tok! Many people believe that influencers and content creators have a cushy lifestyle and make tons of money doing nothing. As a content creator myself, I can guarantee that is not the case. Well at least for me it’s not. People are learning who influencers are, how they earn money, and how much work they put into their post.

If you are curious about how to become an influencer or content creator, keep reading for some easy tips!

1} Make good quality content

This starts with having a good camera. Nowadays, your iPhone should suffice for most situations! From there, you will need a way to edit your content. And the best way to do that is outside of the social media platform.

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Most every content creator uses Adobe Lightroom to edit their photos and videos. This is the app that allows them to use editing presets. But if you become acquainted enough with this app, then you won’t need to pay for those presets because you will know how to edit them yourself.

2} Build a loyal following

Notice how I didn’t say a “large” following. Along with posting great content, you need to make sure your captions contain keywords and hashtags. Use your captions to ask questions because you will want people to comment! That starts the conversation and allows you to comment back and get to know your followers – and better yet, for them to get to know you!

Just remember though – your content, the caption, and the hashtags all need to be telling the same story. Don’t write a caption that has nothing to do with the content. And don’t include hashtags that don’t exactly relate to the content either. You should be using 3-5 hashtags MAX and they should be an extension of your caption. Not something to spam.

3} Follow trends

The best way to get noticed is to do something that a massive amount of people will like. Whether this trend is a specific audio, dance, joke, whatever it is – jump on it. A lot of people want to go viral from their own, original content. And that is fantastic. However, going viral isn’t necessarily good. Start building a following doing trends and sprinkle in your own original pieces so that people have a well rounded understanding of what it’s like to follow you.

4} Get started on commissionable links

Next step – getting commission from items you post about. Reward Style is the most popular commission-based influencer program. They make it super easy to convert regular website links into your personal commissionable link. You also don’t have to own the item to post your commissionable link!

The commission for Reward Style links depends on which retailer you are posting about. I’ve seen rates anywhere between 5-20% for what I normally post about. Each retailer will have their own commission rate. Obviously the higher the commission rate, the more enticing it will be for you to post about. But obviously don’t go posting about Chanel bags if that’s not what your style is . It will look super inauthentic to your personal brand.

Learn more on how much potential you have to make as an influencer!

5} Email companies that you want to work with!

Put yourself out there and email companies that you want to work with and let them know “hey I want to work with you!”. Lots of companies will also have an email listed on their site specifically for influencers and partnership requests.

Remember to cater your emails to the company itself. Talk about why you would be a good fit together, and maybe sprinkle in what you love specifically about their products. Maybe you already own something from them that you can send pictures of you wearing or using.

Want more information about this tricky subject, read this blog: How to Pitch Yourself as an Influencer to Brands

6} Interact with your favorite brands over social

If you really want to work with a brand, odds are you are a fan of theirs. Act like it! Like and comment on their posts. Interact with their Stories. Follow them on multiple platforms.

And better yet – post about them with no other incentive! Not only are you putting your name out there to them. But you can also speak to your engagement numbers when pitching to them. You can mention your post, reference the link, show them a clear visual of how you would work with their brand, and you can brag about how many likes, comments, link clicks you got just by that post.

7} Make a schedule and keep your posts consistent

Making content is time consuming. It requires planning, filming, editing, and more. The only people who will be able to make it are those that are organized. Get a planner and plan your days. Plan what days to sketch your content. Plan when to film your videos in batches. And plan what you post and when. Taking the guesswork out of this job is essential to growth. Not to mention, brands love when you can tell them exactly what days you are filming, editing, and posting!

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Things to Remember

These steps aren’t hard but they aren’t easy either! They all take constant attention and require you to work hard without seeing a lot of pay in the beginning. Be aware that this will start as a way to get your name out there and more so it will be a side hustle. Don’t expect to make this your full time job for quite some time. But believe in yourself and keep moving forward because it is achievable!

Read more influencer tips and tricks on Donna Gail Blog.

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