Social media influencers build platforms with large followings and use their influence to promote products, services, and causes. Influencers can be regular people, celebrities, and even pets, profiting off of sponsored posts. While celebrity influencers can earn hundreds of thousands of dollars per post, typical influencers earn between $30,000 and $100,000 per year in endorsements.
If you aspire to become a successful influencer there are some essential resources you will need to successfully launch your career.
Electronics
In order to be online, you will need a computer and internet access. Computers simplify the process of editing content and designing web pages. The screen size enables you to customize your content for web browsers and test your website on different browsers to ensure there are no technical issues.
With a webcam for PC, you can create compelling videos to upload to your website, blog, or social media accounts. You can also host live streaming events. One of the benefits of using a webcam on your computer is that it is hands free. Although smartphones can be used to create videos, you will need to hold them in place, which will affect your presentation style. You may be able to get someone else to video you, but this will limit your video opportunities to times when your camera operator is available.
Fashion Sense
You do not need to be a fashion expert to be an influencer, but you do need to have some basic fashion sense. Your wardrobe can impact your skin tone, which will affect how you appear in photos and videos. Clothing choices can also enhance your features. For example, if you have green eyes you may favor shirts with that shade of green in them to help bring out your eye color.
Select clothing that suits your style and fits the tone of your persona. Choose jeggings over dress pants to establish a casual image. You can compliment your jeggings with tunics, T-shirts, and sweaters. Your choice of attire may also be impacted by the topics you’re addressing. Opt for seasonally appropriate outfits when you’re posting about holidays or seasonal activities for an effective presentation.
A Philosophy
Consumers are more likely to support businesses that share their beliefs and values. When George Floyd died after a police officer held his knee to Floyd’s neck for almost nine minutes, protestors took to the streets in cities across the United States to demand an end to police brutality. The CEO of one company made an insensitive tweet about Floyd, which prompted athletes and other businesses to terminate their working relationship with the offending company. This illustrates why a company’s philosophy can be as important as their products.
Successful influencers have a clear set of beliefs and values that govern their practices, content, and conduct. With a philosophy in place, these influencers can avoid creating insensitive posts their followers would find offensive. They can also decline endorsement offers from companies that have problematic philosophies or engage in harmful practices.
SEO Marketing
Search engine optimization (SEO) marketing is one of the most effective ways to raise your profile and generate traffic for your website. It can also be used to increase your followers on social media.
Sites with good SEO scores incorporate relevant keywords into their content. You can attract followers by including keywords that are appropriate for your focus in your social media bios. Including keywords and relevant hashtags in posts and website content will also increase your site’s SEO score.
Your SEO ranking will also increase if you have high volumes of traffic visiting your site. The score will rise even more if your visitors engage with your site. Including relevant information, videos, and related links to other sites will prompt visitors to engage with your content.
Other ways to increase your SEO ranking include increasing the number of inbound links to your site from other blogs and websites, ensuring your website loads quickly, and using keywords for file names and alt text descriptions when uploading images to your website.