Featured article by Russell Emmental, Independent Technology Author
Everyone has Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter these days. A lot never do much with their profiles, using them for personal posts and updates only. You’re here because you want to do something different. You want to become an influencer.
Welcome to the world of monetization. When making your social media accounts profitable, you want to be careful and cautious. Put a plan into action and stick to it. You won’t get influence overnight. After hard work, effort, and time, you’ll see results.
What to know to get started? The story is different for everyone, but here are a few tips that will help you.
1)Â Â Â Â Look the Part
Social media influencers all look professional. You don’t need brand name clothes, expensive makeup, or a fancy camera, as long as you look like you know what you’re doing.
If you’re a coffee enthusiast and want to promote coffee on your accounts, tailor your look to suit the passion. You could wear clothes that have coffee catchphrases on them (as long as you like them). Even consider using some fun accessories. Choose a caffeine-related design from the beautiful iPhone cases at Casely. The point is to make people confident in your knowledge and love of what you want to promote.
You might feel a bit silly first but, when you start to gain popularity, you’ll feel at ease.
2)Â Â Â Â Be Subtle with Your CTA
Don’t bombard your followers with directions. They will leave if they feel pressured to look at or buy something with every post. Aim for a CTA after 5 lifestyle blogs or vlogs. You can weave the advertisements subtly throughout your feed by using hashtags, tagging a brand in a specific post, or mentioning something in a video.
When you are posting a direct action for your followers, be genuine about it. Don’t try to pretend that you’re not asking for something. People like it more if you tell the truth. Who knows, maybe the honesty will get you more followers?
3)Â Â Â Â Be Prepared to Do Marketing Work for Free
Reach out to brands that you love. Even if it’s a super popular brand like Nike, they are still on the lookout for brand ambassadors. Get the marketing teams to notice you. When you are posing with products, be dynamic and creative. At first, you’ll have to do advertising for the company with no personal reward. With enough posts, however, you’ll be in a partnership deal that provides mutual benefits.
Remember, your audience doesn’t want to listen to you ramble about a product you’ve never used. Stick to brands that you have loyally used or would be interested in trying. Most importantly, don’t try a product simply because outside forces encourage you to. No matter how much money, fame, or clout you’ll receive, don’t promote a product unless you use it.
4)Â Â Â Â Video Marketing (IGTV, Facebook Video, Etc.)
Video is the future. All social media platforms have a video component. Instagram has IGTV, Facebook has Facebook Video, and YouTube is starting its own version of cable television. Using video is a great way to promote yourself and your social media.
Even if you don’t want to become a vlogger, simple video updates on IGTV or Facebook make your audience feel more involved. With videos, you can show yourself using products that you want to promote. You can also film whenever you try out new food or drink.
Now Get Out There and Get Influencing
And finally, one last-minute tip for the road before you start monetizing your social media accounts. Make sure that your camera is good quality (or that you have a competent editing software). Now go make that cash.
Russell Emmental is predominately a finance journalist and ex-banker. He lives in Utah with his family and is a keen aviation enthusiast in his spare time.
