Being an Influencer is the modern day equivalent of a celebrity. It is when someone gains a large following on a social media site such as YouTube, Facebook, Instagram or Twitter and then they are said to “have influence” over a large number of people. Brands will then pay them or give them free merchandise to promote their product or service.
It is great for the brand because the Influencer will advertise the product to a large number of people. A lot of these people trust the Influencer because they will have been following them for some time and they are more likely to make a purchase based on the recommendation rather than traditional forms of advertising. The Influencer benefits from free merchandise or a paycheck simply for recommending a product.
Like a lot of ways to make cash on social media and the internet, this is a relatively new way to make an income that didn’t exist a few decades ago. That is unless you were a celebrity from more traditional media such as TV, magazines and radio. Nowadays anyone can become an Influencer if you have a large enough following on social media and in fact a lot of celebrities are also Influencers.
The hard part is gaining the following in the first place and most people won’t become an Influencer because it takes time and effort. Similar to if you want to make money with Youtube or blogging you have to find a niche or topic that you are passionate about. Then persist in creating useful content and building your list of followers. Once you have a large enough fan base your hard work is rewarded and being an Influencer is then incredibly easy. Brands will approach you directly or you can sign up with an agency where you can command large fees for simply making a shout out or recommendation to your followers.
Extra Cash
Influencers are just people with the largest number of followers on social networking sites. So if you have reached this level of influence along the way you will have opportunities to make additional income through affiliate marketing, advertising, selling products, network marketing or promoting a blog.
Recommended Reading
Influencer Fast Track – From Zero to Influencer in the next 6 Months!
Influencer – Building Your Personal Brand in the Age of Social Media.