About a month ago, I received a message from Euractiv, the pan-European media platform : "You are ranked among the Top 40 EU digital influencers. We are writing to invite you to join us at an event in Brussels".
Wow, but how do you become an influencer - an authority in your field? How do you gain celebrity-like status on social media? Being an influencer means many things, but it really comes down to being someone who actually influences decisions of others. It’s not about how many followers you have, but about what you do with them, and how others react to your content.
Becoming an influencer certainly doesn’t happen overnight. It takes patience, persistence, and personality. Influencers have been able to inspire their audiences because there’s something unique about them. And when you consider how much noise there is online, you need to stand out and be heard.
Here are 5 tips to help you gain influencer status:
1. Discover your niche
What are you good at? What are you most interested in? The best way to be an expert in something and be the one to deliver content that is relevant and compelling to your audience is by sticking to what you know. Don’t try to take command of an industry that you are not familiar with simply because it is what is trending at the moment.
2. Study other influencers
While you may not be an influencer just yet, other influencers in your niche are both competitors and potential collaborators. By knowing what they are up to, you can analyse what works and what doesn’t. Start thinking about your own approach without copying others. Seek inspiration, but create a strategy that is unique.
3. Find your own voice
There are different kinds of influencers. But the most successful influencers typically fall into the following personality types: the hipsters, the savvy business networkers, the advocate influencers and the bloggers who are selective about who they share to. You’ll also find those who use the power of social media and other online platforms to connect offline or use these networks to share mass amounts of content to get attention.
While you’ll most likely fall into one of these categories, it’s important for you to find your own voice. Only by being authentic you will be able to connect with your audience in a genuine way that is consistent.
4. Create excellent content on the right channel
Your niche may determine the online platform that you’ll want to turn into your digital homebase. If your industry focuses more on visuals and aesthetics, then you’ll likely thrive on Instagram. If your niche demands informative articles, then you’ll probably turn to Twitter or Facebook to promote your blog posts that will be posted on LinkedIn and your own website.
Create a content strategy that maps out topics, content types, and a calendar. Great content is persuasive and moves people. Determine what you are good at and the sort of content you want to publish. Are you a good writer or better with video creation? Is the value that you want to bring to your audience in the form of tutorials or are you good at writing reviews on products and services? Ultimately, it is your content that you will be known for above everything else.
5. Engage your audience
By engaging with your followers, target audience, brands, and other influencers, you’re building relationships. Like and comment on posts. Share content that is relevant to your niche and don’t forget to tag or mention the source. Follow a lot of people. Be helpful and engaging towards them and many will follow back.
As an aspiring influencer, think of yourself as a brand and be mindful of what you put out there in the form of comments, captions, and live videos. Remember that they should all be consistent with who you want to be known for.