5 Tips to Become the Next Big Social Media Influencer

Today, you can become an influencer and command a huge fan following.

(Photo: iStock)

Nowadays, you don’t necessarily have to be a sporting icon or a film star to be popular among the masses and have a fan base of your own. The powerful combination of the internet, smartphones and social media has changed the rules of the game and how!

Today, you can become an influencer and command a huge fan following, tie up with brands and even collaborate with other influencers to create content.

But the big question is: how does one become a social media influencer? How and where does one start? Is it as easy as it seems? Well, we’ve got you covered. If you aspire to be the next big thing on social media, here are some tips that will help you get there! Read on.

#1 Identify something you’re good at and build on it

The first step to being an influencer is to identify something you’re good at and then build on it. Fond of make-up? Create tutorial videos and start sharing them on your social media. Like cooking? Share recipe videos with your followers. You don’t just become influencer out of nowhere. You have to find your niche and then show your followers that you’re genuinely good at that particular thing. It’s essential that they learn to trust you for them to share your content with others.

If you think you have a passion for food, why not become a food blogger?(Photo: iStock)

#2 It may sound like a cliché, but content is indeed the king

As your fan base continues to grow, it’s very important that you focus all your energies on the content you create. Innovate, look for ways that will differentiate your content from others, collaborate with other influencers – in the long run, it’s only your content that will hold you in good stead. Remember, there are a lot of people like you out there. This is where the content you create will give you that edge over others.

#3 Master the art of networking

To be taken seriously as a social media influencer, networking is key, be it with brands or fellow influencers. If you feel you have a unique proposition for a brand, make the first move and reach out to them for an association. Be open to collaborating with other influencers. This gives you a great chance of showcasing yourself to your followers, and in turn, expand your audience base. Efforts like these will ensure that you are seen and heard more.

For an influencer, networking is key.(Photo: iStock)

#4 Keep your followers engaged

Talk to your followers. Interact with them. Reply to their comments. This will make them feel special and help you forge a strong relationship with them. Doing AMAs with your followers or sharing your experiences with them live is a great way of engaging with them. Host Instagram Lives where you can show them a different side of yourself or give them a peek behind the stage. Make sure you have a fast mobile internet though because a choppy live stream can do the opposite of what it's supposed to. So which network is an influencer’s network? Well according to a report by OpenSignal, Airtel offered the fastest internet speeds in India. So the choice seems to be natural.

It’s important to keep interacting with your followers.(Photo: iStock)

#5 Be consistent with your updates

As an influencer, the one thing that matters the most after content is consistency. You should be able to produce quality content on a regular basis because that’s what your followers are looking forward to. If you’re not consistent, you might lose out on followers or they will stop taking you seriously. Time of the day, geography, bad network or your schedule nothing can come in your way. With Airtel’s fast and reliable 4G services, you can post content on your social media anytime, anywhere without any delays and interruptions. Another good way of managing the content you put out would be to use scheduling tools.

Follow these tips and you will be well on your way to becoming a social media influencer!