The Delicate Art of being an Influencer
Kobe’s long-time Influencer; Clarence
The definition of what constitutes an influencer is still evolving, and with it, our understanding of what an influencer actually does. There’s an air of mystery that surrounds the designation by nature of its newness — a sense of delight and curiosity about what it would actually be like to spend a day inside an influencer’s head, or Google calendar, wardrobe or even shoes.
There is a misperception all over the world that influencers have easy, glamorous lives filled with parties, gifts, and fans. Would they still want to walk in their shoes if they knew how much effort goes into becoming an influencer?
Its true, being an influencer is an amazing career, flexible schedule and sometimes even receiving free branded gifts. However, while being an influencer looks fun and easy as compared to many regular nine-to-five jobs in Singapore, the flexible schedule also means that they rarely have time to relax.
HIGHS AND LOWS OF BEING AN INFLUENCER
THEY WEAR ALL THE HATS AT THEIR MINI INFLUENCER MARKETING AGENCY
Influencers are essentially running their own media outlets. They are mainly responsible for the development and production of high-quality content as well as distributing that content and growing their audience.
- PRODUCING CONTENT –
Producing content includes the creative work of planning, shooting the photos or video, editing them, writing post text or writing articles.
- OPERATIONS –
Operations include publishing content, responding to fans, staying up to date on industry trends, and communicating with brands.
In order words, they are their own creative directors, photographers, videographers, Photoshop, video editing experts and models. They learn to do it all and do it well.
Kobe’s long-time influencer; Azzah Fariha
THEY ARE ALWAYS DOWN FOR IT
Most influencers have a full-time job, so they spend their free time making content. How they spend their day such as attending exhibits and family outings are being shared online. Since they are public figures themselves, they choose to share all their activities and daily routines online. The most important tool for an influencer is his or her phone, so even on their ‘days off’ they are still working.
ENDLESS EFFORTS FOR BRAND COLLABORATIONS
Influencers want to provide brands with excellent results, but they also need to please their audience. It’s a fine line, and making everyone happy requires a great deal of planning and effort. SLOPPINESS IS A NO GO.
Collaborating for a campaign requires a lot of discussions.
- Learn all the details of the campaign
- Identify all of their requirements
After a clear understanding and much research, finding reference photos and inspiration, that’s where the executing comes in.
- Scheduling time with photographer
- Do the shoot
- Editing of photos
- Sharing their experience, and send it over to the brand to review
- Once its approved, the final steps are to post the content and respond to all of the comments
Before negotiating fees with the influencer, we need to consider and think about the number of hours they will need to get the job done plus the results they will get. Their price might not seem so outrageous then.
Kobe’s long-time Influencer; Ezza Jay
ACHIEVING TRUST BETWEEN INFLUENCER AND AUDIENCE
One of the main reasons influencers are such an effective marketing tool is their close relationship with an audience that knows, likes, and trusts them. It’s because they put a lot of effort into it.
- Check trending topics on the social media every day by looking at the newest posts from the bloggers I follow on Instagram
- Interacting with my followers by replying to their comments & dm’s everyday
Influencers gain a certain amount of respect and authority because they produce engaging and authentic content that the audience is interested in. Reaching out to the target audience then becomes that much more effective when we compare it with advertising.
OVERNIGHT SUCCESS DOESN’T HAPPEN
Success is no accident. It is hard work, perseverance, learning, studying, sacrifice and most of all, love what you are doing. You have to be willing to put your 101% in everything you do.
NOTHING IN LIFE COMES EASY
The road to being an influencer isn’t necessarily easy. All occupations have their good and bad sides. If you feel that being an influencer is easy, it’s because they strive hard for their audience to see the good side. They try to make their work and lives look pleasant and beautiful all the time, especially being a public figure.
Parts and parcels of being an influencer or in other words, opinion leaders:
- Constantly studying the industry so that they can continue to be the top of the game
- Work long hours in front of the computer and it might take a toll on their health
- Understand trends in their industry and in the types of content people like to consume, newest developments and hot topics
- Create a lot of original & high-quality content
- Develop their own style and what makes them unique
The barrier to entry of the influencer marketing is very low, so it’s important to distinguish between influencers who produce quality content and who does not.
Most importantly, you need to have passion and love your job. It’s tough to put yourself out there and face all of the criticism, but if you’re okay in handling constructive advices especially coming from your audience, it wouldn’t get to you. At the end of the day, having to do what you love and make an impact on someone’s life one way or another is definitely worth it.
