So you have a ton of real, engaged followers on social media. Congratulations!
So now, how do you monetize that. It’s not like Instagram pays you anything to make a post.
I turned to 13 prominent influencers, who each shared their ideas about how an influencer can monetize his or her brand.
Enjoy, and best of luck to you!
Plan an event where you can meet your followers and people can purchase tickets
Events: Plan an event where people can purchase tickets, or try to host an event and get paid to do so. This may be for more established influencers and stars, but is an amazing way to monetize your brand and meet your followers in person! — Fitness & Health Expert, Sofia Rodriguez
Funnel, funnel, and funnel some more
Funnel, funnel, and funnel some more. Not too long ago, I had so many things going on but still wasn’t really sure how to monetize many of those things or how to get people’s eyes on it. It wasn’t until a friend was staying with us who’d just attended a conference brought up funneling that the light went on. It’s such a easy thing to do but I’d totally overlooked it and the art of streamlining. By the next morning by funnel was up: on my IG bio, YouTube, blog, facebook, all linked to my paid coaching services and amazon affiliate influencer page. Simple, but effective, plus it cost me nothing but time to do. — Eve Dawes of FitnessByEve
Target your dream brands — and work for free
Start by targeting your dream brands — and work for free. When I started Damask Love, I did a lot of work for free. I set my sites on a few brands that I loved and would ask them to send me product. Sometimes I would even purchase the product myself. Then, I would create content and tag them in the post, or email the blog link to their marketing team. Slowly but surely, this strategy allowed me to build meaningful relationships with brands that are now a huge part of my monetization. — Amber Kemp-Gerstel of Damask Love
PR/Social Media Consulting
PR/Social Media Consulting. This avenue of monetization is something that I’ve been able to do partially because of my consulting experience. However, many influencers in the industry have opened up their own PR or Social Media consulting firms, and they are able to do so because of their experience in this realm and their ability to develop a brand. I’ve worked with some clients as their social media consultant to help them develop impactful content, work on their engagement, organize their posting schedules, select influencers to work with, build their following, etc. — Joseph Lucido, founder of The Lucido Life.
Design a product and dropship / retail from your website, ebay or Amazon
Design a product like a wristwatch and dropship / retail from your website, ebay or Amazon . Alexander Cooper, Actor and Producer
Paid speaking engagements
Via goo.gl
A few other ways an influencer can earn income is through paid speaking engagements, hosting events on behalf of a brand, or through consulting gigs. As a blogger/influencer becomes more popular and grows their authority on a subject, they can command higher rates. — Lifestyle Editor Christina-Lauren Pollack
Write a book based on what you are posting about
Write a book. Use what you are posting about, see what the pinch point is and write a “how to” book. Not only does the book bring in monetised sales, but you can then branch out to other influencers to promote your brand and book through affiliate marketing. — Nicola Knobel of My Inner Creative
Sell E Learning resources, like courses, ebooks, coaching, & mentoring
Sell E Learning resources, like courses, ebooks, coaching, & mentoring — This is what I do personally, as it’s so personal to my life & experience. I want to have a positive impact on others and help them achieve their goals, while preventing them from making any of the same mistakes I did early on. There’s so much I learned in my professional career that was never taught in school, or by my parents. — Jake Fowler, Founder of The Exceptional
Build a community out of people who want what you are offering
Build a community out of people who want what you are offering. I share a blog and a chapter of a book every week on my website and social media (Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook) I reach out to my readers and look to hear their voices telling me I’m on the right track. — Author and Musician Adam Cole
Collaborations
Collaborations — I think collaborating is a good thing because it’s basically two people coming together with 2 diffrent platforms to work on one amazing venture which will leave people excited.
Like for example if Kevin Durant and Floyd Money Mayweather collabed to raise money for a charity event it would make a lot of money because it’s to different genres coming together as one. — TV Personality Isaiah Jenkins
Offer advertisements or sponsored posts on social media and your blog
The most common way to monetize your brand as an influencer, is to offer advertisements or sponsored posts on social media and your blog. This is such a tried-and-true way to monetize your brand, and adding an extra layer to these services like takeovers and exclusive content is a genius way to remain relevant and attractive to potential clients. — Influencer Dalton Primeaux
Become an ambassador for a brand earning commission
Commission: becoming an ambassador for a brand, earning commission via instagram shop or offering readers discount codes can all be highly lucrative. For example, the app ‘brandsnob’ gives you £250, every time a brand you referred spends over £500 on booking influencers. The app OnlyFans also offers you lifetime commision on any user you have referred. — Nia Davies, Founder of Yugenial
Create Content That Helps and Educates People
Kepios / Via goo.gl
Post things that will help or educate people. No matter if it is inspiration quotes, fitness, skin care or fashion tips, you must create content that others can see and utilize your tips to create a strong trusting brand. — Jason Rosell, Founder of Caliente Fitness
This article was originally published on Authority Magazine by Akemi Sue Fisher. Read more from Authority Magazine.
Amazon millionaire, author and business coach, Akemi Sue Fisher, has helped thousands of Amazon sellers scale and grow their businesses to six, seven and eight figures. She has quickly become one of the most trusted and sought after E-commerce consultants in the world. In only three years, her agency, Love & Launch, has helped her clients achieve over one billion dollars in sales through Amazon, Ebay and other e-commerce platforms. Her entrepreneurial spirit and direct approach continues to help elevate not only her success, but the success of her clients which range from startups to fortune 500 companies.
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Are you making money off a social media following? Do you find the effort is worth the outcome? What tips do you have for others trying to monetize their social media followings? Leave your comments below to get the conversation started!