Social media influencers have become an integral part of digital marketing and brand-building in recent years. But what exactly is an influencer, and how do they make money? This comprehensive guide will teach you everything you need to know.
Defining Social Media Influencers
A social media influencer is an individual who has built credibility and a loyal following in a specific niche. By sharing content related to their niche, they‘re able to inspire purchasing decisions and shape their followers‘ opinions.
Anyone can become an influencer, from celebrities to stay-at-home moms. The key factor is having an engaged, targeted audience.
Influencers can be broken down into tiers based on follower count:
- Nano-influencer: 1,000 or fewer followers
- Micro-influencer: 1,000 – 100,000 followers
- Macro-Influencer: 100,000 – 1 million followers
- Mega-influencer: Over 1 million followers
For example, Jada Jones is a mom blogger with 5,000 Instagram followers. She reviews baby products and shares parenting tips, making her a micro-influencer.
Meanwhile, Kim Kardashian who has 334 million Instagram followers is considered a mega-influencer. But even nano-influencers can make an impact in their niche.
How Influencers Make Money
There are lots of ways influencers monetize their following, including:
Sponsored Content: Creating posts and videos promoting a brand‘s product or service, usually for a set fee. This remains the top money-maker.
Affiliate Links: Including special tracking links that give the influencer a commission when followers make qualifying purchases. Example: Nordstrom Rack gave influencers 10-25% of sales.
Advertising: Display ads through platforms like Google AdSense or Media.net. For example, YouTube stars earn 55% of video ad revenue.
Merchandise: Selling custom apparel, accessories, or other items promoting their personal brand.
Subscriptions: Charging followers a monthly fee for exclusive content via platforms like Patreon.
According to industry estimates, popular influencers can make anywhere from $5,000 per sponsored post up to $500,000 or more depending on their follower count and level of engagement. Nano-influencers typically charge closer to $100 per post when just starting out.
The highest-paid YouTube star of 2022, MrBeast, earned $54 million thanks entirely to his 111 million subscribers and viral stunts sponsored by brands.
Why Brands Leverage Influencer Marketing
Influencer marketing has become vital for brands trying to break through the digital noise. Consider that a sponsored post on Instagram from someone with 100,000 engaged followers can drive more sales than some Super Bowl ads!
Benefits for brands include:
- Increased brand awareness and discoverability
- Driving more qualified website traffic
- Boosted engagement and sales on ecommerce stores
- Improved trust and connection with target demographics
For example, fashion retailer Revolve works with 3,000 micro-influencers on Instagram. Their #RevolveAroundTheWorld campaign increased sales by 20% from influencers driving traffic to newly launched products.
And macro-influencer Daniel Wellington went from zero to $200 million in sales thanks largely to gifting his iconic watches to over 3,000 influencers globally.
Tips for Finding Relevant Influencers
Brands shouldn‘t just look at follower count when selecting influencers. Focus more on the level of engagement and whether their audience aligns with your target buyer personas.
Useful influencer marketing tools for searching by demographic data and engagement metrics include Upfluence, AspireIQ, and Grin.co.
You can also take a manual approach by searching relevant hashtags like #momlife or #gaminggear to find nano and micro-influencers in your niche. Then vet them the same way you would any media buy, assessing content quality, consistency, production value, etc.
In closing, partnering thoughtfully with social media influencers presents an extremely cost-effective approach for amplifying brand messages and driving conversions in 2024 and beyond. This guide covers everything modern marketers need for influencer success.
