You can’t be influential in every field, so pick a topic, or a few related topics, that you’re passionate about (fashion? interiors? food? wellness? your local area?) and focus your energy here. Your niche should be something you’re already knowledgable about as you want your audience to think of you as an authority on that topic. Don’t be put off if you think your niche is too niche, think of I Have This Thing With Floors, an entire instagram account dedicated to pictures of floors, with almost 850,000 followers – incredible. The next big account on Insta? Keep your eyes on Boys With Plants.

Consider where your strengths and preferences lie when thinking about the type of content you want to create and publish and on what platform. It’s likely you’ll naturally be better suited to one platform or another. If you love writing, start a blog, if you’re into photography, create an Instagram account, or if you think you’ve got what it takes to shine in front of the camera, start a Youtube channel. You can, of course, create content on all these platforms, but we’d recommend focusing on one or two to start with and building your audience here. You can then branch into other platforms and invite your followers to find you there too.

Think about what the value is behind what you’re creating. Is it informative, inspiring or entertaining? What are your constant information priorities? Why will people be eager to follow you? Ensure you have a strategy in mind (or written down!) when creating your content and stick to it.

Post content regularly and consistently (the algorithms like that), but don’t spam (the algorithms don’t like that!) Work out how often you can realistically post, whether thats everyday, twice a week or weekly, and keep to that schedule. Ensure that what you’re sharing is of high quality and fits with your niche. Reply to those that take the time to comment on your work. Essentially, let your audience know what they can expect from you and keep giving it to them.

Lots of people are trying to make it as an influencer and it takes more than just creating great content and hoping it gets seen – you need to hustle! Get friendly with other influencers in your niche, read and comment on their posts, share their work, support them, and, as you start to build up a following, introduce yourself to relevant PRs and brands. Don’t be afraid to sing your own praises.

A loyal community is essential in order for an influencer to have, well, influence. Engage with your following regularly, be open and authentic with them, get them talking to one another, ask them questions, find out what sort of content they’d like to see more of and create it.

Followers aren’t everything and, when it comes to the business of influencer marketing, engagement is a far better indicator as to how ‘good’ an influencer is than their follower count. Influencer marketing is continuing to evolve and brands and PRs are waking up to the power of micro-influencers. Working with micro-influencers in fact, is almost 7 times more effective than working with influencers with larger followings. So really, don’t fret and definitely don’t be tempted buy followers.

The life of an influencer sure looks like fun huh? And from the outside it may look like a way to make an easy living, but being an influencer takes a lot of time, dedication and hard work. So, if its something you’re looking to pursue, make sure you’re in it for the right reasons because you’ll need to be in it for the long haul if you want to be successful. And the money, if it comes, will take time.