Who wouldn’t want to be a social media star, an influencer or a YouTube celebrity? You would have millions of followers hanging on your every word, top brands wanting to collaborate with you, people looking up to you, and you would become famous in your field. If you did really well you could actually generate a significant income from your social media activity, as well as enjoying perks like free products to try, travel and invitations to all the best parties.
The catch is that it’s nowhere near as easy as it seems. Achieving social media stardom requires hard work, dedication, a thick skin and an endless stream of good, original ideas. But even the top influencers had to start somewhere, and if they can make it then why can’t you?
Find your voice
Your main asset in your quest to become a social media star is yourself. What is unique about your personality, your background and your way of life? What are you knowledgeable and passionate about? To make a name on social media it’s important to establish a niche and stick with it. Once you know what you’re all about, everything else should be directed towards telling that story.
Customise your profile
The social media platforms have various tools to help you customise your profile. Make use of these to let people know what sort of person you are and what sort of content you’ll be sharing. Facebook cover creator is a great tool for adding video to your Facebook page that will really make an impression and will immediately show off your personality. Different templates are available that can be tweaked to your specifications.
Buy a real camera
Of course, you can take photos and shoot video on your smartphone, and that’s great for capturing images on the fly. But if you really want your photography to stand out on sites like Instagram and Pinterest then investing in a high-quality camera will make all the difference. If this is out of your financial reach at the moment, then lighting a scene properly can really help it stand out from the run of the mill snaps. It’s also worth taking a basic photography course to learn a few basic tips.
Choose brands to work with
As you start to be noticed you’ll find brands getting in touch with you wanting to sponsor your content or establish a partnership of some kind. It’s easy to be flattered and the money they’re offering will be super helpful, but don’t just agree to partner with the first brand that comes knocking. Make sure that they fit with your message and that their products are ones you’d actually use. Also, research their history and their values to make sure that you’re compatible; you don’t want to be caught out further down the line.
Use everything
When you’re posting fresh content every day everything has to be grist to your mill. Use your own life for inspiration, but also books, films, art, anything – just be sure to give it a fresh twist. Dictate ideas into your phone when you think of them. For a social media star, everything can be turned into a new post and shared with a growing base of followers.10