How To Make Money as a Micro-Influencer

Social media has changed the way businesses do business. Specifically, social media provides businesses with a whole new way of marketing their products and services. In this vast new marketplace, there is a way to make money while promoting your already favorite brands.

Being a social media influencer has its perks. The typical idea of an influencer is probably a musician, movie star, or other celebrity with millions of followers. Of course, these people have influence, and brands pay them good money to promote their products.

But being a micro-influencer allows you to also reap those benefits without necessarily needing millions upon millions of followers.

What is a Micro-Influencer?

A micro-influencer is someone with a substantial follower count, in a specific niche, that brands will pay to promote their products and services. A micro-influencers can have thousands of eyes watching their feeds for the latest social media posts. Micro-influencers will have one (or several) social media outlets that they specialize in.

Who are some micro-influencers? To get a better idea of the concept, you can check out these social media profiles:

A few things you should note about all of these micro-influencers. First, all of their follower counts are less than 100,000. Certainly a far cry from someone like Kim Kardashian (who has 277 million followers). It doesn’t take a whole lot of followers to be a micro-influencer.

Second, they all have one “niche,” or category, that they fall into. Whether fitness, fashion, beauty, or home design, their identity is clear, and their social media posts all fall in line with that niche. This is important to remember.

Third, although they are all on Instagram, it isn’t the only social media platform you can use to be a micro-influencer. You can become a micro-influencer through YouTube, TikTok, or even your own website.

It might seem like a mystery how to become a micro-influencer. But we’re going to try to make it a little easier for you.

Here are five steps on how to become a micro-influencer.

How to Become a Micro-Influencer

Step 1: Choose a Platform

First, you want to decide which social media platform you want to focus on. Try to align your interests with the proper social media site. If you like taking a lot of pictures, Instagram might be your best bet. If you want to create the perfect Instagram bio to highlight your personal brand, check out our story here: How to Write the Perfect Instagram Bio.

Maybe you’re more into making videos. Obviously, YouTube would be the perfect starting place for you. Don’t think that it takes fancy video equipment to get started. We also have the Ultimate Guide to Becoming a YouTube Content Creator, which also gives step-by-step instructions on how to start your very own YouTube channel and grow it to reach as many people as possible.

TikTok is also a great app to reach a wide audience. In fact, TikTok just surpassed Google as the most visited website in the world. And getting a TikTok profile started is easy. All you need is your phone! With some videos getting millions of views, it’s a great app to get started as a micro-influencer.

Twitter, Telegram, Facebook, or even your own website with regular blog posts are all perfectly viable sites to become a micro-influencer. Again, just make sure whichever platform you choose aligns with your interests. If you are a writer, YouTube might not be your best bet.

It may be tempting to create a profile on every social media platform. And there’s nothing wrong with expanding. But, that come later.

When you’re first starting out as a micro-influencer, you should focus on just one social media platform. You should be doing everything you can to improve your skills and grow your audience on that one platform. At the very start, the key is here “specializing,” which also is important to remember in step 2.

Step 2: Choose Your Niche

After you have chosen your platform, you now need to think about what kind of content you want to create. Think about those micro-influencers from before. They all had just one “niche” they fit into. It is easy, as a viewer, to describe what it is that they do.

You need to apply the same thinking if you want to become a micro-influencer. Choose one category and stick with it.

How do you choose your niche? Start with things that interest you. Being a micro-influencer will take up a substantial amount of your time. If you’re not passionate about what you’re posting, you’ll burn out quickly.

More importantly, people can smell out “fake” really quickly. If you are forcing yourself to enjoy what you’re posting, your followers will be able to tell. And if your followers can tell you’re faking it, potential brands and companies most certainly will.

Luckily, there is a niche for every interest. From fitness and fashion, to music and movies, to gaming and tech, to travel and food.

You can start by searching hashtags for those interests. Take a look at the most popular posts in that category. Follow those pages that align with your interests.

Remember that the key is “specializing.” Try to be the best at one thing in one particular category.

Step 3: Grow Your Audience

So, you’ve set up your social media page. You’ve chosen your niche. It is time to start making money now, right? Not so fast.

Like any business, you’ll first have to “pay your dues.” That means that you will have to put in the work first before you start seeing benefits.

It all starts with growing your follower count. Remember our examples of micro-influencers from before? It doesn’t take a million followers, but you’ll still need a substantial amount.

How many followers does a micro-influencer have? That all depends upon which social media site you’re using and also what niche you’ve chosen. It is good to set your own goals and try to reach those in a certain time frame. When starting out, you might tell yourself to reach 1,000 followers in a month, or 10,000 followers in six months.

You’ll have to post regular and high-quality content. What “regular” and “high-quality” mean are different for each social media page. For Instagram, TikTok, or Twitter, posting regularly might mean every day. For your own blog or YouTube, one post per week might be enough.

High-quality posts are ones that receive engagement from your followers. This is typically represented as likes, views, or comments. If you need help getting more likes on Instagram, we have a helpful guide here: 15 Authentic Ways to Get More Likes on Instagram.

That guide actually has some great tips for other social media apps, as well. Use a call to action, use the right hashtags, post consistently, and tag relevant accounts to your posts. All of these ways will also apply to other social media pages.

Also, recognize the difference between followers and community. Having a high number of followers is great, but it is far better to grow a community around your social media page. Encourage your followers to comment on your posts and share them on other pages. Do live sessions to engage with your active followers. Create excitement around upcoming posts or events, and give your followers something to look forward to.

The idea is to create “buzz” around your profile. Soon enough, the right people will start noticing your page.

Step 4: Monetize

At this point in your micro-influencer career, you should have a good idea of what brands fit in well with your niche. You can always tag those accounts in relevant posts. For example, if you’re into the fitness niche, you can tag clothing companies while you’re wearing their clothing. If you are a travel Instagram, you should be highlighting brands that you use to book flights and hotels.

There are also influencer platforms specifically designed for micro-influencers to get them in contact with brands. Companies will sometimes go to these influencer platforms to look for micro-influencers for marketing purposes.

ConvertSocial is a platform that helps influencers earn by cooperating with businesses. All you have to do is create engaging content, and then add referral links to your favorite brands’ products.

ConvertSocial offers opportunities through Nike, Sony, AliExpress, and much more. In fact, you’ll get access to over 30,000 advertisers around the world! Especially, if you don’t have a large number of followers yet, this influencer platform could be something worth your attention. Another benefit – usage of the platform is free – no purchases of profiles, subscriptions or hidden payments.

When you sign up for ConvertSocial, you also get an account to track your statistics and earnings. This is extremely important, so you can see what content works, what doesn’t, and make the changes you need to in order to keep that cash flowing.

ConvertSocial is super easy to use. You get a link, add it into your content, and every sale you get through that link turns into money for you! And you can withdraw that money in whichever way is convenient for you.

Don’t forget to use hashtags to also grow your reach. Hashtags are a great way to find new followers. Brands are also looking at those hashtags to see which content creators are right for them.

Message and email those brands, as well. Once you have a substantial follower count, professionally ask if they need new brand ambassadors or help with marketing new products. This is a numbers game; the more you reach out, the more responses you get back. Don’t be shy!

Step 5: Innovate

As a micro-influencer, you should always be seeking “more.” Whether it is a higher follower count, new brands to reach out to, or even a new approach entirely.

Increase your skills in your chosen social media platform. On Instagram? Try getting a better quality camera and learning photography skills. On YouTube? Focus on improving your filmmaking, editing, and cinematography. On Twitter? Learn about writing engaging content and chasing the latest trends.

A micro-influencer is always looking to expand. You may have also noticed in our examples of micro-influencers that some of them have their own companies. You can make your own product line, sell merchandise, or start your own relevant company. The leap from “micro-influencer” to “entrepreneur” isn’t a big one. Besides, most millionaires have at least seven streams of income.

A micro-influencer can also be seen as a storyteller. You could be the next rags-to-riches story! But, you have to start with the rags. Show every step of your journey, the good times, and the challenges, too.

Your followers recognize the “realness” in your personality. So, be authentic. People want to relate to what they see on their social media feeds. Be open and honest. Be passionate and enthusiastic.

Of course, once you feel you’ve mastered a certain social media sphere, you can always expand into another. Cross-platform exposure is a great way to grow your follower count. You can bring people from your YouTube page over to your new Instagram, or vice versa. It is all about trying to achieve “more!”

Wrapping Up. How to Become a Micro-Influencer

Do you have what it takes to be a micro-influencer? It definitely takes a self-motivated, enthusiastic, and strong-willed person. But, following our five steps are definitely the right path.

First, choose your platform. It should be something that aligns with what you already like to do. If you like to take pictures, start an Instagram. If you like to make videos, get that YouTube page started. Don’t neglect other social media platforms, like TikTok or Twitter. Most importantly, start with just one platform. Specializing is vital.

Next, choose your niche. Again, it should be something you are already interested in. There is a niche for everyone! Fashion, music, technology, fitness, gaming, and so much more. You should already be passionate about your chosen niche. Otherwise, you risk appearing fake or burning out.

Third, grow your audience. Post regular, high-quality content to gain as many followers as you can. A micro-influencer should have a substantial amount of followers, but you should set your own follower count goals. Get as many likes, comments, and shares as possible. Call your followers to action, and engage with them.

Next, you can start to monetize on your platform. Connect with brands on micro-influencer networks, like ConvertSocial. Affiliate marketing is a great way to make money using links on your posts. Keep using those hashtags, tag relevant brand accounts, and reach out to those brands directly.

Finally, keep on innovating. Always push for more: more followers, more brands, more influence. Practice and hone your skills in your chosen social media app. Maybe start your own brand and sell merchandise. Of course, never forget to be authentic and tell your story.

Today is the best time to become a micro-influencer. Start now!