If you are on social media and have recommended a product to your following then you already are an influencer.
But did you know you can monetize the influence you have on your community? There are many ways to make money as a nano- and micro-influencer. Here are over ten ways you can start monetizing your influence today!
What Is A Social Media Influencer?
An influencer is a person “who has the power to affect the purchasing decisions of others because of their authority, knowledge or relationship with their audience.”
Specifically, a nano influencer has 100-10,000 followers and a micro-influencer has 10,000 -50,000 followers. Nano and micro-influencer usually have a higher engagement rate with their community than an influencer with 100K followers. Making companies interested in working with and paying these influencers.
How To Make Money As A Nano- or Micro-Influencer
There are many ways you can monetize your influence on social media. Create a strategy that works for your brand and start making money today!
Brand Ambassador
Many influencers start monetizing their social media brand by becoming brand ambassadors for a company. As a brand ambassador, the influencer helps to increase the brand’s awareness and sales. In return, they may get free products or money for each sale depending on the brand contract.
Affiliate Marketing
Affiliate marketing is one of the easiest ways to monetize your influence on social media. Most companies have an affiliate program you can apply to and join. Although each brand’s program may be different, the concept is the same. An affiliate earns a commission for the clicks, sales, visitors, etc they bring from their unique links.
As an influencer, you can join multiple affiliate programs based on your niche.
Or join a platform that houses multiple companies such as Rewardstyle or ShopStyle Collective.
Paid Collaborations
Brands have realized the power influencers have in marketing and are willing to pay for the influence they have on their community. Many companies are creating budgets that include partnerships with these influencers.
As an influencer, there are many ways to work with brands. You can wait for brands to reach out to you, join influencer networks or actively reach out to brands that fit your niche.
Brands are looking to work with nano- and micro-influencers on sponsored posts and creating content.
Sponsored Posts
Sponsored posts on social media are ads paid by a company for an influencer’s engaged community and can be found on the influencer’s feed or page.
Learn how much to charge for sponsored posts here.
Just Content
Influencers can also create “just content” for companies looking for content to put on their social media, newsletters, websites, etc.
Strategy Consultant For Brands
On the flip side, experienced content creators can become consultants for brands by using their knowledge in creating content to help brands design a content strategy for their campaigns.
Drive Traffic To Your Website/Blog
You may not control or own your Instagram or Tik Tok account but you can own your website and blog.
Use social media to push traffic to your website. This will allow you to monetize your influence by adding digital ads and sponsored posts to your blog.
Digital Ads
Another great way to bring in an income as an influencer is by adding digital ads to your website and blog.
Have you noticed ads as you scroll through a site? Those are digital ads from which the owner of the website is making money from the clicks and impressions on their website. The more visitors to a site, the more money can be made.
Sponsored Blog Posts
Similar to sponsored posts on social media, working with a brand to write sponsored posts is a lucrative way to bring in money from a blog. Writing a blog post takes much more time, which means you can charge more for your time. The best part is that these articles can be googled for years to come.
Need more reasons to start blogging? Read this article.
Online Courses
If you are an expert in your field, teaching online courses is a lucrative way to monetize your social media following and provide value to your community.
Companies such as Kajabi and Teachable make it easy for you to create an online course.
Membership Programs
Memberships allow a group of like-minded people to come together a learn as a collective. They are a great way to provide training, support, and networking opportunities to your community. You can create a membership program for any niche.
Sell A Product
You can build your own physical products such as leashes, bandanas, flower crowns, etc to sell to your following. Or it can be an e-product sold online. Spending time with your audience means you know their needs and desires. What better way to fulfill their needs than by building a product to serve them.
An on-demand online store is a great alternative to having your own inventory. Tori from Wear Wag Repeat has an online course that teaches you step-by-step how to build an on-demand online store.
Sell A Service Related To Your Niche
Similar to selling a product that your social media following may desire and need, selling a service related to your niche is a great way to monetize your influence. Ideas include petsitting services, graphic design services, personal training, social media marketing consulting, and photography services to name a few. Use the skills you already have and get creative on what service you can provide to your following!
Offer Coaching Sessions Or Consultations
Whether you have a degree from a school or you have learned from experience, your expertise is what people are looking for and what they are willing to pay for. If you’re an expert in your niche, offer coaching sessions or consultations to your following to monetize your brand.
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