When you think of the word influencer, does your mind automatically picture someone with an ultra glamorous, highly unattainable lifestyle? Better yet, has this view deterred you in any way from following your dreams and becoming a digital creator?
We are here to dismantle the idea that you need to live a lavish life and have millions of followers in order to create content online and become a successful influencer. Becoming an influencer has proven to be a very viable career option, and we aren’t just talking about mega-influencers.
Micro-influencers are taking this industry by storm as they are highly sought-after by businesses. Brands have noticed the increased engagement they receive when working with smaller creators who cater to highly targeted audiences in a specific niche.
Are you ready to learn how to become a micro-influencer? This blog post will share everything you need to know to become an in-demand, profitable creator without already having a ton of followers – we’re here to teach you how to find success as a digital creator starting from scratch!
Continue reading to learn how to become a micro-influencer:
- What is micro-influencing?
- Steps to becoming a micro-influencer
- Tools and resources for micro-influencers
- Common challenges and how to overcome them
- Key takeaways
Related: How to Position Yourself as an Expert: 10 Pro Tips
What is micro-influencing?
Before we dive into learning the basics on how to become a micro-influencer, let’s first explore what being a micro-influencer actually means. What exactly are the differences between the types of influencers out there?
Here are the kinds of influencers you’ll see in digital marketing:
- Mega-influencers – This includes people with a very large online audience, typically with millions of followers. Celebrities, professional athletes, socialites, and well-known business founders or figureheads fall into this category, partnering with brands for a very high price.
- Macro-influencers – These influencers are usually popular social media figures who share their daily life and style online. They usually fall within the range of anywhere above 100,000 to a million-ish followers, and can earn a pretty penny from partnering with brands on their platform.
- Micro-influencers – These are your relatable, everyday content creators that target a specific population and niche area. Ranging from 1000 to 100,000 followers, these influencers can still earn a considerable living. Those with less than 1000 followers can also be considered nano-influencers.
- Brand ambassadors – Just outside of the realm of influencing are brand ambassadors. These people are consistently promoting a specific brand and have established a relationship with the brand. They regularly endorse the positive impacts of the brand’s products, whereas influencers may not have ever used the brand they’re promoting.
- UGC creators – A UGC creator promotes a brand by creating specific content (videos or images) for the brand to share on their own platforms. Unlike influencers who need to grow their community before working with brands, UGC creators don’t need a ton of followers (or even need to show their face!) for some sort of incentive, whether it’s paid or through free products.
The different types of influencing for digital marketing are interchangeable, and you could dabble in being a UGC creator, brand ambassador, and micro-influencer all at once. This blog focuses on teaching you how to become a micro-influencer, which can open up the doors for macro- and mega-influencing, if that’s your calling.
Essentially, micro-influencers create entertaining, relatable, and engaging content for their followers. They do all the things that macro-influencers do, just at a smaller scale. This includes monetizing content, optimizing a content strategy, looking at social media analytics and tools, and collaborating with others to promote brands in a range of formats.
The global influencer marketing market has more than tripled since 2019 – in 2024, the market is valued at a record of 24 billion U.S. dollars. This isn’t just from the mega-influencers… micro-influencers are extremely coveted by brands for a variety of reasons.
More brands are looking to work with local, niche influencers because of this key factor: micro-influencers are more relatable to consumers. In fact, micro-influencers can generate up to 60% more engagement than macro-influencers.
Brands are also more willing to work with micro-influencers because they don’t have to shell out bank-breaking amounts, meaning that their brand will profit more from working with smaller, niche creators. More budget equals room to work with more micro-influencers and get the word-of-mouth about their products or services into the public.
While mega- and macro-influencers provide brands with great reach and visibility into established audiences, this isn’t always the most authentic way to promote products and services. Brand deals with larger influencers may be perceived as less genuine than those from more targeted niche influencers with smaller followings. Brands are now collaborating with micro-influencers to tap into specific markets or communities, leveraging the rapport and trust that these micro-influencers have established with their followers.
The personal benefits of becoming a micro-influencer are vast and this industry can lead you to places you’ve only imagined.
Picture this: You are a local tourism and travel micro-influencer for the city you live in, sharing the best local tips, shops, food spots, and events happening around your city. Imagine your favourite hotel reaching out to you and offering a brand deal that pays you to enjoy a luxurious weekend vacation in their resort. Talk about a dream come true!
Here are some of the greatest benefits of being a micro-influencer:
- It’s high in demand – While reach and visibility are more limited for micro-influencers, they tend to have closer, more genuine relationships with their audience. Often, this results in authentic brand endorsements that boost audience engagement, making micro-influencers a hot commodity.
- It’s authentic – Most micro-influencers start out by sharing their interests and passions, gaining a loyal and trusting following by being genuine with their audience. This is a hobby for most micro-influencers, meaning that they love what they do.
- It’s flexible – Micro-influencers have the freedom to be choosy with brand endorsements as this is usually a side hustle or passion project for people. They have the flexibility to choose how and when they create content, without any pressure.
- It opens doors – As we’ve mentioned, becoming a micro-influencer presents many opportunities, whether through connecting with others via networking or being exposed to different business opportunities. It’s also a stepping-stone to venturing into the path of becoming a macro-influencer, if that’s what your end-goal is.
Related: How to Manage an Online Community
Steps to becoming a micro-influencer
Now that we’ve covered how becoming a micro-influencer can open the doors to a range of exciting opportunities, let’s go through the step-by-step process to becoming a micro-influencer.
As we mentioned, most micro-influencers start out by simply sharing their passion through the content they create, without any expectation of becoming a micro-influencer. If you’re just starting out on your social media journey, we encourage you to start posting what you love yesterday to break into the industry.
Finding your niche for content creation is simple. Think about where your interests lie, then go from there. Are you passionate about trying new restaurants? All things beauty? Or maybe something more niche like camping or fishing? What about your pet? There are dog-influencers who are footing the bill for their humans out there. The possibilities are endless when it comes to creating content about the things you love.
Our tip is to figure out what your passion is and clearly define your niche, as this will help determine your target audience and guide your content strategy. Finding your niche is the first step in learning how to become a micro-influencer.
Once you’ve established your niche and know the direction you want your content to go in, it’s time to put together a content strategy. A solid content strategy is crucial in the journey of becoming a micro-influencer.
Developing a content strategy can seem like an intimidating thing to do when you’re just getting started as a micro-influencer, however it’s simpler than it sounds. A content strategy is essentially a roadmap to creating, planning, posting, and promoting and marketing your content.
Start by creating high-quality, consistent content. Figure out what type of content works best for your niche and what your audience wants to see, such as photos, stories, videos, or live sessions. We suggest trying out different formats to see what boosts your engagement levels.
Here are some things to consider when build a content strategy:
- Do your research – Market research tells you what your audience is looking for and what’s working well for your competitors. Make sure to regularly do your market research to fill in any missing gaps and adjust your strategy, if needed.
- Find your platforms – What platforms work the best for your niche area? Is it Instagram, YouTube, or TikTok? Or maybe a combination of different platforms? Find out what platform you’re the most consistent with and start building that one up first.
- Work within a theme – Once you get into a groove with posting on your chosen platform, you can start to develop a theme. This makes your personal brand more organized and entices brands to want to work with you. It’s okay to play around with themes and switch them up until you find one that works.
- Post consistently – The best way to figure out your personal content theme is to post consistently. This will allow followers to regularly engage with your content and help you get recognized by brands.
- Analyze your performance – After you find a rhythm and have been posting consistently for a little while, it’s beneficial to use analytics to track your progress and have something to show brands (more on this later).
Our best piece of advice when building a content strategy (even if you don’t feel ready to develop one yet) is to post on social media. Every. Single. Day.
If you feel overwhelmed about having a specific strategy set in place, simply start out by posting more. It’s no secret that consistency is the key to success, and posting frequently will allow you to quickly iron out any bumps you notice.
You can start growing your audience as a micro-influencer once you have some sort of social media strategy in place. When learning how to become a micro-influencer, keep in mind that slow and steady wins the race!
Micro-influencers tend to have a stronger personal connection with their followers and are usually more relatable than mega- or macro-influencers. They’re also more relevant as they operate in a specific niche area. This allows micro-influencers to naturally grow their audience. Remember, it’s not the follower count that’s important, it’s the level of engagement. You could be a micro-influencer with 8000 followers and make more money than someone who has 90,000 followers.
To grow your audience and engagement as a micro-influencer, start with becoming super involved with your existing followers. Create interactive content for your followers to engage with. Respond to comments and DM’s to find out what they want to see more of from you. You can also conduct polls or surveys through your social media platforms to get your followers’ opinions.
Another way to leverage social media algorithms is through keyword research, using targeted hashtags so that your content becomes more searchable. Partnering up with other micro-influencers in your niche is also a great way to expand your content’s reach and visibility. Growing your audience is a key aspect of learning how to become a successful micro-influencer.
Once you have established your social media presence as a micro-influencer, it’s time to start thinking about monetizing the content you create. Collaborating with brands is a significant milestone when learning how to become a micro-influencer.
When it comes to partnering with brands, think of it like a sales pitch. Why should brands work with you over other micro-influencers in your niche?
First, you’ll want to find brands that have the same target audience as your niche. If you want brands to notice you first and reach out organically, start tagging the brands you’d want to work with in the content you create to show that you’re actively using their products or services. This communicates your authenticity to brands.
If you want to approach brands, it’s best to come prepared. Create a portfolio that showcases the value you would bring to a partnership. This includes things like providing examples of different content formats, highlighting your audiences’ demographics, including analytics like engagement rates, and demonstrating the ways in which you’ve authentically established a genuine connection with your followers.
When pitching brands for partnerships, it’s beneficial to include a few different collaboration ideas to display your interest and creativity. This gives you a professional edge while also putting the ball in your own court. Some ideas include conducting giveaways of the brand’s product or services, talking about the benefit of their brand in a video format, or posting multiple photos of yourself actively using the brand’s product or services.
Related: How to Build a Personal Brand (Complete Guide)
Tools and resources for micro-influencers
To get started on your micro-influencing journey, here are some useful tools and resources that you’ll want to save for later down the road.
- Social media management tools – Tools like Hootsuite, Buffer, Loomly, Sendible, and Iconosquare provide all-in-one custom platforms for simple scheduling, support for multiple social networks, and powerful analytic tools. Test out different free trials to see which one works best for you.
- Content creation tools – To help assist you with your creative processes, try tools like Canva and Adobe Express to design unique visuals for your photos and videos. AI tools like ChatGPT can help with written content while tools like Grammarly and Hemingway can assist you with being more concise with your content while maintaining a consistent tone across all platforms.
- Analytics tools – It’s essential to understand the numbers behind your content to ensure future brand partnerships. Tools like Google Analytics and Instagram Insights provide valuable insights into your audience, allowing you to track your content’s performance. Content research tools such as Google Trends, Semrush, and AnswerThePublic allow you to see what’s trending in your niche, helping you tailor your content.
You don’t need to have every tool on this list, but try different ones and see what works best for your content strategy. Or, if you notice a dip in your content’s performance, test out a new tool to provide more insights on how to switch things up.
Related: How to Do a Content Gap Analysis in 5 Simple Steps
Common challenges and how to overcome them
Now that you’re almost on your way to becoming a micro-influencer, take a peak at these top challenges that micro-influencers face and learn how to overcome them.
- Creating quality content – To build a loyal following, micro-influencers need to consistently create high quality content. Ideas need to be executed well enough that followers want to regularly engage with you and look forward to upcoming posts. This means that the right amount of time and energy needs to go into content creation. Try working with different time management strategies to accommodate for content creation.
- Maintaining consistent engagement – Follower engagement translates to micro-influencers staying motivated and inspired to create compelling content. To maintain consistent engagement, follow your passion and listen to what your audience wants by staying active in your online community.
- Balancing content creation – As micro-influencing is a passion project or side hustle for many, it can become difficult to manage content creation alongside other life responsibilities and commitments. Balancing everything takes time to master and as a micro-influencer you must be dedicated to your craft, as this is where most of your free time will go.
- Obtaining brand deals – One of the trickiest parts of micro-influencing is learning how to obtain regular brand deals. Make sure you know how to market yourself using the tips we mentioned above, and let brands know what your unique value proposition is.
- Getting compensated – Even if you manage to score some partnerships, brands could want to pay you in free products or services over a monetary amount. Make sure to know your worth and accept that not all brand deals will work out. Consistency is key when it comes to reaching out to different brands. Once you establish your value, never settle for less than what you think you deserve!
Related: How to Start a Blog (And Make Money on It) in 2024
Key takeaways
That’s a wrap on the basics for learning how to become a micro-influencer!
As we discovered, micro-influencers are in high demand and play a valuable role in digital marketing. More and more brands are wanting to partner with local, everyday influencers instead of macro-influencers. This is because of the fact that micro-influencers have high engagement rates with their followers.
To become a micro-influencer, simply find your niche, develop a content strategy, learn how to connect with your audience, and start reaching out to brands who share the same target audience as you. Oh, and don’t overthink the process! Pursuing your passion should be something you enjoy and have fun with – let your creative side shine!
Now that you know how to become a micro-influencer, it’s time to start your journey and make an impact.
If you’re interested in micro-influencing, check out the market for selling digital products online. This is an extremely lucrative side of the creator industry that provides you with the ability to earn passive income and be your own boss. If you’re curious, learn more about the best digital products to sell online here.