If you’re like the rest of us, you probably spend a good deal of your day following folks on social media giving us the lowdown on our favourite activities and hobbies or being inspirational by just being themselves. These are Social Media Influencers, individuals who have cultivated a large following on one or more social media platforms.1 They usually specialize in a particular niche, such as fashion, beauty, food, travel, or fitness, and use their platforms to share their expertise and opinions with their audience.
Think of them as modern-day opinion leaders who hold the power of swaying the choices and decisions of the huge count of their followers.
But, why are social media influencers so important?
Here’s why –
They are mini marketing powerhouses by themselves: Today, most brands recognize the influence these individuals hold over their followers. Influencer marketing has become a major strategy, with brands across categories collaborating with influencers to promote their products or services.
They impart Authenticity and Trust: Influencers are often seen to build solid relationships with their followers based on trust and authenticity. This almost-personal bond with their followers makes their recommendations feel more genuine and relatable than traditional advertising.
They offer Targeted Reach: Influencers typically cater to specific demographics and interests, allowing brands to reach their target audience more effectively.
They’re Cost-Effective: Compared to traditional advertising, influencer marketing can be more cost-effective, especially for smaller brands.7
Immense Engagement and Interaction: As mentioned before, influencers actively engage with their followers creating a sense of community and fostering deep connections.
However, it isn’t just roses, roses all the way and many believe it’s a fairly short-lived profession.
We think there’s no easy answer to this, as how long an influencer’s career goes on can depend on many factors.
Those who believe it is short-lived cite the following reasons:
Fast-changing trends: Social media platforms and trends evolve rapidly. There’s every chance that what’s popular today might be outdated tomorrow. This makes it tough for some influencers to stay relevant.
Algorithm shifts: Changes in platform algorithms can significantly impact an influencer’s reach and engagement, leading to reduced visibility and potentially affecting their earnings.
Competition: With the influencer market becoming increasingly crowded and competitive, it is much harder for new influencers to stand out and carve a place for themselves. Likewise, it becomes a challenge for established ones to maintain their position.
Rapid Burnout: The constant pressure of creating engaging content and maintaining a strong online presence can lead to burnout and mental health challenges.
Then, there are some who hold arguments against it being short-lived and say you can carry on by:
Having a loyal and involved community: Influencers who focus on building genuine relationships with their followers are more likely to have long-term success.
Diversification: Many successful influencers diversify their income streams by creating their own products, offering consulting services, or exploring other business ventures.
Adaptability: Successful influencers are often adaptable and willing to evolve their content and strategies to stay relevant in a changing landscape.
Long-term brand building: Some influencers successfully transition from social media personalities to established brands, creating lasting legacies beyond their initial online fame.
The bottom-line is while the influencer landscape can be challenging and unpredictable, those who prioritize authenticity, build strong relationships, diversify, adapt to change, and create diverse routes of income are more likely to have sustainable and fulfilling careers.
Diversification, adapting to change, and creating diverse routes of incomes are what some of the influencers we spoke to did, time-proofing their careers. We’re sharing their gutsy, entrepreneurial stories from where we can all take lessons. Read on.
Preetizen by Preeti Sarkar – The vivacious digital creator is also a successful designer with her own label, Preetizen, that she fondly calls her “baby”. Preeti says she was fond of designs, textures, and silhouettes since her little-girl days when she would lovingly fuss over her Barbie dolls, decking them up in different outfits that were designed by her. Cut to student life in Kolkata (Preeti hails from Berhampore in North Bengal) which saw her studying for a degree in fashion design that further honed her fashion and design skills professionally. Thereafter, it was an organic transition to designing for Preetizen, her very own fashion brand, while trying to make her mark in the wobbly landscape of influencer marketing. In 2018, when things weren’t looking all that great for her career and she was working hard to innovate and improvise, she had the brainwave of creating and selling her own line of clothes. Her first customers were her followers and a few loved ones in her inner circle who loved what she had to offer. Soon word-of-mouth publicity and magic of social media worked their charm, and Preetizen was up and running. Today, Preeti Sarkar models for her lovely line of clothes – from kitschy co-od sets to uber cool shakets (shirt+ jacket) and girly puff dresses. Get online and check them out!
Aldo Café by Mousumi Sarkar – Locked up inside her house with her first baby on its way, Mousumi Sarkar was prone to mood swings and a lot of grumpiness till her husband and best bud suggested that she start her own business in communication as she had an inherent affinity of reaching out and communicating with people. That idea gave birth to her YouTube channel where she discussed topics on modern motherhood and good parenting, offering doable tips to young, first-time mothers like herself. This was all happening at a time when the pandemic was raging, so practical, hands-on advice was more than welcome for so many young moms sitting tight and lonely in their nuclear families during isolation. Mousumi says that Aldo Café was created out of her desire to offer good, wholesome coffee and snacks and savouries to Kolkatans. With meagre finances but big dreams in her eyes, she worked out a business plan with her mother-in-law, and her husband pitched in with ideas and finer details. A place was finalized in Salt Lake and Aldo Café threw open its doors. If her Insta feed is anything to go by, we’re quite taken up by the mouth-watering dishes that are on the menu. Aldo Café is named after her infant son (he is named ‘Arja’ but calls himself ‘Aldo’ at the moment) and Mousumi says her café is so like her child in many ways. Sweet, we say, let’s drop in there soon!
Sweven – A Dream by Singini Chowdhury – The slender and pretty Singini always had dance in her blood, she tells us. She has been teaching dance to students in her house when she was just a teenager herself! As time passed, this went on to become a passion and called for moving to a bigger space with more professional décor. She expressed her wish to her mother who was only too happy to help her out with funds, negotiations, and the all-important scouting for space that could be transformed into a proper dance studio. Singini says her mother still remains her ardent and biggest supporter. As the number of students kept swelling, another location was added. The dance studio also got a lovely name – Sweven, a Middle English word, which means a ‘dream’ or ‘vision’. Today, Singini’s Sweven is at two locations in Kolkata – Garia and Topsia. Whether you want to up your fitness game, just destress, or perfect your groovy moves, the Sweven team will be by your side guiding you through the steps.
With inputs from Neha Karmakar and Antaripa Mukherjee
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