The influencer marketing industry is booming. Here we share a step-by-step guide on how to become a fashion influencer on Instagram or other social platforms.
Worth $8 billion in 2019, the industry looks set to mushroom to be worth $15 billion by 2022. It’s an attractive space if you’ve got an interest in fashion and a passion for connecting with an online audience.
Realistically, there’s not a huge amount of information out there about how to become a fashion influencer. Unsurprisingly, many influencers make it either sound remarkably simple, or they stay resolutely silent. The truth is, creating clothing, accessories and fashion content on social media platforms takes time, effort and know-how. However, despite as many as 60% of fashion brands having an influencer marketing strategy in place as long ago as 2016, there’s still space for you to make your mark and learn how to be a fashion influencer today.
Opportunity knocks
There’s a lot of opportunity out there, ripe for the picking at the moment. Brands know the power of Instagram fashion influencers and so there’s a strong calling to secure them. But you can’t wait for an opportunity to come knocking, you’ve got to go and open the door. So, how do you do that?
How to become a fashion influencer in 7 steps
1. You need followers and you need follower growth
Brands need to know that you’ve got an engaged and interested band of followers who are aligned with their values and approach. Whilst other channels are growing in strength, Instagram remains the main arena for influencers and the brands they represent. As such, knowing how to be a fashion influencer on Instagram should be central to your approach. So, Instagram followers are going to be hugely important to you, but don’t neglect the others.
Whilst numbers of followers is important, quality is crucial. In fact, micro-influencers have better engagement rates than mega-influencers and brands know this. This is true across all social media platforms, but staggeringly so on TikTok.
2. Commit yourself to your niche
Audiences like stability; they are creatures of habit. You need to give your audience that stability and the way to do that is to find the fashion niche that really makes your heart sing. You’ve got to feel it, if you’re going to have any hope of conveying that love and converting it into genuine engagement.
Hard truth: if you want to know how to become a fashion influencer because you think it’s a shortcut to getting rich quick, you may want to re-think. You’re going to need to eat, sleep, and breathe the niche – so make sure you love it. Plus, you need to be an expert here. This isn’t hobby level knowledge, but deep-dive-know-every-fibre-of-the-clothing knowledge.
3. Create exceptional content
There’s a LOT of noise on social media. To be seen, your content has got to be exceptional. It needs to offer people value. It needs to be different from the myriad of other people doing the same thing.
You need a USP and a strong and committed point of view that you’re happy to stand behind. This sparks conversation and gets people following you out of excitement.
Then promote, promote, promote. You need to push your content out there and get it seen. Some excellent analytics won’t go amiss here either.
4. Don’t go it alone
Yes, what you see is one name as the influencer. In reality, around that individual is a team of cheerleaders, supporters and grafters. The influencer scene is a connected scene, where like-minded individuals help each other out.
You need to like, comment and share a lot, so that others do the same for you. Your network and community needs to be there, pumping fuel into every campaign you launch. So, choose these connections carefully.
Top tip: Get searching the brands you dream of working with and identify the existing ambassadors – reach out and see if you can make a connection.
5. Stand firm, stay true
The early days are hard. There’s a huge amount of work for not much reward. The temptation to dilute your style or niche is enormous. Now’s the time to remain committed and keep things focused. Whatever you do that was your USP in the early stages, keep doing it. If it’s a filter, a tone of voice, a way you take photos – keep it clean. That doesn’t mean you can’t evolve, you just need to make sure you stay true to what people love about you and what you love about yourself.
6. Make it easy for brands
All that noise on social platforms? It’s not just hard for users to find the influencers that really resonate with them, but it’s hard for brands too. Instagram is great as a showcase, but it doesn’t make it easy for brands to communicate with you. You need to make it easy by reaching out to them, and getting yourself on their radar.
7. Have a plan B
We obviously believe in the power and strength of fashion influencers, however, we know it’s a volatile and tough sector to actually make a career in. What happens if the social platform you’ve built yourself on disappears? What if trends shift so far away from your niche that you’re no longer relevant? At the risk of sounding like your Granny, ‘don’t put all your eggs in one basket’.
Think about a broader career, perhaps in fashion marketing, gaining skills that will transition you into something else you love if you need it.
Shockingly, many fashion brands still don’t pay their influencers in cold hard cash, but still simply go down the freebie route. You’ll need to have a head for business and negotiation, as well as social media and fashion know-how.
The good news is that designer items that influencers have been given always have excellent resale potential with Reliked. If you’re an influencer and have been given PR products, you can sell them with us.