“…suggest collaborative projects with other influencers who share your sense of style or with whom you have created a good synergy.”
If you’ve set your sights on becoming an influencer in the fashion world, you’ve certainly chosen a potentially lucrative profession. A 2019 survey has shown that businesses make around $5.20 for every dollar invested in influencer marketing, and 70% of teens trust influencers more than traditional celebrities. The world of fashion can be a particularly hard nut to crack because of the wealth of brands, styles and existing fashion influencers. If you’re convinced that a career as a fashion influencer is the job for you, the following tips may be useful.
The Power Of Unity
If you’re already a micro-influencer, then you probably already assiduously connect with other influencers via social media. Analyze your current networking strategy and see how you could improve. Are you on LinkedIn or are all your efforts placed into Instagram? How active are you on each of your channels, and are you investing time in connecting with potentially interesting collaborators? Not only should you be posting content regularly on your channels, but you should also comment, DM, and suggest collaborative projects with other influencers who share your sense of style or with whom you have created a good synergy. This will widen your audience base and introduce them to yours.
Fashion Influencers: Wear It And Share It
Successful fashion influencers (think Chiara Ferragni, Camila Coelho or Noha Style Icon) all use their own image as a canvas to show off their personal sense of style. That is, while general recommendations and information on new openings and brands will undoubtedly be appealing to your followers, wearing new brands and collections in your inimitable way is key. Really think of how you will be putting together different outfits, take photos beforehand, and run them by a mentor or small circle of fellow fashion influencers to obtain feedback on how it all works together. If you are working with a brand, make sure to offer more than one option. This is particularly true for large collections of items such as swimwear, which come in a wide range of styles. Mix and match beyond the designer’s intentions. For instance, when modelling bikini tops, match them with odd bikini bottoms, or wear them with shorts, a denim mini skirt or other summery items.
Market Yourself To Brands As a Fashion Influencer
Once you have built a micro following (between 1,000 and 100,000 followers), start connecting with local designers and boutiques, offering to don their gear in return for a loan of chosen clothing or for a discount on non-returnable items such as swimwear. Doing so is a key step in becoming a fashion influencer, since by wearing items by local designers, you are offering something nobody else may be doing: specialization in a specific area of your city or town. Try modeling items in iconic zones of the area in which you live to boost local impact.
Create A Social Media Strategy
Software such as Hootsuite will enable you to strategize and program your content days in advance. This is something you should be doing, since it will ensure you are uploading content regularly and according to a plan – not in an ad-hoc manner. Your content should be diverse and well thought-out. Some content can be self-promotional, but as a rule, you should also provide deeper value to your viewers – including tips and information they will find useful (think discounts, ideas for how to diversify an item of clothing, and the occasional live color styling session).
Achieving success as an influencer may be difficult in these competitive times, but it can certainly be a lucrative pursuit. Make sure to team up with other micro-influencers, and if you can attract the attention of a macro-influencer as well, all the better. Be consistent in your uploading pace, and offer content that ranges beyond the beautiful imagery Instagram is known for.
Freelance contribution especially written for Find Your Influence by Karoline Cooke.