How to Become a Successful Instagram Influencer from Scratch

Influencer marketing continues to be a go-to for virtually any brand looking to reap the most from online marketing.

Social media platforms open up more opportunities to reach an extensive user base, which influencers further supercharge, hence the growing popularity.

Instagram has dominated the influencer arena, boasting over 70% of the market share, followed by Facebook, TikTok, YouTube, Twitter, and Snapchat.

Instagram’s dominance in the field is mainly attributed to audience engagement. If you are a content creator or simply an enthusiastic social media user, considering pursuing an influencer career is within reach.

Why Should You Become an Instagram Influencer?

With 2 billion monthly active users, most internet users are active on Instagram. We often post photos and videos to show our lives, follow other people to learn more about them, communicate with friends, and even do shopping on Instagram.

But what are the reasons to become an Instagram influencer?

• Give a creative job a try. Your creativity doesn’t have to go unrewarded. If you have a knack for creating light and humorous materials that can be marinated with informative content, influencer marketing can help you monetize it.  
  
• Hop on the bandwagon. Almost every social media user with a notable following is doing it; why not give it a try? You don’t have to be a professional. You can start from scratch, even with a few followers. You can start from the nano influencers’ level and scale up as you curve a path that best matches your unique preferences.  
  
• Raise your voice. Becoming an Instagram influencer is not all about marketing a brand. You can use the influence to drive your thoughts home. Your voice can lead to a notable change in many ways, including fighting for certain rights.
  
• Make money on the side. Instagram influencers make anywhere between a few hundred to millions. It does not have to be your primary job; you can pocket some cash on the side doing what you like while going about your routine.  
  
• Achieve your goals. Why do you have an Instagram account? Today, social media platforms are more than a channel to connect with family/friends. They are resourceful and usually a gateway to more information needed for the day-to-day quests. Becoming an influencer can help you achieve various goals, from making money to helping users access certain information, and products/services, among other considerations. This is quite fulfilling and can help improve the quality of your life.

Are you convinced and ready to start your journey to become an Instagram influencer? Here is a glance at the steps you can take to successfully dive into the field and thrive as an Instagram influencer.

Select Your Niche and Focus on It

What are you most passionate about? Considering your interests can help you pick a niche that you can thrive in since you’ll have much fun doing it.

When you know your niche, you can choose it from the list and it will appear right below the bio section to hint visitors at your major area. Check out how it looks:

For instance, if you are into sports, focus on it and consistently deliver top-class content on the field. This will make you more of an industry leader, unlike a jerk of trades, if you upload content on various topics. Followers will frequently check your content whenever they need sports updates, making winning and retaining a significant loyal following easier.

Here are several other popular niches for influencer marketing on Instagram:

• Artist
• Athlete
• Beauty
• Fashion
• Personal blog
• Travel
• Makeup
• Pet
  
  

Create a Descriptive Instagram Account

Who are you, and what are you all about?

If your bio is not detailed enough, you won’t come out as a credible user. Credibility is critical in your pursuits to become an influencer.

It makes it easier for users to trust you, which can fast-track your quests to attract and build a significant following. A detailed bio also means you’ll provide more value, including resourceful links and contact information that make it easier for users to reach out and connect with you.

Let's take a look at the example below:

This influencer has a well-written Instagram bio for the following reasons:

• It tells about her location
• It hints at all niches you can find on the blog
• It's easy to read with the bullet points
• It has emojis to make this bio more eye-catching
• It has contact information for partnership inquiries
• It links back to the influencer's website
  

Take Care of Instagram Aesthetics

Modern social media users have short attention spans, so  you have to stand out from the crowd to capture the attention and keep them glued long enough to tip them in your favor.

This is where aesthetics comes in.

With effective visual branding on Instagram efforts, you can make your profile stand out and be more memorable.

It is in the branding, from the colors, fonts, and styles, among other aspects. A good example comes from the profile below:

Try being a bit more adventurous; you’d be amazed by how aesthetically appealing your profile can get. Remember, it is not all about being eye-catching; you also have to give user experience the weight it deserves to help them navigate through your content with ease.

Build a Community of Loyal Followers

How well do you use hashtags? Do you reach out to your local community and actively engage? A significant part of becoming an influencer is amassing a huge pool of loyal followers.

Hashtags are a gem in your community building, especially when appropriately utilized. They don’t just make it easier to be found; the shareability and tags make your profile and content easily recognizable. This boosts your efforts to build a huge community of loyal followers, helping you scale from nano, and micro, to professional influencers within a reasonable period.

However, having followers on Instagram, you need to interact with them to make them feel special and therefore come back for more. One of the easiest yet effective ways to build a loyal community is to interact with followers in the comment section.

Bother About Instagram Engagement

Who likes, comments, and shares your content? Are you reciprocating the engagement?

Many users overlook the “social” in social media, which only derails the efforts to build a significant loyal following.

Becoming an Instagram influencer will be much easier and more productive once you invest in the social part by caring and reciprocating the engagements.

The users will feel much appreciated, prompting them to continue engaging with you. This allows you to leverage their activities to reach out to more users in their circles, supercharging your efforts to gain a massive following.

When you create high-quality content with the combination of relevant hashtags, you can get a higher engagement rate, just like in the example below.

With 253 followers, this influencer was able to get 457 likes. Pretty good, huh?

Be Proactive on the Platform

What’s trending? Are you in the know, or do you do it last?

If your followers can’t keep up with the trends in your content, they will move on to another source. It would be best if you were proactive, not reactive, to keep users glued to your Instagram account.

Be resourceful and ensure you are setting the pace by capturing the top trends and employing them in your social media quests. This way, users won’t feel left behind and won’t bounce to a competitor.

What is more, you can visit other popular influencers in your niche and show interest in communicating with them–simply leave a comment and it may catch the attention of other users who can find your profile interesting.

Ask Other Instagram Influencers for Shoutouts

Collaborations are at the heart of successful influencer marketing quests on Instagram and other social media platforms.

A simple shoutout from an influencer can bring more eyeballs to your profile. This is more so if you collaborate with reputable influencers in different niches. Your visibility improves, and with new followers, you get more opportunities to reach a broader audience.

Here's how shoutouts look in action:

Offer Potential Partners Something Unique

Instagram is the most popular social media platform for influencer marketing.

Brands always look for Instagram influencers, but why should they pick you?

A unique proposition gives you an edge, which can land you more lucrative partnerships.

Besides the money, landing more brand partnerships helps you further your reach. Users who already follow the brand will learn more about you and are likely to become loyal to you, too, especially with the unique content. This means you can move from nano to professional influencer much faster as you accrue a massive following.

Wondering how to offer something unique? Draw inspiration from Miranda who constantly posts about Halloween.

Partner with Influencer Databases

Influencer databases let you find more influencers you can partner with and supercharge your reach.

Collaborating with other influencers is a surefire way to improve your progress. Nonetheless, this is only possible if you partner with the right influencers.

If you pick an influencer with a negative reputation, it can leak into you, damaging your good standing. The database extends your reach and makes finding and connecting with like-minded influencers easier, boosting your quests to become a successful Instagram influencer.

Using a tool like Shoutcart makes the process easier for both parties. As an influencer, you can get attention from the brands who are looking for influencer endorsements.

Conclusion

Your social media endeavors don’t have to stop at posting those cute family photos. You can gain more eyeballs, provide resourceful information, and help people find services/products. In return, your voice will be heard, and you get to make some money.

Becoming an Instagram influencer can be quite fulfilling, and the process does not have to be overwhelming. You can start from a nano influencer, scale up at your pace, and keep doing what you enjoy the most.