How to become an influencer? Tips from the pros
What does it take to be an influencer? This question keeps more and more people busy as the trendy occupation is turning into a whole generation’s dream job.
Although to grandma and grandpa influencer sounds more like a viral infection than a career path millions of young people are putting lots of time, creativity and passion into making it big on social media. No wonder, when you consider that becoming an influencer does not only mean turning your hobby into a job but also enjoying tons of gifts from the world’s coolest brands, well-paid partnerships, and professional photoshoots.
So what do you need to know and which tech do you need to use to turn 10 followers into 10. 000? We asked our successful and talented influencer friends Annika, Pasco, Rae, and Tari for their tips. But before we let them take over one important tip from us.
Before you start choosing the new name for your fresh social media persona, ask yourself the following: What makes YOU special, and how can you show the world?? What are you into, and what are you good at?
The answers will guide you to the right channel and the right topics. If you love to hear yourself talk and to tell others how to do things better — Youtube is your channel and if you can’t stop taking pictures of your clothes, food, and desk you should head over to Instagram. Also, please, don’t start to blog if you don’t like writing. Because no matter how much passion you have for your new dream career your videos, pictures and captions need to be of top quality to score all those likes and comments that you are aiming for.
And that is where the tech comes in. Forget about social media fame if you don’t have a Smartphone and a decent Camera. Luckily there is Grover where you can rent all the tech you need before spending all your savings on expensive products you still need to try. So what should you try first? we asked 4 pros for their tips and favs:
Annika is a travel blogger and writes at Fasten Ur Seatbelts. Her pictures and stories convinced 42 000 people to follow her Instagram @fasten_ur_seatbelts. “You don’t need much to post on Instagram, just a smartphone and an account.” is what Annika thought 2 years ago. When she started she always brought her iPhone and a Sony Alpha 6000 along. She still uses the Sony camera for shooting videos but after a year of blogging, she realized she needed professional photo gear. Her decision was backed by her improved photostats.
„Today I could do every trip without clothes or a suitcase but not without my iPhone X and my Canon EOS 6D! Of course I also always bring my lenses such as the Canon EF 40mm F/2.8. or the 24–105 IS. The gear gives my pics a much better resolution and allows me to edit them easily in Lightroom which makes my clients happy. Don’t forget to always bring extra SD-cards!” In the near future, Annika would love to add a new perspective to her pictures and wants to try a drone. With that, we can help so follow us at @getgrover to see what she does with it…
Rae uses her Instagram @Raetilly mostly to share her cool looks with the world and her 10.000 followers who love her colorful, urban style and her authentic attitude. Most of her pics are taken by her boyfriend who is a musician but also clearly knows how to handle a good Canon camera. Apart from her Instagram account the American who is based in Berlin also runs an online magazine.
“It might be cliche but I am super reliant on my iPhone — it lets me manage my work and play and as someone who always needs to check emails and Instagram for work I would be lost without it. My one piece of advice though is to take breaks offline as well. It’s easy to get wrapped up in being constantly online but it’s good to completely switch off sometimes! ” Since Rae rarely uses her phone to take pictures she is happy with an older iPhone model.
Pasco is keeping his 13.000 Instagram followers happy with breathtaking videos and photos of exotic beaches and buzzing cities. He turned his technical and artistic skills into a real job and works as a freelance professional content creator. Clients book Pasco to produce high-quality Foto- and Video material, which speaks to young and social media savvy consumers. His Instagram account is his portfolio.
Two pieces of tech Pasco got from Grover to take his content to the next level are the DJI Mavic Pro Drone and the Sony SEL 1018 lens. Drones are the must-have tech for video bloggers aka vloggers and travel influencers. Since the market entry of high quality consumer-freindly drones amazing air-footage has flooded Youtube and Instagram and content creators of all fields want to try them as well. And the Sony lens? „Pasco recommend it because of the brutally fast auto-focus for Sony-cams which assures that every photo is as sharp as it gets. Also, the build in image stabilizer convinced Pasco. “When you don’t have a Gimbal handy, this lens still captures outstanding footage!.”
Tari is our in-house dogfluencer and has 11.000 fans. She is the 4-legged star of the Instagram-Accounts @tari.adventures which is run by Grover’s online marketing manager Christiane. As an online marketing pro Christane posts with strategy and growth in mind.
Her favorite tech is her iPhone X because she always has it at hand and the camera quality is amazing. Especially the portrait mode is perfect to capture Tari in her furry beauty. In addition, Christiane recommends the smartphone stick and stabilizer from Gimbal: „Tari is very active and loves to run around. If I want to keep up with her and still take nice pictures and videos, I really need that Gimbal.”
Christiane’s biggest tip is: “always be ready to take a picture as you never know when something beautiful, unique or funny will happen. Of course you can pick a pretty location for a shoot but in the end, some luck and chance play a big role in capturing the perfect dog photo. So just take lots and lots of pictures and let things happen instead of trying to don’t try to plan everything”
Now you can’t wait to start your influencer career? Our Influencer-Collection has all the rental tech you need, to start right away.
