Do you spend hours scrolling endlessly through social media feeds and often find yourself screaming internally? I can do that! Do you fancy yourself as a potential fashion influencer and want to know how you might get started? Then you’ve come to the right place.
If you have a love of fashion and have always been on hand to offer friendly tips and help to those in your inner circle, then maybe you’ve been thinking about spreading your net wider and getting your useful info out to a larger audience?
Being a fashion influencer, or indeed any sort of social media influencer, may look like fun, but you need to be aware of the amount of hard work and consistency required to make an impact in this field, says Insider.com.
Clearly, the market is overloaded with those trying to stand out from the rest, and in 2022 the field is full to the brim with those looking to produce content that stops the infinite scroll and, in theory, earns them a decent income.
Here are some key aspects to take into account if you are looking to make it as a fashion influencer.
Spotting a Trend
Being an influencer of any kind requires you to be ahead of the curve, and you need to be able to spot a trend from a mile off. This is even more applicable if you want to be a successful fashion influencer.
Being on point when it comes to fashion isn’t easy, not least as every new season brings with it a plethora of new trends, and as such, you have to be constantly on the lookout for what might be the next big fad or craze.
For instance, when personalized jewelry really began to make an impact, and the stylish end of the spectrum, if you were an influencer of any worth, you’d already have been shouting about this from the rooftops.
Building an Audience
An influencer of any sort needs an audience, and clearly, in 2022, that’s all about your social media following. Building your brand and spreading your reach so that you are speaking to the masses isn’t something that can happen overnight (see here).
Any good influencer will seek to build organically, so avoid any move to bump up your numbers by buying likes or followers as this is not only misleading, it will, in the end, turn out to prove a worthless and expensive exercise.
Start by producing a video to introduce yourself, be that on YouTube or Instagram (and a smaller form version of TikTok), and be sure to name-check your style icons and your general sense of personal fashion taste so that your initial audience knows what to expect.
There is a certain amount of confidence needed to pull off the fashion influencer vibe, and you may have to fake it until you make it, but try to stay true to your authentic self, says Sherpa.com.au. In other words, don’t build a persona that doesn’t reflect you as an individual as playing the part or acting like someone you are not will prove tiresome, and today’s audience can spot a fake from a mile off.
Know Your Niche
In order to build a strong platform, you’ll need to focus yourself on a particular niche, as anything else would spread you too thinly. Perhaps you have a specific style or specialize in a particular area; maybe your thing is accessories or shopping on a budget. Try to have a long hard think about what your channel is built to provide.
This is something you need to be fully aware of long before you post a single thing. Pick an angle that is truly you. Don’t try to jump on the bandwagon for the sake of being ‘in’ or in the hope of reaching a specific audience.
Remember why you wanted to be a fashion influencer in the first place. Is it to teach people how to dress? Is it to show how you can make the most of a limited wardrobe or budget? Is it to educate your audience about a certain style of fashion? Maybe it’s strictly about informing people about the latest trends; whatever it is, be sure it’s the right niche before you commit to it.
Where to Post, When to Post and Where to Avoid
Consistency is vital when it comes to posting on social media, and doubly so if you fancy yourself as an influencer. If you are going to post twice a week, then you’ll need to do so every week, on the scheduled days, and you can’t be flaky about it.
Your audience needs to know when they’ll get their next fix, and if you, for whatever reason, start to post less often, then they’ll leave in their dozens.
Fashion influencers should stick to visually led social media channels; in other words, you can probably avoid Twitter and even Facebook and stick to YouTube and especially Instagram. These channels are far more in tune with the type of content you’ll be posting.
Get the Right Equipment
Your content needs to look good, especially as it’s in a creative and visually stimulating field, so that means you need to invest in a good camera and solid video recording equipment, but luckily all of this is available via the best smartphones.
Get an excellent additional sound mic for best results, and be sure to edit your content so that you can make the most of every second of recorded content. For instance, a ten-minute video on YouTube can be cut into shorter sections for Instagram and even shorter for TikTok, and you can also splice together nice teaser segments to help reel in your viewers.
Don’t Overly Depend On Paid Partnerships
The goal for many fashion influencers is to get free swag, and that’s more achievable, in all honesty than earning a decent amount of revenue. So if your channel starts to grow nicely, then you may well be approached by brands to promote products, and that’s great, but just be aware that you don’t want to end up being a virtual billboard.
Don’t take every paid partnership you are offered, be choosy, and don’t flood your content with advertising material; if you do, your audience will look for other avenues.
Be Patient
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, be prepared to wait. You won’t become a fashionista overnight, and frankly, the critical element you should be looking for is personal fulfillment and enjoyment. If you love making content and enjoy the field, then that needs to be your starting point, and the energy this releases will help attract viewers, and this, in turn, will grow your audience.
Be honest with your expectations and enjoy the ride as much as the destination.
Last Updated: March 29, 2022
