Why the difficulty of earning a sustainable income as a full-time influencer surpasses its perceived simplicity?

Who is an influencer? In simple terms, an influencer is someone who is able to persuade a lot of other people, for example, their followers on social media, to do, buy, or use the same things that they do.

importance of an influencer Influencers have the power to drive more people towards your products or services. This is because people trust the recommendations made by their favorite influencers. 

• They are consistent
• They are  interactive
• They are  innovative
• They are strategic
• And knowledgeable….

The challenges of being an Influencer 

There are so many benefits to being an influencer, which include a glamorous lifestyle, being able to choose who, where and when to work, getting a lot of PR products, being among the first to test products and more…

With all these benefits, there are also challenges that come with being an influencer, and we are going to be looking into that not-so-glamorous part of it.

Here are some of the challenges and hardest parts of being an influencer that make it harder than it looks.

• Finding the right niche: This has to be one of the major challenges faced by an influencer. Finding the right market that works for you. You are faced with a large market that has varieties to choose from. Oftentimes, a person who has decided to be an influencer often finds it difficult to choose which niche they want to build their brand on.

• Finding the Right Social Media Platforms: There is a need to find the right social media platform for your brand. It is important for you to understand what social media sites your audience spends most of their time on. If you can't find the right social media platform for your brand, you might end up having an account on every social media site out there.

• Finding and getting the right tools: this comes in the form of equipment, apps for editing, software, products, and more. It's not necessary to spend thousands of dollars on tools for your brand at the beginning, but getting the right tools for your brand is really important. You will have to do research on different types of tools and also on where and how to get these items at a cheap price.

• Getting Brand deals / contracts The competition is tough, and you need to stand out from the crowd in order to be recognized among the brands. Creating quality-driven content is not as easy as it seems. While you are creating an idea, just keep in mind that someone else is creating something similar to yours. You have to find your uniqueness. 

• You won't earn money immediately. Aside from passion being the first thing that makes anyone do anything, being able to earn money while doing what you love is important. As an influencer, you won't earn money immediately. You will receive a whole lot of free jobs and promotions while building your name/brand. If you don't have patience, you might soon realize being an influencer is not meant for you.

• The pressure of keeping an image: influencers are faced with the constant pressure of maintaining a certain kind of demeanor that fits whatever brand or company they are representing. Any personal decision you make can lead to career risks. As time goes on, some find it difficult to keep up this image for the audience, as it can become unhealthy and impossible to manage.

• Finding the right time for engagement: Even though most influencers control their time, you are still faced with finding the right time to post that will bring engagement. It means you are constantly checking when and when not to post. 

• Online Hate and Abuse: Social media has become a place where some people project their hate and bullying. As an influencer, you will have to develop thick skin and learn how to ignore. The bigger your audience gets, the harder it can be to filter out abusive followers and their hateful messages. Receiving hateful comments every day can be detrimental to an influencer's mental health.

• Security & Privacy: An influencer is a public figure, which means you are constantly watched and followed. Your audience wants to keep up with your lifestyle, whether it's convenient or not, whether it's good or bad.When you don't have privacy, this often leads to no security at all. Some influencers often deal with stalkers and a whole lot of danger.

In conclusion

Being an influencer is a full-time job. Making a living as one is not as easy as it is but not impossible…

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