Building Your Personal Brand in the Age of Social Media
Brittany Hennessy
CITADEL PRESS
Kensington Publishing Corp.
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Copyright © 2018 Brittany Hennessy
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ISBN: 978-0-8065-3885-3
Library of Congress CIP data is available.
First electronic edition: August 2018
ISBN-13: 978-0-8065-3886-0
ISBN-10: 0-8065-3886-4
This book is dedicated to my husband, Alexander, and my son, Alexander August
From sunrise to sunset I am forever grateful to be your wife and your mother. Thank you for believing in me and for being a constant source of inspiration. I love you.
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
Preface
Introduction
PART 1 - Building Your Community
CHAPTER 1 - The Feed
CHAPTER 2 - The Audience
PART 2 - Packaging Your Brand
CHAPTER 3 - The Edge
CHAPTER 4 - The Press
PART 3 - Monetizing Your Influence
CHAPTER 5 - The Money
CHAPTER 6 - The Contract
CHAPTER 7 - The Agent
PART 4 - Planning Your Future
CHAPTER 8 - The Goal
Conclusion
AND THAT’S ALL SHE WROTE
GLOSSARY
Acknowledgments
Preface
I once paid a dog $32,000 for two Facebook posts, one Instagram post, and one tweet. It probably took his owner all of three minutes to take the photos and write the captions.
This dog just made more than $10,000 per minute. Pick someone that you think is really rich. Anyone at all. That dog still made more per minute than the person you’re thinking of.
You work, at minimum, 8 hours a day, 5 days a week, 50 weeks a year, and deal with people who sometimes make you question all of your life choices. And this dog? All he had to do was sit, roll over, and smile.
I remember cutting a $100,000 check for an influencer to shoot three YouTube videos. Drafting her contract, I paused exactly three times to regain my composure; I could not believe that I was about to pay this woman six figures to put on makeup for 18 minutes. I almost asked myself, why isn’t everyone an influencer? But I already knew the answer to that: Because being an influencer is hard.
As the senior director of influencer strategy + talent partnerships at Hearst Magazines Digital Media, I cast influencers to star in co-branded campaigns for the digital versions of Seventeen, Cosmopolitan, Elle, Marie Claire, Harper’s Bazaar, Redbook, Esquire, and more. That means it’s my job to know the universe of influencers: understand their followings and engagement; recognize their aesthetic and tone of voice; be aware of who their agents are; and—and this is really important—know how easy (or not) they are to work with on a deadline. I have booked influencers for their first campaign, introduced unsigned talent to their current agents, and given them checks so large finance has called to asked if I added one zero too many (see the previous example).
You’ve probably scrolled through Instagram and thought to yourself, “I could totally do that,” but you might not realize that there is an art and a science to becoming a full-time influencer. Sure, it may seem like life as an influencer is limited to posting photos of yourself walking down the street or holding an ice cream cone with an impeccable manicure. But in reality, you’ll spend your days and nights creating content for audiences so fickle they can, and will, stop following you because you posted your Tuesday video on Wednesday. Or because they didn’t like the color of your manicure in that ice cream photo. Or because—and I have seen this—you changed your eyebrows, you now look like “a weird bird,” and your face makes them uncomfortable. And that’s just your audience.
When you work on campaigns, you’re dealing with an entirely different animal—the brand. Most brands don’t know what they want, so it becomes quite the challenge to deliver “it” when you don’t even know what “it” is and they can’t explain it to you. But if you’re going to make money creating content, you’re going to need to figure that out. What you need is a translator, someone who speaks this foreign language, can read minds and decode the cryptic emails and briefs you’ll receive. I volunteer as tribute.
Many people think you need to have a million followers to make good money as an influencer, but that’s just not true. There are many full-time influencers with 100,000 followers who are making good money doing something they love, making us all jealous in the process. While scrolling through Instagram, I constantly see hundreds of aspiring influencers who are on the cusp of greatness, or at least financial independence, but they just need to tweak a few things here and there. I love to give people advice and figured I should put my journalism degree to use, so I decided to write this book. I was amazed something like it didn’t already exist, but after dealing with influencers who demand to fly first class, you know, as if they were actual famous people, nothing really surprises me anymore.
This book was written for people who probably fall into one of three categories:
Category 1: You spend all day on Instagram and while scrolling through your feed, you can’t help but critique other people’s photos. You think to yourself, I wear clothes, eat avocado toast, and like sunsets, why not me? Well, let’s start at the very beginning, because that’s a very good place to start. Part 1, “Building Your Community” will help you come up with a brand name, create content worth double tapping, and show you how to maintain an engaged community.
Category 2: You have a decent amount of followers and feel like you’re pretty good at this whole content thing, but can’t figure out a long-term plan. In Part 2, “Packaging Your Brand,” we’ll talk metrics, public relations, and press kits.
Category 3: Brands have started approaching you because you either have a lot of followers or you lead a pretty interesting life. Maybe you’re an expert in your field, you’ve created a company/product, or you’re a dancer/musician/model/actress. Either way, when you talk, people listen, and that’s what influence is all about. Part 3, “Monetizing Your Influence” will dive into fee negotiations, understanding your contract, and landing an agent. When you get your first check, I want 10 percent. I’m kidding . . . but not really.
In life you’re constantly asked about your five-year plan, and this doesn’t change once you become a content creator. Regardless of which category you fall into, Part 4, “Planning Your Future” will help you turn new clients into repeat clients and turn single programs into brand ambassadorships. We’ll also talk about influencer collaborations and how you too can have your own makeup or fashion line.
If you’re new to marketing, or the job market in general, there may be a lot of words and acronyms that you don’t understand. That’s why I’ve included a handy-dandy glossary at the end of this book. It’s full of industry jargon that makes my head hurt . . . and I hear it every day. Read these words and phrases and commit them to memory, but please don’t ask people to “hop on a call by EOD to discuss the brief.” The lingo abuse must end somewhere.
What makes this book really special are the super-cool features like Expert Tips, where you’ll hear from the best industry peeps in the business. Influencer Insights will pop up throughout the chapters to help illustrate my points with wise words from your favorite content creators. Don’t Be That Girl is my absolute favorite, where I tell stories about women whose actions have made me say, “That’s not how this works. That’s not how any of this works.” But rounding out each chapter is a real treat. Influencer Icons will profile some of the most amazing content creators in the game, women who have built brands and loyal communities that many Fortune 500 brands would kill for. We’ll hear from Alyssa Bossio, Joy Cho, Sona Gasparian, Sazan Hendrix, Heidi Nazarudin, Teni Panosian, Alexandra Pereira, and Cara Santana. Their stories will leave you informed, amazed, and inspired.
By the end of this book you’ll have all the tools you need to create a brand for yourself, your child, your dog, or even your badass grandma. And maybe, just maybe, we’ll get to work together, and you’ll request $100,000 for three YouTube videos. I’ll probably roll my eyes so hard I’ll have a headache for a week, but I’ll give it to you, because you’ll be worth it.
Introduction
Let’s start with the most important questions: What exactly are influencers and why are they important? In general, an influencer is someone who has influence. I know, I know, it isn’t very helpful to define a word by using the same word, but sometimes things really are that simple. Word-of-mouth marketing is nothing new, and it’s probably the driving force behind most of your consumer habits, whether that’s buying a product, binge-watching a show, or downloading an app.
But in today’s digital world, the word “influencer” is most commonly ascribed to someone who has clout through her digital channels, or as some like to call it, “social currency.” Whether she has a lot of followers or really high engagement, when she speaks, her audience listens, they act, and—most importantly to brands—they buy.
In the last few years, influencer marketing has really taken off and the term “influencer” has come to mean everyone and their literal mom who has a blog, vlog, or Instagram profile. It’s been used to describe everyone and everything so often that “influencer” is practically a dirty word. That breaks my heart, because influencer marketing isn’t bad, it’s just misunderstood. Tragically misunderstood.
The New York Times published an article discussing influencers and spent roughly 1,000 words talking about Kendall Jenner, Selena Gomez, and Gigi Hadid, all people who are technically “influencers” because they have millions of followers. But really, they are A-list celebrities, which is worlds away from how we view a content creator with the same number of followers. One reason for the different perception is how they became influential. A content creator has to make videos, take photos, and create posts that make people want to trust her and see more. She has to use various marketing tactics to increase her audience size and keep her audience engaged. She must also adapt her content for each platform, because what works on YouTube will not work on Instagram. Traditional celebs become famous through their offline activities (singer/actress/athlete/model) and that influence follows them online and to every platform without them having to do much more than issue a press release with the name of their handle.
Not to take anything away from celebrities whose talent and business acumen have made them famous, but it pains me every time someone calls a celebrity an “influencer.” Quite honestly, it shows a complete disregard for the very thing that makes a content creator an influencer. Authenticity is the backbone of the content these women create, and their audiences look to them for expert advice. Celebs are paid to promote alcohol companies even though they don’t drink, or cars even though they don’t know how to drive. A good influencer, the type you will be after reading this book, would never promote something she wouldn’t organically share even if she’s being paid by a brand. I’ve seen creators turn down $25,000 because something wasn’t “on brand” for them. If that’s not putting your audience above yourself, I don’t know what is.
CONTENT CREATORS VS. LIFECASTERS
Influencers should really be broken out into two categories: content creators and lifecasters. Content creators are people who are creating blogs, vlogs, and Instagram photos out of thin air. Lifecasters are people who are just living their best life and you’re following them because their feed exudes sheer awesomeness.
There are ten types of influencers and each one falls into either the content creator or lifecaster camp. They are:
Content Creators
1. Blogger—has a blog that she updates on a regular basis. She promotes her blog posts through Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram. Examples: @margoandme, @hapatime,@hangtw
2. Vlogger—has a YouTube channel where she posts videos. Whether she posts vlogs or tutorials, they all get shown extra love on her social channels. Examples: @ellarie, @sunkissalba,@alexcentomo
3. Expert—specializes in a particular industry, like fitness, beauty, or interior design. She may also be a blogger or vlogger, but she has the credentials and the training to back it up. Sometimes experts fall into the Lifecasters category, but since they focus so much on aesthetics and usually have high-quality photos, we’re going to leave them in this category. Examples: @ohjoy, @justinablakely,@deepicam
4. Animals, Toddlers, Inanimate Objects, and Memes—pretty self-explanatory, these accounts manage to have tons of followers and create witty content without actually being able to access the Internet, use a smartphone, or you know, type. Examples: @jiffpom, @honesttoddler,@omgliterallydead, @beigecardigan
Lifecasters
5. Special Talent—a chef, dancer, comedian or other person who spends her days honing a skill. She posts about her craft and you care because she is at the top of her game and you want to come along for the ride. Examples: @joythebaker, @ingridsilva,@dopequeenpheebs
6. Entrepreneur—she started a business or a service and is giving you a behind-the-scenes look. You want her to succeed, so you follow her through the updates of product launches and business meetings she shares on her channels. Examples: @jessicaherrin, @alexavontobel,@zimism
7. High-End Model—she is just so gorgeous and so beautiful that you follow her to get your daily dose of awe. Never mind that she is #hairgoals, #bodygoals, #squadgoals, and #couplegoals. Examples: @marthahunt, @ashleygraham,@chaneliman
8. Celebrity—whether she’s a musician, actress, athlete or a combination, she’s world famous and you follow her because you love her. Examples: @issarae, @serenawilliams,@florence
9. Notable—she’s usually a businesswoman, politician, or activist, and you’re following for her front-row seat to her game-changing life. Examples: @badassboz, @gretchencarlson,@michelleobama
10. Real People—people who don’t really fit into any other category on this list, but they’re just posting away because that’s what human beings do in 2018. Examples: @yourmom, @yourhighschoolBFF,@yourboyfriend
A quick note: For the purposes of this book, most of the time we’ll be focusing on content creators, but if you happen to be a lifecaster, welcome! There is a lot you’ll find invaluable as well. I’l
l also be assuming you’re a woman. Not because there aren’t a lot of male influencers (@iamgalla, @wallstreetpaper, @timmelideo, are just a few examples), but because 95 percent of the influencers I have booked have been women, that’s who I’m talking to. But guys, welcome, welcome, welcome. Everything you’ll read here will also apply to you!
WHY WOULD SOMEONE EVEN BECOME AN INFLUENCER?
Now that we’ve defined what an influencer is and the different types, we can dive into why people become influencers in the first place.
ADD VALUE TO YOUR CAREER
If you’re an expert, special talent, or notable, having a high follower count amplifies all the work you are doing in real life. A great example is a comedian, actress, or model. She spends hours each day working on her skill and booking gigs, but she keeps being asked about her Instagram following. This is because businesses are always looking for easier, cheaper, and faster ways to market their products and services. A comedian with 100,000 followers can promote her upcoming show and increase the odds that people will buy tickets to come see her. This reduces the amount of money the comedy club has to spend on promoting the show and makes the management more likely to choose her over another comedian. Even if the other comedian is funnier. The same applies to an actress who can get the word out about her play or movie quickly and to an audience that actually cares about her work. A model has a similar situation: A casting director would love to book a model who would then post the photos from her shoot on Instagram. More people will see the clothing or beauty product, and the client gets an additional ad placement for free.
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