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3 | The importance of building a following on social media

The joy of building an online presence is that you get to share what you’re doing with people all over the world. Admittedly, it can be very daunting at first. When you start out online, you can wonder if anyone’s even listening, or if they care. So before you psych yourself out, I’m going to spill the tea on how I built a following and all you need to know about establishing your profile (and becoming an influencer, if that’s what you want) from scratch.

The year one thousand

Ya girl hit a million followers on YouTube in January 2017. Thinking back, I still pinch myself; it was an amazing moment, but amid all the excitement I still couldn’t quite fathom how I had got there. What that figure doesn’t reveal is the years of hard work behind that milestone. During that time, it sometimes seemed as if some people out there could start a channel from scratch and then … boom! Six months later they had got to a million subscribers already. I wasn’t sure how they had done it but, to be honest, it wasn’t a priority for me. I was focused on just creating what I wanted to create.

In fact, when I first started, there were no goals for me in terms of subscribers, and there were no YouTube ‘superstars’. I loved all things fashion and beauty, and I loved talking about them with other girls on forums. For me, going on to YouTube to talk about these things with even more people was just the logical next step. That didn’t mean I was instantly successful. It took a long time, just like most success stories do (yes, including the ‘overnight’ ones). It took me a whole year to get to my first 1,000 subscribers when I started out. And I had at least 150 videos out in the world before I had 10,000 subscribers. In a way, that was perfect: there was no pressure for me when it came to the numbers game. Instead, my challenge was to find my voice, learn how to create content for those that wanted to watch, and to keep making it better.

Momentum to a million

Soon after hitting 1 million subscribers I was on track for another million: I had picked up momentum and I was on a roll. In life, everyone has peaks where you’re fired up with enthusiasm, and troughs where you feel like you’re coasting, and that success gave me the boost I needed at the time. While it can take a long time to feel that momentum, once you’ve got it, it can propel you along a monumental trajectory. In my case, it took me seven years to get to 1 million subscribers, so you might have thought it would take at least another three to achieve the same again. Wrong. One year on and I’d increased my overall following by another 1.5 million, releasing products and working with more brands in the process.

I can’t tell you that building a presence in the world of social media is quick – that it’s easy. It isn’t. For me, the key ingredients have been heart, consistency, discipline and focus, to the point almost of obsession. It sounds super simple – and it really is – but what can make it hard is the application. The truth is, as with many things in life, a lot of us know what to do, but to actually get up, be consistent and follow up – that’s the challenge we must rise to.

The value of establishing a profile

I’ve made YouTube the foundation of my career, while you may want to do something totally different. However, I really do believe that pretty much everyone can benefit from building a personal brand online if they wish to: it’s a digital footprint that gives a positive impression of what you’re about to everyone you may or may not have met, but who one day might turn into a customer, client, employer, friend (or, yes, even a lover – I see you sliding into those DMs!). Maybe your ultimate goal isn’t to become an ‘influencer’, and that’s absolutely fine! That’s my hustle, but it doesn’t have to be yours. Regardless, there is merit in nurturing a positive virtual reputation that precedes you.

Similarly, being an influencer doesn’t have to mean being a social media star with millions of followers, or even that your platform of choice becomes your main source of income. You can have a few thousand Twitter followers, say, the majority being from your own industry, and still be influential. You can use your online presence as a way to put yourself ahead of the competition, attract attention and build your profile or product in your sector. You’re building a brand. And, to do that, here’s what you need to know.

You’re already an influencer

If I’m honest, the term ‘influencer’ makes me cringe. These days it brings to mind a whole host of associations, not all of them good. Yes, I happen to take photos and film content, and people might happen to like the things I wear, the products I try, or the things I do in those photos and videos, so by default I have influence … But if you really think about it, everyone’s an influencer or – the term I prefer – an ‘opinion-sharer’. (Doesn’t quite have the same ring to it, I know!) If you ever say, ‘Mum, you look amazing in that dress’, or if you tell your friends, ‘I just bought this from ASOS. Do you love it?’ you’re already asserting your influence, shaping others’ opinions. It’s just what people do naturally: share what they’re excited about – a great restaurant they’ve visited, a piece of work they’re really proud of, a workout they’ve just smashed, or an amazing book they’ve just read – with other people, and update them on what’s going on in their lives. So we are all influencers, be that micro or macro. And, in the social media age, more and more of us are able to generate an income through that, as well as using it to help build our businesses.