When I first started my Instagram @sweetcarolinaj in 2016, I made a lot of mistakes. I did not have access to as many resources to guide me in my journey to becoming an influencer. Luckily I have learned a lot in the past 4 years and I am breaking down the top 9 mistakes I see influencers making so that you can avoid them.
1. Burning Bridges
Never, ever publicly talk poorly about other people in the industry. Whether it be about a brand, a PR company, or another influencer, the industry is very small. If you talk poorly about someone there is a high chance that it will eventually get back to them.
If someone in PR reaches out to you for a brand collaboration you are not interested, politely turn them down. While that particular collaboration may not be a fit, they may have a client down the road that you do want to work with. Had you been rude, they may have been turned off from working with you on future projects.
Related: How To Successfully Pitch Yourself to Work with Your Favorite Brands
2. Undervaluing Their Work
Whether you have 50 followers or 1 million followers, your work as an influencer has value. There is a lot of time and effort that goes into creating a post and building an audience and you deserve to be paid! If a company is reaching out to you, they clearly see value in what you do. Don’t be afraid to ask them if they have a budget! The worst they can say is “no”. If they don’t have a budget then you can choose whether or not it is a partnership you would like to pursue.
Related: How To Collaborate with Brands as a Microinfluencer
3. Making a Brand Pitch About Themselves vs. How They Can Benefit the Brand
While there are many perks to being an influencer, it is important to remember that when a brand wants to work with you, it is because they see you as a valuable way to market their product. If you approach a brand for the first time and only mention how their brand can help you, chances are they will say no. Make the pitch about them, tell them about your audience, and let them know all the ways a partnership with you can be beneficial to their brand.
Learn more about pitching brands here.
4. Not Over Delivering
One way to make yourself stand out to a brand is to over deliver on your collaboration. Brands remember those who will go the extra mile to make sure the collaboration is a success. This could mean taking extra photos for the company to use on their own social media. adding a few more IG stories with swipe up links, or even paying to sponsor the post through Instagram to increase the reach. PR companies will remember those who put in the extra effort and typically be more willing to work with you in the future.
Related: How to Rock Your First Brand Deal
5. Writing Pitch Emails That Are Too Long
When you are writing an email to pitch a brand, be mindful of their time. It is very likely that the company receives numerous emails from influencers all over the world asking to collaborate. If you want to make sure that your email gets read, keep your email short and highlight the important things, such as who you are and how you can help them. The person on the other end knows why you are reaching out, but often does not have the time to read a novel about why the collaboration would be a perfect match. So keep it simple sweetie and if they like your message they will be in touch.
6. Giving Up On a Brand Too Soon
Another mistake I see influencers make is giving up on a brand after only sending one email. While it is true that sometimes the person on the other end is ignoring you, often when you don’t hear back right away it is because they simply missed your message.
How many times have you received an email that you forgot to respond to? Well, it happens to most of us. If you sent an email to a brand and have not yet heard back, don’t be afraid to follow up. Sending a follow up email not only reminds the brand of your message but also shows that you genuinely care and want to work with the brand.
However, if you have sent 2-3 emails and still have not heard anything back, I would recommend moving on or making sure that you have the right contact.
Related: How To Find PR and Marketing Contacts
7. Not Disclosing ADs
In the past I have seen some influencers try to get away with not telling their audience when they are being paid tp promote a product. DO NOT BE LIKE THEM! Not only is it illegal and can open you up to being fined by the FTC, but you are not being genuine. Your audience will respect you more if you are honest with them.
Instead of hiding the fact that you are being sponsored, be open with your audience. Build a reputation of only promoting products that you love and would use yourself. You will notice that if you only promote products that are useful, your audience won’t care whether or not you are getting paid to promote them. Frame it in a way where it helps them to solve their problems vs. forcing a product on them.
Related: How To Make a Sponsored Post NOT sound like an Ad
8. Making Everything an Ad
“When you stand for everything, you stand for nothing.”
While it is important to make sure you disclose whether or not your post is an ad, try to refrain from making your whole feed an advertisement for whoever will pay you. It will hurt your brand in the long run because your audience will learn not to trust you. It is OK to say no to paid opportunities that do not fit your niche. In between every sponsored posts, try to throw in a few personal posts. Personal posts will help your audience get to know you. Once they know who you are and what you believe, they are less likely to feel as though you are constantly trying to sell them something.
9. Not Using Hashtags
Hashtags are one of the top ways for influencers to increase their post’s reach. Including relevant hashtags can help your account get noticed by potential followers and brands who want to work with you. A well placed hashtag can help you get an extra 30,000 views on one post alone!
To learn more about how to use hashtags on Instagram, check out this post here.
Thank you for taking the time to read about the top mistakes I see influencers make. If you have found this post helpful and want to learn more about how to create a successful career as an influencer and entrepreneur, click here.
