Have you ever wondered how influencers make their money? I’ll show you how they do it.
Below I have compiled a list of nine methods which influencers make money. The information which I will provide below has been obtained from Kite, a company which specializes in data science and research.
Table of Contents:
So How Do Influencers Make Money Online?
1. YouTube channel
Influencers who have a large YouTube following make huge sums of money through their channel. One major means of making money through YouTube is through the Google advert program. For every advert viewed on your YouTube channel, you get to earn a few dollars from it. Though the earning from Google AdSense is not much, with a large following, one can easily live off YouTube channel earnings.
You must note that to earn through the YouTube AdSense program you will need to have at least 10,000 subscribers. But this is not the only method of earning through YouTube. Influencers also earn through YouTube by reviewing products, endorsing third-party products and services, and also through marketing their own services through the same platform.
2. Company Sponsored Blog Posts
Most influencers have personal or corporate blogs where they post information related to their niche. Companies which are keen to maximize their sales will request that these influencers allow them to post content on their websites. In exchange, the company pays such influencers money depending on the mode of agreement.
According to the data released by Kite, 73% of influencers make money through this method. Thus any influencer or a micro influencer who positions himself/herself well in the blogging world is bound to make a sizable income from this method.
3. Selling of Digital Products
Selling of digital products such as e-books, online trainings, music, video, and software products can be a lucrative endeavor. The good thing with this is that you do not need to have a huge following to make a footprint in this industry.
The influencers who leverage on this income stream make huge sums of money. The key to making it online through selling digital products lies on the trust your followers have over you. Some influencers choose to start by offering free materials then after they gain a substantial following they dig in and offer paid materials. Since their subscribers have already build trust with the influencer, the conversion rates tend to be quite high. You can as well use this method in your niche and test its success. The only bad side with this is that it takes time and needs patience and some initial work in preparing your digital products.
Influencers also make money through their social media accounts. Companies pay influencers to post content endorsing their products and services. Since these social media influencers have a huge following, such endorsements get to reach a huge number of people. This method of earning is also quite lucrative as long as one has a huge social media following. In fact, Kite found out that 66% of the influencers get paid through endorsing products in social media platforms.
5. Affiliate Marketing
Affiliate marketing involves the marketing of another company’s products and services. The affiliate marketer earns a percentage commission for every sale made through them. This is very common among those who have a blog. The company which wishes its products to be marketed by affiliates provides unique links which the bloggers can put on their websites. Clicking on those links takes the website visitor to the company’s website. The affiliate marketer only earns after a successful purchase.
From the results obtained by Kite, it seems that affiliate marketing is not very much liked by influencers. In fact, only 1% of the influencers interviewed credited affiliate marketing as a lucrative income stream. Despite this, the influencers said that they earn 32 percent of their income from affiliate marketing. This becomes quite intriguing statistic which needs further research.
6. Consulting
Influencers who have succeeded in their niche industry have much experience. Thus it is not unusual to see those influencers being approached by companies and individuals seeking consultancy services. These influencers could as well set up consulting firms to help companies and individuals in the same niche grow and provide the needed expert services. Kite found out that 31% of the marketers make money through this method.
You must have seen banners which have your favorite musician or your favorite actor. The advertising companies pay huge sums of money to obtain the right of using such images on their banner adverts. After being interviewed, Kite found out that 28 percent of the influencers make money through this method. However, Kite also found out that it’s only 4% of the influencer who credit banner ads as a lucrative income stream.
8. Guest Speaking and Public Appearance
Speaking in seminars and other gatherings is also another method through which influencers get their money. Those who are good at public speaking earn reasonable amounts of money whenever they have a public speaking engagement.
From the data obtained by Kite, 28% of the influencers identified public speaking as one of the means through which they make money.
9. Branded Merchandise
Companies also pay influencers to have their merchandise branded with the images and names of influencers. The companies feel that such branding will increase customer trust and thus increase their overall sales. From the data released by Kite, only 21% of the influencers identified branded merchandise as one of the means through which they earn their income.