Influencers as a remote profession and their income

Influencers who create content about their lifestyle, fashion, or sports today exist in huge numbers and it is no longer possible to ignore the fact that this is essentially a full-fledged profession that brings stable high earnings. Today, there are many categories of influencers, also called content creators, and here many people will find an interesting path of creative development within their own lives.

This new profession is making headlines thanks to the huge sums earned by some bloggers. Large companies around the world are trying to buy advertising from recognizable faces of the new generation, and you can even hire an influencer for cooperation from any country, for example, China, where especially vertical content is incredibly widespread.

But what is the real salary of an influencer?

You will quickly realize that there is no average figure and the salary of an influencer is not traditional and depends on several criteria. Among them:

• The level of popularity is measured by the number of subscribers on all accounts;
• The level of engagement is measured by the number of likes and clicks on posts;
• An area of influence that is measured according to trends (fashion, lifestyle, sports, travel, etc.);

Indicators of successful work

Likes are one of the main indicators of assessing the reputation of an influencer, so pay attention to this while searching for influencers as remote workers for cooperation on Rivermate. The salaries of influential people have a very specific mechanism. As in the private sector, they vary depending on the results obtained by the influencer. But that's not all.

Remuneration also depends on the type of content (videos, broadcasts, stories, publications, posts), the number of subscribers reached (marketing goal), or the return on investment of brands (through clicks on promotions).

Influence is mainly based on partnering with brands to encourage people to use or buy them. There are 6 types of influence campaigns that brands pay to influencers:

• Affiliation, the brand pays depending on the results obtained;
• Sending products, which allows an influencer to present them;
• Contests to generate interest and win free products for subscribers;
• Take over — the influencer interacts directly with the brand community for a certain period of time;
• Sponsored content that allows you to pay an influencer to draw attention to the brand;
• Product placement is often associated with temporary promo codes;

In addition to the basic functioning of influencer salaries (type of influence campaign, type of platform), other criteria are taken into account for the final calculation. Some networks are better communication channels and provide a higher level of interaction with your community, such as TikTok, Instagram, or even YouTube. It's up to you, according to your brand image, how to adjust your salary according to the market.

Choosing a social network

Some social networks offer better earning opportunities than others. If there are price scales depending on the platforms used and the profiles of influencers, other criteria are taken into account for the final income. These include the following three criteria:

• Fame or popularity;

• Community engagement level;

• Field of activity or niche;

Criterion 1. Fame or popularity.

Fame or popularity is calculated based on the number of subscribers or followers on the networks, depending on the importance and size of the community. Thus, according to this criterion, we identify several categories of influencers:

• Nano-influencers (up to 10,000 subscribers);
• Micro-influencers (up to 100,000 subscribers);
• Macro influencers (over 100,000 subscribers);
• Mega influencers (over 3 million);

Employer of record should pay attention to the balance of power: 10 thousand against 3 million. For the same Instagram post, nano-influencers will receive about 150 euros, and mega-influencers — about 25,000 euros: a big difference!

Criterion 2. The level of community engagement.

Another criterion for calculating the salary of an influencer is taken into account — the level of involvement of his community.

What makes an influencer trustworthy is the ratio between the total number of subscribers and the number of those who interact with it on a daily basis. If this ratio is less than 3% (i.e. 3,000 likes per 100,000 subscribers), it means that the level of engagement is insufficient to create an impact, according to digital marketing standards.

Criterion 3. Field of activity or niche.

Certain categories of activities are more marketable than others because they make it easier to place products. This is the case in the areas of consumption, well-being, or lifestyle. It will be more profitable than influencers focused exclusively on sports or an original type of activity.

To keep or increase the salary of an influential person, you should remember three important rules:

1. The more engagement you have, the more popular you are;
2. The more popular you are, the more you attract (good) brands;
3. The more you attract brands of your choice, the better you improve your personality and your influencer image;

Why is it worth becoming an influencer?

Such salaries are the dream of many people, especially young people. Just three years ago, very few people made a living from influence. The opportunity to receive decent pay remained rare: more than 86% of influencers were forced to supplement their income with a second, more "classic" type of activity.

Today, however, influence strategies are improving, and paid partnerships are multiplying. Today, almost one in four content creators work full-time: 24% compared to 15% in 2021.

How can I increase my income as an influencer?

To increase your income start by choosing the right platforms! Manage your content better, develop a well-defined strategy, and choose new opportunities. There are many ways to increase your influencer's income.

Warning: You should take this job seriously. Don't be fooled by some videos of influencers claiming that their work takes them a few minutes a day compared to several thousand euros, this is clearly not the case.

Today, being an influencer means having a lot of advertising contracts, promising remote work and location independence. Young people around the world are successfully turning their hobbies into earnings and broadcasting it on camera to receive money. And by choosing cooperation with influencers for your business, you get a great way to advertise your services and products to a loyal audience.