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Make Money As an Influencer with LadyBossBlogger

My Journey as an Influencer

I recently decided to take my content creation journey seriously. I have been blogging for about 7 years now and have had my Instagram account with close to 9 thousand followers for 4 years. But I haven’t actually made any money from it.

Sure I’ve had some PR products sent to me and collaborated with some of my favourite brands with sponsored posts here and there but nothing that’s made me feel like I can turn my passion into a profitable business.

That’s definitely my fault though. I haven’t until recently realised how what I’ve been doing has been hurting instead of aiding me on my journey.

How do I grow my following?

This is really what I was most concerned about; How do I grow my following?

I had no real strategy and posted content most times at whim. I didn’t apply the same discipline and commitment I do to my full-time job and that only hindered my growth.

Never having invested in a course that would develop my skills and help me monetize my influence, I decided that this is what I was missing. And even though I hadn’t budgeted for it, I felt like it was now or never. I wanted to learn from someone or someones already doing it and killing it. So I invested in a six-week course with my objective being to book my first brand deal during or at least the first two weeks after the course.

Let’s just say that things didn’t go as planned. I completed the course and even though the content was great,  it wasn’t really anything that I didn’t already know as a marketer and from all the Instagram tips out there that I had read so it was disappointing for me in that sense.

But then came LadyBossBlogger.

LadyBossBlogger: How to Make Money as An Influencer

So just when I had resigned myself to figuring it out on my own, I got offered this wonderful opportunity to take this course: How to Make Money as an Influencer with LadyBossBlogger. The course is sponsored and even though I am only on lecture 2 of 8, the things I have learned thus far are mind-blowing. ‘

The level of detail in the first two lectures is more than I got in the first 4 weeks of the other course I took. Everything you need to know whether you’re just starting out or you’re like me, finally trying to get this influencer thing right.

Want to know THE best part? I’ve partnered with LadyBossBlogger to host a giveaway to win a course of your choosing! Details at the end of this post.

I don’t want to get ahead of myself but I can’t express to you how excited this makes me.  To be able to give you something as valuable as this for FREE is so exciting.

 LadyBossBlogger Course Giveaway

To enter:

1. Comment below why you want to win this giveaway
2. Follow me on Instagram @thediscerningstylist
3. Follow @ladybossblogger
4. Follow @elainerau
5. Like my giveaway post on Instagram  (read giveaway rules) and tag a friend in the comments that would love to win this too
6. Earn extra entries by tagging more friends

Competition starts today, 22 July and ends 5 August 2020.

I can’t wait to complete this course so I can begin to implement everything that I have learned.

But wait, there’s more!

40% Off A LadyBossBlogger Course

If you don’t want to wait and just want to get started straight away – which I suggest you do – you can use my code, TEJUMADE and get 40% off!

Just between us, had I known what I know now then, I would have rather spent my money on this course instead of the first one. Because just on lecture 2, I feel like this is a gem.

Get yours now for 40% off. You also have the option to pay in instalments.

I can’t wait to share more with you over the coming weeks!

Good luck! x

One oufit worn three ways? Yes, please!

When it comes to shopping for clothes, I like to get my money’s worth.

Will I be able to wear it again?

Will I be able to style it differently without looking like I’m wearing the same outfit, even though I am?

If I put on a few pounds, will it still fit?

These are some of the questions I ask myself before purchasing an outfit.

Okay, you got me, I’m lying. I’m sort of an impulsive shopper so I tend to buy when I see if I have the cash on hand.

Not smart, I’ll tell you that much. I would like to be that woman that asks herself at least 5 different questions before buying an outfit. I want to be frugal and penny-wise and make smart decisions.

But I deviate. The one question I do ask myself – but after I have bought an outfit and worn it once or twice is, how many different ways can I style it?

Most women that I know love clothes (myself included) and we can never have enough. Sure you may hear us say “I shouldn’t be buying any more clothes, but do we mean it? Hell no!

There is a reason this quote exists:

What you will most likely hear us say is ” Ahhhhhhh, I have nothing to wear!”

Every time I look into my wardrobe, I glance at my clothes with loathing. Like, how dare you not be more than what you are?

Granted, I may not even have enough space in my closet for more clothes (even though I give away material things on a regular) but why should that stop me from wanting more?

Because we never feel like we have enough clothes and because we are not celebrities or  ‘influencers’ who are often sent clothes for free, you gotta work with what you’ve got. Whether it’s little or a lot.

The best way to make the most of the clothes in your closet is to re-style. Whether you can count on both fingers how many clothing items you have,  or have lost count, one thing’s for sure,  we all like the feeling of wearing new clothing.

Getting that feeling is as easy as re-styling. Instead of wearing the same look, the same way, all the damn time, get creative!

That’s what I did with this co-ord set from Mr Price clothing.

Look 1 – Original

Look 2

Look 3

You like?

Casual, professional and fun all in one look.

The real tea on this pants…

Let me tell you, so many people love this pants. I know because they told me on Instagram and on the streets. But I will say the quality is freaking poor! I’ve only worn it once and the button fell out, some threads were sticking out of the fabric and it looks like I have washed it many times over even though it has to be washed.

I can probably only get another wear out of it after washing and never be able to wear it again. It looks good but its far from good, at least in my opinion. It’s a bit like throwing money down the drain but hey, at least I looked good for a day and got three styles out of her.

Thank you so much for reading. I hope you enjoyed reading today’s post. If you did and would like to see more posts of me re-styling outfits, holla at your girl. xo

“You’re an influencer”.

“Aargh, I hate that word!”

“But that is what you are. You are no longer just a ‘blogger’, you have influence, and you influence people’s buying decisions”.

This is the exchange I had with a friend of mine a few months ago who is a beauty and mommy blogger/vlogger/influencer with thousands of following on social media.

Who or what is an influencer?

An influencer is a person who is capable of influencing a consumer’s purchase decision. An influencer is typically someone with a massive social media following. The Marketing Hub describes an influencer as an individual who has the power to affect purchase decisions of others because of his/her authority, knowledge, position or relationship with his/her audience. Read more here.

     Celebrity?

According to the Collins dictionary, a celebrity is someone who is famous especially in areas of entertainments such as films, writing or sport.

So how do the two relate? A celebrity can be an influencer but can an influencer be a celebrity?

Traditionally, celebrities were the only influencers. But how things have changed. You are an influencer not because of a skill you possess e.g. acting, singing, sports or dancing. You’re an influencer because of the number of followers and engagement you have on social media.

And what’s more, you have different categories of ‘influencers’. You have ‘influencers’ and then you have ‘micro-influencers’. The latter are mini-influencers who have between 10 thousand and 100 thousand followers.

Have influencers replaced celebrities when it comes to brand endorsement?

When it comes to marketing campaigns for products, most global brands have a marketing budget for both celebrities and influencers. But these days, brands seem to rely more on influencers than they do on celebrities to promote their products or associate with their brand – brand ambassador program. Why? Because people aka consumers find influencers more relatable than celebrities.

An influencer is ‘normal’. He or she is like you and I. Influencers have the same struggles that we do; bad hair days, fat days, broken refrigerator, overbearing toddlers, the list is endless.

Not to say celebrities are abnormal or that they too don’t have similar or the same problems but they are much more discreet about it. They would rather not have the world know about their troubles. One of an influencer’s main roles is to be relatable.

After all, you can’t affect change if people can’t relate to you. Just think of politics and politicians and you’ll get the picture.

Shane Barker of small biz trends ran a Twitter poll to find out who people believed would dominate the consumer industry this year, influencers or celebrities? A surprising 77% of the participants voted influencers.

Beauty and fashion brands like Fashionova, Lancome, Too Faced, Black Opal and KKW are all realising the power of the influencer and thus centring their marketing campaigns around influencers, queue the term ‘influencer marketing’.

Unlike most celebrities, influencers engage with their followers. They respond to comments, provide content based on what you, their followers enjoy and request.

Because of the effect influencers have on consumers, they are adored by brands. Dare I call them ‘brand darlings’?  They are treated much in the same way that celebrities are. Free travel and accommodation,  first-class travel and all the perks that come with it.

It is in fact celebrities who now want to be like influencers. Celebrities and beauty moguls, Rihanna and Kylie Jenner recently created a How to: makeup tutorial video showing consumers how they use cosmetics from their makeup line, in an effort to connect with their consumers. A few years ago, this was not done. The makeup tutorials were strictly reserved for the beauty vloggers/bloggers aka ‘influencers’.

Celebrities VS Influencers

There is often some confusion distinguishing between celebrities and influencers. They both have a huge social media following, they both are fawned over by brands and consumers and now that brands see the value in influencer marketing, it is becoming increasingly difficult to differentiate between the two.

However, the major distinguishing factor between influencers and celebrities is that the former has a strong online presence and is not famous for sports or entertainment. Most new age influencers are famous for going ‘viral’ online.

What makes influencers the new age celebrities?

Here are 4 reasons 

Image credit – Dreamstime

1. Buying Power

In the past, celebrities are the ones with the mass appeal that could influence a consumer’s buying decision. Celebrities and adverts. Now, brands pay influencers to promote their products. Because they realise that consumers are more likely to buy a product because their friend or someone with a similar skin tone to theirs uses and swears by the product.

I’ve bought products based solely on the reviews of influencers, Jennie Jenkins, Patricia Bright and Jackie Aina. Many of us do. Influencers are influenced by other influencers, it’s a cycle.

Image credit – Any Subject

 2. Fan/Follower?

Fans of Michael Jackson, Elvis Presley and Justin Bieber, to name a few, would faint or scream at the sight of their idol, barely able to contain themselves, and then ask for a picture or an autograph. This is also becoming the case with social media influencers and their followers.

Influencers are now held in the same high esteem as some of these A-list actors and musicians.

Image credit – Milled.com

3. Brand sponsorships

Depending on how popular you are and how many followers you have, brands want to work with you. It used to be that brands would send free items to celebrities; from cars, clothing to jewellery. But now brands send their products to social media influencers just for a chance of a mention on the influencer’s social media channel.

Image credit – Canva

4. Hollywood lifestyle

Influencers get the VIP treatment that used to be reserved solely for A-list celebrities. From free travel and accommodation to discounted living. Some of these influencers even get to rub shoulders with the A-list celebs and or work with them.

Image credit – Youtube

Are celebs worth it?

This is the question most brands and digital marketing experts are starting to ask. According to Tribe Dynamics, 80% of the top 15 beauty brand collaborations for the first half of the year were co-ventures with influencers. Just a mere 20% were collaborations with celebrities.

Because influencers are now hot commodity their value has risen and so has their star power.

Are you an influencer or aspiring to be one? Do you agree that influencers are the new ‘celebrities’?

Share your thoughts by leaving a comment down below.

Let’s be real for a minute, the blogosphere is a ridiculously saturated and competitive industry. This makes it difficult to stand out because everyone is doing the same damn thing.

But what sets a blogger apart are the collaborations – brand collaborations to be exact. Think of it this way, you can have a degree but without a job, you can’t classify yourself as a working professional or employed – you are unemployed.

Same with bloggers. You are not a legitimate blogger until you begin to get those collaborations. Bloggers need the collaborations to take what would otherwise be termed a ‘hobby’, a job. It’s a hobby until you start making money from it.

Blogging is a job like any other and it requires dedication and hard work.  As a blogger, you’re creating content, doing social media management, photography, editing… The whole shebang, and it is a lot of work! So many people are now leaving their steady 9 to 5 jobs to focus full time on blogging.

Brand collaborations are every bloggers’ dream, but how do you get a brand’s attention when the industry is so saturated and difficult to break into?

A. Do you build your brand image and following and hope that the right brands will eventually notice and reach out?

Or

B. Do you reach out to brands and get them- no, force them- to notice you?

I’ll let you think about that for a second.

So, now that you’ve thought about it, what do you think?
A or B?

If you chose A, I ’d tell you that’s not a good idea and here’s why.

When you are unemployed or looking for a job, do you sit at home, not send your CV to companies and think a job will fall on your lap? No? So why would you apply that sketchy logic to brand collaborations?

When you’re looking for a partner, do you also sit at home or lay in bed, never go out and hope that a man will magically appear at your door and sweep you off your feet? I’d like to think not. So why should brands approach you if you’re just twiddling your thumbs, hoping for some recognition?

If you’re lucky, brands will reach out to you – yes it happens! I’ve had brands reach out to me but I ’ve also reached out to brands and I still do. 90% of the times that I’ve reached out, I’ve got nothing back but that’s due to a myriad of reasons. But you know what? As much as most doors didn’t open, I have had some doors open and all I had to do was reach out.

You won’t get every job you apply for but that doesn’t mean you stop trying.

If you want to reach out to brands but don’t know what to say, how to sell yourself, you’re not alone. I worked in PR and Marketing so I was that girl bloggers would email to work with a brand I  manage. Yet , I find it daunting reaching out to brands.

But don’t worry, I got you. You’ll be emailing brands like a pro after reading these tips.

Here are 6 things you need to know from a brand’s perspective

1. Never EVER just ask for a free product.

Brands want to know what you can offer. How can you help them generate more sales? So before you make a cold call or type that email, think carefully. What is YOUR value, not what can you get for free?

2. Show me the stats $$$

This is what brands want to see or a PR/ marketing company representing a brand. This is your currency, your value. If you want brands to give you the time of day you need to have a ‘goodlooking package’, qualitative stats. How many monthly page views do you get? Your demographics. They want to know who your audience is and how they are relevant to their brand. If your audience consists of middle-aged men then you’re better off reaching out to the company that makes Viagra as opposed to one that sells tampons or pads. You feel me?

3. Guarantee results

This kind of ties in with showing brands your stats – social media and blog stats. So a brand wants to know what you can guarantee if they give you free products and pay for space on your blog or social media posts. After showing stats of previous successes, you can just add that you’ll guarantee at least 20% of your followers will buy their products or something equally as titillating. Again, its all about the sales and awareness. If you can’t guarantee a brand that, then forget about it.

4. Be creative

Brands receive hundreds of emails a day so if you’re going to put yourself in front of a brand and interest them in working with you, you have to be creative.  Your subject line must be punchy and to the point and the content in the body of your email just be just as punchy, to the point and creative. “I’d like to do a review of your skincare product” just isn’t going to cut it. Think out the box. Try to propose an idea that not many people are doing.

5. Show passion and  enthusiasm

It is better to collaborate with brands that you love and admire. You want to tell them why you love them and why you want to work with them. Not make them think you’re down for anything so long as it is free. No, you have standards. If you only shop at Zara and Pep approaches you, and you accept (even though it is not your style), you are selling yourself short and demeaning your value. Rather prove yourself to the brands you love than work with any brand out of desperation. It will be tough in the short term but worth it in the long run.

6. Be charming and gracious

Brands are notorious for paying you the least and wanting the most. They want to see you write 10 pages of content, 5 Youtube videos, 2 Instagram posts for R500/ N13 000/ USD 36.

Instead of telling them to fuck off, you can negotiate. That can mean politely telling them no and letting them know what your rates are or do 1 thing instead of 10. Alternatively, if you really want to work with the brand and they don’t budge on how much they’re offering, take it and let them know it’s a one time thing and based on the results you get from your content curation for the brand, you can go back and propose another collaboration opportunity on YOUR terms this time. They will respect you and are more likely going to listen to you knowing what you can bring to the table based on what you have already brought.

Don’t compromise your value by working with any brand that approaches you but you also don’t want to seem like you think any brand is beneath you. No one likes a pompous ass.

With all that great advise, I have even one more to help you with your email pitches to brands. Here’s what you need to put in your email pitch to brands:

• Punchy, short subject line
• Qualitative stats
• 3 to 4 short sentences of what you are proposing
• Link your blog url and social media pages
• Be warm and friendly

Note that it is much more challenging to get big name brands to work with you especially if your following is under 2000. So, approach the smaller brands that you love, to discuss how you plan to make your collaboration worth their while.

I hope you found these tips useful. Until Sunday.  Love, light and positivity. xo

Images sourced from Canva

Simi appreciation

My taste in music is eclectic. I listen to anything that sounds good, be it rock, pop, country, afrobeat, jazz or whatever.

Although where I am at a particular time tends to determine the genre of music I listen to the most. Since I came back home to Nigeria more than 7 months ago, I have been listening to a lot of Nigerian music. In just 7 months, I’ve discovered some cool artists like Show Dem Camp, Falz, Ycee, Maleek Berry, Seyi Sey and Simi whose music I enjoy.

Simi is a female Nigerian singer and songwriter who recently won an award for songwriter of the year at the All Africa Music Awards (AFRIMA) 2017. I was introduced to Simi’s music late this year when I was watching TRACE music channel. Soldier, a song by Falz featuring Simi came on. I found the video very entertaining. In it, a young lieutenant, played by Falz, seriously pursues to the point of harassing a young village girl (Simi). I couldn’t get over Simi’s sassiness and her beautiful, melodic voice. I’ve watched the music video at least 20 times now and it never gets old. You can watch it here.

Another song by Simi that I love is Joromi. I don’t actually know what the word means but the song is about a girl who fancies a guy. She gives him subtle hints but, you know guys are slow so he doesn’t get it at first but he eventually does and they live happily ever after or so I’d like to think. You can watch the video of Joromi here.

 

I went to see Simi Live at Hard Rock Cafe and here’s what I thought

I was extremely lucky to have been offered two free tickets to watch Simi Live at Hard Rock Café Lagos last Sunday courtesy of Nothing To Do In Lagos (NTDIL). I had no intention of leaving my house on that Sunday. I tend to spend my Sundays indoors blogging and preparing for the week ahead but tickets to see Simi was something I couldn’t refuse.

Even though I was given two tickets I ended up using only one because I went solo – a first for me. Who goes to a live show alone? Only loners like me but don’t feel sorry for me, I had fun.

The show was supposed to start at 8 pm but it started a little later as is to be expected. I went dressed in all black because I was trying to be obscure. Wallflower is the look I was going for.

Simi eventually came on after a few opening acts. She was wearing a glittery, rainbow coloured Michael Jacksonesque jacket. Her hair was cornrowed with platinum blonde ombre extensions. She looked like you’d expect of a performer. The crowd went wild when she came on stage and I with them (in my head).

She started by saying a few words to the crowd and it got a little emo. You could tell she was appreciative of the turnout and she even said she loved me. Okay, she was addressing the crowd but I was part of the crowd so I guess she loves me.

The space where the performance was held was quite small for the number of people it held. It became a little too crowded when Simi came on stage as people crowded the area like bees drawn to honey. I was so hot and constricted in the space that I spent more time outside trying to get some air than I did inside.

However, what I did see of the performance was great. She got to perform my two favourite songs of hers; Joromi and Soldier.

What you may not know is that Simi is better looking in person. I mean, she’s pretty on TV but she’s even prettier in person. She was full of energy, radiant, warm and bubbly. She danced, sang and did both with a smile on her face for most of the night. Her melodic voice wasn’t so evident over the microphone but I guess that is to be expected when someone sings and dances at the same time.

The crowd cheered louder when Falz came on stage and the chemistry between the two artists was palpable.

I hear that Adekunle Gold also performed with Simi on stage but I didn’t get to see the performance. I was either outside getting some air or had gone home as I was there for just under two hours.

I’m glad I got to see Simi live on stage and I am so thankful to Nothing To Do In Lagos for giving me the opportunity to do so.

I would have preferred the performance to have been on a Saturday night instead of Sunday. But it was nice to do something so out of character for a change.

For more on what’s happening in Lagos, check out http://nothingtodoinlagos.com/ or follow @nothingtodoinlagos on Instagram.

Cover image of Simi by @fullish_art on Instagram.

Thanks for reading. Please leave a comment if you enjoyed reading this post. x

My birthday was on the 16th of September but I only got to celebrate it on the first weekend in October. Two of my friends flew up from Johannesburg and we celebrated with wine tasting at La Motte and dinner at Pierneef a La Motte.

The thing about getting older is none of the things that excited me a few years ago excite me now. Sure I still want to shake my little tush to Mavado and Vybz Kartel from time to time but partying till the early hours of the morning and drinking (was never much of a drinker anyway) does not do it for me. I am that girl who goes out and is usually the first to want to leave the party. My idea of a fun night out is great food, good bottle of wine, good people and nice music in the background. This idea of fun can be had at home in my pyjamas on my bed!

That said, one of the reasons I like going out is to dress up. I  love it and will seize any opportunity to do so. I love this white bodycon dress from Sissy Boy and I felt very womanly in it.  I love the way it accentuates my curves and the cut outs at the waist add a sexy edge. I felt very much like a “grown woman” in this dress which I styled with white lace up ankle boots from Nine West and a blue bag from Zara.

I completed the white on white look with white nails. The nail polish I used for this look is CND Vinylux.

Wishing you a productive week ahead!