How Influencers Makes $$$ and How You Can Too
Jen “Odd” Glantz here! I wanted to share something a little different today. Rather than pass along odd jobs you can apply for or start on your own, I wanted to talk about easy ways to monetize your audience, whether you’re an influencer or not.
I started doing this when I had just 10,000 followers and was able to bring in some cash. Now, I have a lot more followers and brand deals make up a big part of my recurring income. I’m sharing exactly how I do this below.
PS. I have (1) open spot for 1:1 coaching next month. These go fast so if you ever wanted to work together on a life-career-side hustle strategy, I’ve got your back.
How Influencers Makes $$$ and How You Can Too
I'm an entrepreneur, and for the past 10 years, I've been sharing the details of my life on the internet. I started out as a blogger and eventually began to use social media, a podcast, and an email newsletter as ways to grow my customer base and expand the reach of my personal brand.
But it wasn't until last year that I decided I wanted to start monetizing these different content streams by working with brand partners and sponsors.
After years of slowly building my audience, I realized that I was reaching close to 100,000 people a month on all of my platforms and could start doing deals with brands who wanted access to the people who followed me. I started off by building a media kit using a free template on Canva, which showcased what platforms I have, the types of content I create, and the numbers that support each vertical — from follower count to my email open rate to how many listeners my podcast gets every month, and more.
After I had a media kit ready to go, I started looking for brands who wanted to work with me. Today, more than 20% of my income comes from brand sponsorships.
Without using an agent or manager, here were the three ways I found my first handful of sponsors to work with in 2021 and 2022.
1. I reached out to brands directly
The very first approach I took was to make a list of brands that I genuinely loved and used regularly. I picked skincare, jewelry, and clothing companies I'd followed for years and reached out to them directly.
After searching on LinkedIn for the name of the brand's partnership or influencer manager, I located their email using a free tool called Any Mail Finder and drafted my pitch.
Here's my email template:
I'm Jen Glantz. It's wonderful to e-meet you! I'm reaching out because I've been a fan of [brand name] for several years, relying on [name of product] to get me through [a specific use case of when I use the product].
As a social media, newsletter, and podcast content creator in the wedding space, I'd love to work with [brand name] on a partnership to spread the word about your unique and incredible products.
I'm sharing my media kit with you today and hope we can chat more about working together this season.
While I only heard back from one of the three brands I initially pitched, I was able to close a small brand deal with a sunscreen company I use regularly called Solara to post an ad in my newsletter and do a TikTok video about its newest product launch. It helped me secure my first well-known brand partnership that can help lead to more deals in the future.
2. I used an influencer-management platform
One passive way that I've been able to land new brand deals is by using free influencer and creator-management platforms. These platforms let you create a profile, where you can share details about your content-creation verticals (social-media channels, newsletter, or podcasts) as well as your pricing for brand deals based on what kind of content you're open to creating or the types of ads you'll run. After you list that information, brands from beauty to fashion, kitchen supplies, and more can contact you if they believe you're a good fit for them.
You can also use these platforms to search for brands interested in working with content creators and pitch them directly on the platform. While these platforms are free to use, some might take a fee once you book a deal with a brand, while others charge the brand and not the creator.
For social-media brand deals, I use AspireIQ and Tinysponsor, and for newsletter and podcast ad deals I use Swapstack.
3. I post for free and tag brands
If there's a brand that I really want to work with and they haven't responded to my email pitch, I start creating content for free and tag them in my posts. I'll share my favorite products or items from them in an Instagram story, mention them in a TikTok video, send the brand account a DM, or talk about them in my newsletter.
The hope is that when they see these mentions and maybe even reach out to work together, I have a portfolio of content I can share with them about their product or service. This shows the brand your true commitment and also gives them a taste of the kind of content you can create for them.
Be sure to tag the brand in your posts, use their branded hashtags, and use any additional hashtags that are relevant to them. You can often find these hashtags by looking at the ones the brand has used in recent posts. While I don't advise creators to work for free, doing this occasionally to get on a brand's radar might be a good move, especially when starting out.
I recently did this with a skincare company that I really liked and that hadn't responded to two pitch emails I'd sent. Showing them what I'd created for free helped me enter the negotiation phase, and we're in talks about doing a 2023 partnership.
The Odd List of Random Things
🤔 Add to your life:
Books & Stuff:
A fun little list of all the things that I adore the most in this world - from books to oddities for your desk.
Tools: Here are some of my go-to platforms to use.
Time management and to-do list management tool I use daily
🙂 Work With Jen Glantz:
👏1:1 coaching: I specialize in working with people who want to switch careers, start their own business, improve their personal brand, or are feeling lost in life. Book a session and let’s work together this month.
👏Courses: Want a quick pick-me-up? I offer a handful of digital courses that include videos, assignments, and real-time personalized feedback from me along the way. Check them out here - the most popular one is the personal branding course.
👏Company workshops & speaking: I offer company workshops and conference keynotes on topics that include personal branding, social media trends, storytelling, and more. I’ve worked with Google, Apple, HBO, ESPN, and more. Learn more here.
Advertise: Want to showcase your business or brand in one of my newsletters or on my social media? Let’s chat about open opportunities.
+ Random:
Books // Card Game // Bridesmaid for Hire // Scared to Be a Mom // Shop
Instagram // TikTok // Podcast