What is an Influencer?

Definition

An influencer is someone who has many followers on social media or online platforms and can influence them. Meaning 'person who gives influence', the products, services, lifestyles, etc. they recommend or use actually influence their followers' choices. Simply put, they're famous people and opinion leaders online.

In the past, only celebrities appearing on TV or in magazines could influence the public. However, as social media developed, even ordinary people can gather many followers by showing expertise and authenticity in specific fields. Like restaurants famous by word of mouth in neighborhoods, influencers are 'people' famous by word of mouth on the internet. Housewives good at cooking, trainers teaching exercise entertainingly, office workers organizing travel information well—anyone can become an influencer in their domain.

The core of influencers isn't simply having many followers, but 'trust' and 'communication' with followers. Real influence emerges when followers believe this person's words, follow recommendations, and actively respond to content. Where ads unilaterally claim "this product is good," influencers share experiences saying "I tried it myself and these aspects were good." This difference makes influencers powerful. It's the same principle as friend recommendations being much more trustworthy than ads.

Characteristics

• High engagement: Influencer posts receive far more likes, comments, and shares than regular accounts. When an influencer with 10,000 followers posts a photo, hundreds or thousands of reactions appear. This high engagement is proof of real influence.

• Expertise and consistency: Most influencers focus on specific fields. They steadily create content in their specialized areas like beauty, fashion, travel, gaming, parenting, personal finance. This consistency builds follower trust.

• Revenue generation: Influencers can earn money from social media activities. They generate income through various methods: brand sponsorships, advertising, affiliate marketing, selling their own products. The more followers, the higher the engagement, the more income possible.

• Authenticity: Successful influencers value authenticity. Rather than simply promoting products for money, they only recommend what they truly think is good. False recommendations lose follower trust and eliminate influence.

• Classification by scale: Divided by follower count into mega influencers (over 1 million), macro influencers (100k-1M), micro influencers (10k-100k), nano influencers (1k-10k). Smaller influencers can have higher engagement and intimacy.

How to Use

Let's look at how to become an influencer or utilize influencer marketing.

How to Become an Influencer

Step 1: Choose a field Choose a field you know well, enjoy, and can do long-term. Rather than unconditionally popular fields, choose fields you're genuinely interested in and can have expertise. Cooking, exercise, gaming, books, travel, parenting, personal finance—anything is fine.

Step 2: Choose a platform Choose a platform matching your content type. If photos are your strength, Instagram; if videos, YouTube or TikTok; if short text, Twitter is good. You can operate multiple platforms simultaneously, but initially focusing on one is better.

Step 3: Steadily create content Post regularly at least 3-4 times per week. Quality matters more than quantity, but posting too rarely makes followers forget. Initially being imperfect is okay. Skills improve as you keep creating.

Step 4: Communicate with followers Reply to comments, respond to follower questions, listen to their stories. Two-way communication matters, not one-way broadcasting. Real influence emerges when followers feel you're like a friend.

Step 5: Maintain authenticity Create content honestly and truthfully. Share failures and difficulties too, and always disclose when receiving product sponsorships. People trust influencers who honestly discuss even disadvantages more.

How to Utilize Influencer Marketing

Step 1: Find suitable influencers Find influencers in fields related to your product or service. Check engagement and follower characteristics rather than follower counts. For cosmetics sales, beauty influencers; for exercise equipment, fitness influencers are suitable.

Step 2: Analyze engagement Don't just look at follower counts—check likes and comments per post. Good influencers have engagement rates (likes+comments ÷ followers × 100) of 3% or higher. Accounts with many fake followers have under 1% engagement.

Step 3: Contact and negotiate Send collaboration proposals to influencers via DM or email. Present clear conditions (post count, format, compensation, etc.) and respect the influencer's creative freedom. Too-detailed instructions reduce authenticity.

Step 4: Measure performance After collaboration, measure how many people purchased products and how much brand awareness increased. Providing exclusive discount codes or links enables accurate performance tracking.

Examples

Beauty influencer Minji was an ordinary office worker who loved makeup. She started uploading makeup tutorial videos to YouTube after work and gained popularity with friendly explanations beginners could easily follow. After 3 years, she reached 500,000 subscribers and now receives sponsorships from cosmetic brands, working as a full-time influencer. She earns over 5 million won monthly just from sponsorship income.

Micro influencer Housewife Eunyoung posts simple home meal recipes on Instagram. With only 15,000 followers, each post gets over 1,000 likes and hundreds of comments. Very high engagement means she receives sponsorship proposals from local ingredient suppliers and kitchenware companies. Companies prefer her over larger influencers due to lower marketing costs and higher trust.

Gaming influencer College student Junho isn't pro-level at gaming, but gathered 50,000 followers on Twitch with entertaining broadcasts. He talks with viewers in real-time while gaming and creates funny situations. Combined subscription revenue, donations, and game company sponsorships earn him about 3 million won monthly. He's considering becoming a full-time streamer after graduation.

Travel influencer Office worker Hyejin posts beautiful travel photos and useful information on Instagram whenever she travels during vacations. She detailed hidden restaurants, cheap accommodations, travel tips, and gathered 80,000 followers. Now she receives free accommodations and tours from hotels and travel agencies, creating related content. She hasn't quit her job, but side income is about 2 million won monthly.

Parenting influencer Sujin, mother of two, uploads parenting daily life to YouTube. She honestly shares play with children, educational methods, parenting tips. Not hiding difficult moments earned empathy from other parents, reaching 300,000 subscribers. Collaborating with parenting product brands and education companies, she covers living expenses with advertising revenue.

Advantages and Disadvantages

Advantages

• Job freedom: Influencers have few time and location constraints. They can work from home, cafes, even travel destinations. No commuting, and they set their own schedules. While laziness yields no results, freely adjusting schedules is a major advantage.

• Revenue generation: Successful influencers earn considerable income. Various revenue sources exist: advertising, sponsorships, affiliate marketing, selling their own products. Income increases with followers, and multiple revenue sources can operate simultaneously.

• Doing what you love: You can work in fields you like and do well. Hobbies become careers. If you like gaming, broadcast games; if you like cooking, create cooking content while earning money. No forcing yourself to do unwanted work.

• Influence and fulfillment: You feel great fulfillment when your content helps and influences others. Receiving feedback like "I succeeded in dieting thanks to you" or "My family really loved it when I followed your recipe" brings great joy.

• Various opportunities: Becoming an influencer opens various opportunities. Brand event invitations, new product experiences, meeting celebrities, overseas business trips—experiencing things difficult for ordinary people. Opportunities to publish your own book or appear on TV emerge too.

Disadvantages

• Instability: Income is unstable. Some months earn a lot, some months barely anything. Algorithm changes, trend shifts, follower decreases can suddenly reduce income. Without fixed monthly salary like company employees, there's economic anxiety.

• Constant pressure: You must constantly create new content. Even resting a few days makes followers leave and engagement drop. Pressure that "I must always be interesting and always perfect" becomes stress. Often can't properly rest even during vacations.

• Privacy invasion: Influencers must publicize their lives. Private life nearly disappears, and you must always be conscious of public gaze. Even walking on streets, fans might recognize you, or private life might spread online. Family or friends can be affected too.

• Hate comments and criticism: The more famous, the more hate comments and criticism. Small mistakes receive major criticism, sometimes suffering groundless rumors. Many influencers struggle mentally, with severe cases experiencing depression or anxiety.

• Fierce competition: Countless people try to become influencers. New creators emerge daily, and trends change rapidly. Without continuous growth and trying new things, you're quickly forgotten. Maintaining success can be harder than achieving success.

FAQ

Q: How many followers do I need to become an influencer? A: There's no exact standard, but usually 1,000+ is considered nano influencer. Over 10,000 qualifies as micro influencer eligible for brand sponsorships. However, engagement matters more than numbers. With 5,000 followers but high engagement, you can have greater influence than accounts with 50,000 followers. Don't expect many followers initially—focus on steadily creating good content.

Q: How much can influencers earn? A: It varies widely. Nano influencers earn about 100k-500k won monthly as side income, micro influencers 1M-5M won monthly, macro influencers can earn tens of millions monthly. Mega influencers receive hundreds of thousands or tens of millions per post. However, this is the top few %'s story—most influencers earn insufficient to sustain livelihoods. Starting as a side job is recommended.

Q: Which influencer field is most popular? A: Beauty, fashion, travel, food, gaming, parenting, personal finance are traditionally popular fields. However, recently niche fields succeed too. Very specialized fields like pet training, minimalism, plant growing, secondhand trading tips can gather loyal followers. What matters isn't popular fields but choosing fields you genuinely enjoy and can do long-term.

Q: How should influencer ads be displayed? A: Legally, content receiving advertising or sponsorship must be clearly marked. In Korea, "#ad", "#sponsored", "#provided" etc. must be prominently displayed. Hiding this can incur sanctions from the Fair Trade Commission. It also loses follower trust. Being transparent is more advantageous long-term.

Q: How about buying fake followers? A: Absolutely not recommended. Fake followers are bots or inactive accounts that don't react to posts. Many followers but low engagement gets quickly noticed by brands. Rather, reputation worsens and sponsorship opportunities are lost. Additionally, platforms regularly delete fake accounts, so purchased followers may disappear. Slowly gathering real followers is far better.

Q: What's needed to start influencer activities? A: Expensive equipment isn't necessary. Just a smartphone is enough to start. Many free photo/video editing apps exist. Most important are good content ideas and consistency. Being imperfect initially is okay. Learn and improve while continuing. When content starts gaining popularity, investing in better equipment then isn't too late.

Q: Are influencers recognized as a profession? A: Yes, they're now recognized as an official profession. For tax filing, job codes like 'solo media creator' and 'content creator' exist. When income occurs, you must register as a business and pay taxes. Famous universities open creator departments, and influencer agencies are increasing. No longer seen as 'earning money while playing', it's recognized as a professional job requiring planning, filming, editing, and marketing abilities.

Q: Can you be an influencer for life? A: Not easy. Influencers are very sensitive to trend and algorithm changes. Among influencers popular 10 years ago, not many still actively work now. However, with good brand building, expanding to various platforms, and maintaining authenticity, you can work long-term. Many successful influencers diversify revenue by creating their own brands or businesses. For example, creating cosmetic brands or starting education businesses—expanding from influencer activities as a stepping stone to other businesses is a good strategy.