What's A Digital Influencer & How Do I Become One?

“He’s Instagram famous…”

“She makes her living just making YouTube videos in her room…”

“What is a digital influencer?”

I’m sure you’ve heard one or more of these statements made at an event or even around your dinner table. The next thing you usually hear is someone ask, ”how do I become one?” 

The truth & sometimes maddening fact is there’s a great deal of luck, timing and intangible aspects to how any given fanbase is grown to influencer status. But why would I bore you with that? Let’s talk about the things that are tangible and how I know every person with a phone can make themselves a digital influencer.

I want you to understand one fact about an influencer — They are people who are interesting. 

A few years ago I became friends with, and am now mentored by, a celebrity trainer who works with, quite literally, the best-looking people in Hollywood. Their bodies are on covers of magazines, billboards & film screens and it is almost always in their contract that they will spend a good amount of time in their movies shirtless. He told me that when a new client comes to him he always asks them the same thing… ”What are you looking to achieve?” 

They almost immediately begin to describe one or another of his client's abs, or arms, or they will just say, “I want to be fit.” 

I remember myself saying similar things like this to him and he hit me with the harsh truth... 

“You do realize it’s not any of those things that make them sexy, or successful or famous right? It’s that they are interesting. They are learning new skills like martial arts or rock climbing or aerial arts. I train them to be strong enough to accomplish an actual skill.” 

Being interesting is what gives you influence over other people. It is what lifts your voice out from the rest. Yes, that may result in you having certain physical aspects but really it has more to do with what you are doing with your time. 

I compare this conversation to a digital influencer because the same traits we admire in a traditional celebrity still ring true to who we choose to follow online. We are looking for people who represent an ideal version of reality. That doesn’t mean they’re perfect, it means they are out there experiencing life in ways that maybe someone on the other side of the screen cannot.

One thing I have heard and read over & over again from people trying to tell people how to build a following is “find your voice.” 

I’m not knocking that advice, but wouldn’t it be so much more interesting to share the journey? To me, that is what a good digital influencer does. That is what endears you to people. That is what makes people root for you. That is what keeps people checking back in with you day after day.

I think a lot of traditional celebrities have shied away from social media because it can feel invasive if you don’t know how to manage it. With that being said, some of the best digital influencers are actually traditional celebrities as well. They have learned how to engage with their fanbase in a new way that makes them even more valuable as not only an actor but as someone the general public want to invest their time into.

With box office numbers dropping drastically over the last few years, and TV viewership at an all-time low, there has never been a time that being “interesting” and, in my opinion, socially engaged with your audience has been more important. 

So, is there a way to hack the system and become famous overnight? I think you already know the answer. BUT, is there an ideology that you can follow to grow your numbers gradually & significantly? Absolutely. 

I wouldn’t start by wanting to be an influencer. I would start by wanting to be interesting.

- Kelsey Farese Stephens