Don’t Rely on Brands to Create Your Main Income
You may have seen content I’ve created on my social media or YouTube channels of companies I have partnered with.
When I’m talking about influencers, I’m talking about those of you who want to create your sole income by creating brand partnerships.
I’m here to speak to those who want to make money online, make money on Instagram, or make money on YouTube using influencer marketing.
Those of you who rely on brands to pay your bills need to find a different business model.
Reasons Why You Shouldn’t Rely on Brand Partnerships for Your Main Income
Using brands for your income sucks for cash flow. Usually, there is a mess with the payment terms, and even if you get a deal for $10,000, you’ll probably get part upfront and the rest of it when the deal is done.
This lack of income consistency creates challenges when planning your finances.
Business expenses aren’t always black and white because there are too many damn cooks in the kitchen. And honestly, you’re not running your own business; you’re still promoting other people’s products.
Own Your Own Business
If you want to run a business, own your shit!
Create your product or service that adds value, and you can sell to your audience. You’ll make a lot more money and have a more predictable cash flow.
Be Careful Not to Undervalue Yourself
There are people in industries where there’s so much competition that business owners are giving away too much product or service for free. In doing so, they are undervaluing themselves. Because there’s many people who undervalue themselves and give away products and services for free, you may not be charging rates that value your time and work.
If they don’t hire you, they’re going to find somebody else who does it for free. This is rampant in several industries. When you see this going on in the market, you need to create a different business model where you have a lot more control.
Build your platform, gain followers and see what they are looking for from you. Once you’ve spent time building your audience who love and they follow you as a business model, you can conduct market research to target your business model to their needs. This gives you a much better chance to figure out what to create that will be successful in your new company.