I wanted to create a thread this morning about influencing/blogging/freelancing as a black woman to provide some tips and insight on how to win.

I'm creating this thread (and it may take some time, and I will definitely answer questions at the end) because I saw some smaller, black influencers in a group on Facebook ask how to get in on paid campaigns.

She said something to the tune of, only being offered gifted opportunities and never being approached for paid.

But first some rambling:

I cant lead you to stardom or millions, or millions of followers but I can lead you to being financially comfortable and substantive.

1. It's hard out here for us as black women in the influencer space- we get the least from brands.

I want you to understand that the fight will be hard. It is easy to become discouraged, you will get lost in other's successes.

Push through.

2. Get a niche and master it.

Perfect ONE niche first.

Beauty is too broad.
Lifestyle is too broad
Wellness is too broad

Skincare?
Makeup?
Nails?

narrow it.

You do not need a license to dominate a niche. It would inevitably be a nice touch if that's your career path anyway, but if you want to do skincare by night and be a cashier by day, you can.

3. Create a permanent space for your content.

Blogs/webspaces still matter. It's a good way to create a lane in your niche. Nothing can and will trump a website. Get one.

4. Pick three social media platforms, and post consistently, but take up space on all of them.

I am @heyaprill across all social media platforms but my focus is Twitter, Facebook Groups, and Instagram.

Which three you pick is personal. I can offer guidance 1 on 1.

5. Create your tribe.

You are unique and what you like matters as much as the people that like you. Define your space with brands that you love and topics you like to discuss. People with those same interests will gravitate to you.

Create a facebook group for your niche. Invite your friends, your family and build community through your niche's interests.

If you hate Facebook, maybe think about a telegram group, or whatsapp or a subreddit. The possibilities are endless.

6. Unapologetically support yourself- Share your posts, ask your people to share your content, show pride in what you do, be openly excited about every win.

It's your win.

No one wants to be around a spoiled sport. The drama gets old, you become insufferable and your audience will find positivity elsewhere if you are not providing it.

Win out loud.

7. Please plan your content. Keep it 70% evergreen.

Post consistently, even if that's once a week.

Be realistic about how often you can post content but be consistent regardless.

Time to talk shop about brands

1. You're a little guy, you want support right? What about Indie brands? They need love too and you two are a perfect match!

When I started blogging, I built a relationship with @CruzanChoklate of @IxoraBB , who had just started a skincare brand.

That was over 8 years ago. I helped her, she helped me.

Please befriend the little guys. Yall can be big TOGETHER. I promise.

Be as enthusiastic about an indie brand as you are Fenty, or Paula's Choice, or Dermalogica.

You cant expect something that you are not giving to the universe.

2. You're not gonna get paid for everything you do, so make sure the free work is just as good as the paid work. And add affiliate links to the free work please.

Skimlinks and Shopstyle are the best two affiliate agencies IMO. There's Pepperjam and CJ and a slew more but I keep it simple cause I dont have time for deep linking and changing out links and such. If you do, that's cool.

Indie brands also have programs as well.

3. Stop casting a wide templated pitch on large brands- creating a pitch and mass sending it to 30 brands in a day. I'll explain why in detail for 1 on 1 sessions, but it's influencer suicide.

Approach brands you like and have already created content about (through evergreen content and posts on social media) and reference that content when you pitch them.

Tag them in the posts that you create. They track their mentions through software (across all social media platforms and , but tagging shows interest and effort.

4. Cast your wide net in the influencer agency space.

Clever, Fohrcard.... all of the influencer agencies? Apply to them all and make sure all your social media accounts are connected. You will get opps there.

Back when Tapinfluence was around, every sponsored post I got through the agency landed me a permanent space in that brand's memory. I have been paid six ways from Sunday with those brands.

Still, to this day.

Im gonna pause here. We will finish tonight and I’ll answer some of your questions.

We got a AC install today.