Why influencers should start their own lifestyle brands

Influencers are great at creating world-class content, but most influencers are less business-minded than they think. Let us tell you how influencers should act to receive 50 to 100 times more financial value, and at the same time, become more authentic in their content creation.

Let´s start by defining what an influencer is. We don´t believe influencers are the traditional Instagram stars only. To us, an influencer is generally every person or community with a digital following, independent of channel or area of expertise. It´s simply a person or community with high trustworthiness and a digital reach, which makes it possible for them to influence people. This could be the traditional fashion star on YouTube or Instagram, but also the bird-watcher with his or her niche podcast, or the fisherman talking about the latest fishing gear in his or her newsletter. The thing that unites every influencer is that they create world-class content - content that brings great value to their following.

Influencers have historically monetized their following in mainly three ways:

(1)

By receiving free product gifts that hopefully would be promoted by the influencer.

(2)

By charging for marketing services to promote products and services through the influencer’s channels.

(3)

By creating inauthentic collections for product companies, selling these through the influencers channels.

We believe influencers are here to stay, but that the way influencer marketing is performed is developing rapidly. All of the approaches above are only creating a short time value for the influencer.

How would an influencer not only increase both the received short- and long term value, but also monetize their following in a more authentic way? The answer is by creating their own product brand company. This way the influencer not only receives short term incomes from the company profits but also gets to build a long term company value. The thing is that this approach gives the influencer a 50 to 100 more value in terms of $ in the long term. It is also less artificial and much more authentic, and creates fluid content that is more genuine to the influencer than someone else’s brand ever will be.

There are many exciting examples of how massive value has been build by influencers who chose to start their own product companies. Kim Kardashian, as an example, has reaped the benefits of starting her own brands instead of doing collaborations. We will examine these success stories is separate blog posts ahead.

If you are an influencer that gets excited about this - get in touch with us! Fashion Tech Group develops, manages, and scales authentic product brands for category-leading influencers who want to establish their lifestyle brand. We offer a seamless procedure regarding the concept, production, logistics, marketing, operations, and e-commerce solutions. We are the go-to partner for you to realize your dream.

Interview with Organista founder Linn Herbertsson

Linn Herbertsson is a Swedish entrepreneur and influencer, obsessed with her latest venture Organista. We met her in Stockholm over a cup of coffee only a few weeks after the company was launched.

Hey Linn! Tell me more about yourself!

Hello there! I originally come from a tiny village in the south of Sweden called Skanör but I’ve been living in Stockholm for almost ten years now and I’m still head over heels in love with this city. I have a Master of Science in Business and Economics, a dog called Charlie and I’ve been working with my social media channels as my main occupation for about 8 years now. 

What is Organista, and how did you come up with the idea?

I love to organize and as long as I can remember I have organized my suitcase with old plastic bags and one day I got tired of it. That was when I decided to start my own company, creating products for other people out there who love organizing as much as I do, or at least have a dream about becoming more organized in their life.

How has the launch of Organista been so far?

Wow, mind-blowing! I couldn’t have asked for a better start. We got covered in press in most parts of Sweden and people shared the news and our products all over sociala media. I’m beyond thankful and so excited!

You are really awesome in creating great content, and therefore great value, to you audience. What is your secret?

Thank you so much! I just love creating content, I think that is my best advice, to do what you love! And to always have a clear vision of what you want to communicate in your channels. Bulk up with inspiration and then start creating content and add your own personal touch to it. 

Are you planning to add video content to you site, and if yes, why?

For sure! If you ask me video is the present and the future. When followers can see exactly what they gain by using your products, that’s when they become customers. Always add value!

What challenges are you currently facing?

Ah, mostly logistic challenges! We want our products to be available for everyone, everywhere. But it takes some time to be able to do that!

What has your greatest fuck-up been so far within your company?

Haha, I almost don’t think of fuck-ups as fuck-ups anymore. I learn so much from every mistake I make so I’ve actually started to look at it as something very positive to keep on developing the company and our offer. 

Finally, tell us something most people don´t know about you!

Oh, that was a tricky one! I tell my followers almost everything, but maybe the fact that I’m kind of a nerd. I love reading, statistics, maths and almost everything you learn in school. I don’t think people see me as such a person.