Instagram Influencers Reveal The Hardships That Come With Their Work

• Sherrie Webster and Bec Watkinson share the hardships that go with their day-to-day life as self-made social media influencers.
• According to the they have to work long hours, attending several activities in a day and fulfilling different responsibilities.

Social media influencers are often a misunderstood bunch. Since a lot of people do not understand the nature of their work, they often get misjudged for “not having a real job”. And yes, many mistakenly believe that they have it easy in life, mainly because of the pretty photos they post online.

Both of these assumptions are, of course, false, according to two ‘self-made influencers’ who have learned that from their own experiences. Having thousands of followers, getting brand endorsements, and maintaining a strong online presence, among many others, definitely require time, patience, and a lot of effort.

Totally not as glamorous as it looks!

In a Unilad feature, we meet two self-made Instagram influencers who shared what it’s like to live their lives. According to both, it definitely takes hard work to gain a reputation and stay afloat in the industry.

Sherrie Webster, 24, for example, only got to focus on her Instagram career after completing her university studies.

To grow her following, Sherrie used to post at least once or twice a day on her account. She also had to spend a huge amount of cash to purchase clothes in an attempt to capture the brands’ attention. It eventually proved to be a wise investment as her posts led to several deals with different companies.

The London-based fashion influencer even has to turn her account “into a business account” so she could track her reach. She currently has over 55,000 Instagram followers.

It requires way longer hours than having a dayjob.

Meanwhile, Bec Watkinson of Manchester means working for “a ridiculous amount of hours” each day, as opposed to a 9 to 5 office job.

Bec confessed:

“I’ll be working all hours of the day and night. I have to sign and adhere to contracts, shoot content and get them approved by brands, send off all insights of how the posts did, who engaged with it and what sales were made from it as well as sending out invoices and paying tax – and this is just for one brand.”

Simply said, an influencer has to wear several hats at the same time.

“We’re the sales person, brand manager, marketing team, content creators and the accountants,” said Bec, pointing out that all the work definitely brings “enormous pressure.”

As if that wasn’t enough, they also have to attend different events, some of which happen on the same day so they really have to make wise use of their time and resources.

So yes, influences live a life that go beyond what we see on their fabulous posts. They have to work daily, including weekends and holidays.

“Being a social media influencer means you have to constantly be present,” Sherrie shared. “From the moment I wake up to when I go to bed, I’m on my phone.”